Hares Yes or No?

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Hares Yes or No?
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Snap Cap

Joined: 16 Apr 2006
Posts: 553
Location: Outside a warren armed to the teeth.

Posted: Fri Aug 11, 06 3:18 pm Post subject: Hares Yes or No?
As Hare season is upon us I would like to know your politics on trapping and hunting them? I would not generally take a Hare because Essex dosn't have that many of them. And the prep side of eating one fills me with dred. So what are your opinions on this.

Mary-Jane

Joined: 13 Jan 2005
Posts: 18397
Location: The Fishing Strumpet is from Ceredigion in West Wales

Posted: Fri Aug 11, 06 3:28 pm Post subject:
Gervase and I never shoot hares. They're too rare, precious and beautiful to bag for the pot in our opinion.

Snap Cap

Joined: 16 Apr 2006
Posts: 553
Location: Outside a warren armed to the teeth.

Posted: Fri Aug 11, 06 3:31 pm Post subject:
They are quite numereous in many places. But on the farm I shoot on the farmer tells us to leave them alone because he likes to see them playing in the fields so that is what I do leave them alone.

sally_in_wales
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 06 Mar 2005
Posts: 20809
Location: sunny wales

Posted: Fri Aug 11, 06 3:33 pm Post subject:
Personally hares have a symbolic relevance to me, so whearas I'll happilly eat bunny, I wouldnt willingly eat hare even in those few areas where they are common. Uncertain how I'd feel about a roadkill one even. So in my own opinion, not an animal for eating, but I know others here who cheerfully do.

Mary-Jane

Joined: 13 Jan 2005
Posts: 18397
Location: The Fishing Strumpet is from Ceredigion in West Wales

Posted: Fri Aug 11, 06 3:40 pm Post subject:

Snap Cap wrote:

But on the farm I shoot on the farmer tells us to leave them alone because he likes to see them playing in the fields...

Aye. The farmer we bought our smallholding from asked that we do exactly the same thing, which of course we were more than happy to do.

Like Sally, I have no problem with shooting and eating bunnies - but a hare, no.

cab

Joined: 01 Nov 2004
Posts: 32429

Posted: Fri Aug 11, 06 3:57 pm Post subject:

The hare population in parts of Cambs., Suffolk and Norfolk is pretty high, so I do buy the odd one for the pot. Bloody good value, excellent eating. Around here it isn't hunting them for the pot that limits their numnbers, its habitat and space, so I don't see any major problem in eating the odd one. The ones that make it to the butcher and the farmers market tend to have been shot by farmers who want to keep the number down.

If I lived in an area with less hares, I might be a lot less happy to eat 'em.

Snap Cap

Joined: 16 Apr 2006
Posts: 553
Location: Outside a warren armed to the teeth.

Posted: Fri Aug 11, 06 4:06 pm Post subject:
That is the main thing that puts me off is the hanging and all that goes with it. I have no probs at all with shooting and eating coney's in fact got bunny piella<sp> tomorrow!

Treacodactyl
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 25795
Location: Jumping on the bandwagon of opportunism

Posted: Fri Aug 11, 06 4:18 pm Post subject:
Look after their habitat, do as much as you can to help them, which includes good legal predator control, and take the odd one for the pot. I tend to think if they don't have much of a purpose then people will not look after their habitat. Anyone know what else eats hairs, do foxes get them?

Snap Cap

Joined: 16 Apr 2006
Posts: 553
Location: Outside a warren armed to the teeth.

Posted: Fri Aug 11, 06 4:26 pm Post subject:
It would be a clever a fox to get one as they stay mostly out in the open and once notified of incomming danger have an impressive turn of speed. I would imagine the young ones are fair game for the flying hunters. But even a Harris hawk would struggle with a full grown hare. So would say their most succesful enemy is man.

judith

Joined: 16 Dec 2004
Posts: 22789
Location: Montgomeryshire

Posted: Fri Aug 11, 06 5:01 pm Post subject:
We don't shoot, but have quite a few friends who do and share their proceeds. Hares don't come our way very often at all - perhaps one a year or less. That is enough for me. It remains something special to be savoured that way.

Silas

Joined: 29 Oct 2004
Posts: 6848
Location: Staffordshire

Posted: Fri Aug 11, 06 5:09 pm Post subject:

Mary-Jane wrote:

Gervase and I never shoot hares. They're too rare, precious and beautiful to bag for the pot in our opinion.

Absoloutly.

Agree 100%

Silas

Joined: 29 Oct 2004
Posts: 6848
Location: Staffordshire

Posted: Fri Aug 11, 06 5:09 pm Post subject:

sally_in_wales wrote:

Personally hares have a symbolic relevance to me, so whearas I'll happilly eat bunny, I wouldnt willingly eat hare even in those few areas where they are common. Uncertain how I'd feel about a roadkill one even.

So in my own opinion, not an animal for eating, but I know others here who cheerfully do.

Yep.

You are 100% right!

Wombat

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 396
Location: SW Cheshire

Posted: Fri Aug 11, 06 5:42 pm Post subject:
BASC ask members in Cheshire not to shoot Hares. We have a shoot in Cheshire and there are lots of them, but we dont shoot them. Wombat

Bodger

Joined: 23 May 2006
Posts: 13524

Posted: Fri Aug 11, 06 5:49 pm Post subject:
In my youth I took plenty but not for twenty odd years. Firstly I love them as creatures and secondly I don't like the taste of them. I could still go out and take dozens very easily but I just don't. Modern farming and too many sheep are responsible for the decline in hare numbers.

RoryD

Joined: 02 Jun 2005
Posts: 692
Location: West Yorkshire

Posted: Fri Aug 11, 06 5:54 pm Post subject:
I don't a. do any shooting b. want to offend anyone c. have any strong view either way. Is a hare not just a big rabbit? Why is a Hare beautiful and a Rabbit not? Scarcity aside whats the big deal?

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