When is the official date that the hunt can start shooting? We live in Tarn et Garonne and like most reside in a rural location. Each year the start date seems to get closer to the end of August than the year before.
However, on Friday morning at 5.45am whilst still dark, the chasse were back and its only mid August! They turned up and parked just outside our property with their numerous white vans and pick up trucks with what sounded like dozens of baying dogs, this in turn upset our dogs who started barking and then woke our sleeping guests! No shots were heard but this morning they were back again with their flourescent jackets blocking the road at 8am.
Is there an official date for the start and end of the shooting season? I was told last year that they could shoot small game, like quail at the beginning of September, moving on to larger animals at the end of the month. Have the rules changed again or are our local hunt just taking the proverbial p.....?
Although I have no real gripe with the hunt per say, as I am a country person myself and did hunt in the UK, I do object to the way they like to run rough shod over our land and do just what they when when they want. I know about the 150m rule, but this doesnt seem to be respected unless I challenge them directly, Perhaps I need to go out with my air rifle in my PJ's - that might scare them away perminantly!
However, while we still have guests, with children running around I would have said it is a no no, considering how gung ho some can be with their rifles!
Fair enough! I'd be interested to know how the compensation works & who does the accounts. All my mates here are either farmers or hunters & none I have asked today has heard of the system. I'm not saying you are wrong as the longer I live in France the more I begin to believe in the bizarre.
Saw them out it the Gers yesterday, orange Jackets, warning signs, controlling traffic
My husband has been a chasseur for several years and he knows that compensation is paid to the farmers for damages by the sanglier to their crops.
Carolyn, I would take that with a large pinch of salt. Who pays for the crop damage caused by the hunters & hounds when flushing out the sanglier? :-)
Thanks Jo I am sure it will come in handy!
In our area of the Dordogne, hunting started on Thursday 15th August but only for sanglier and only in the corn fields as wild boar can destroy so much of the corn. Apparently any damage done by sanglier to farmers' crops is paid for by the local chasse as it is their responsibility to keep the numbers down.
Hope this helps.
Thanks claire very useful, I did not know that the mayor could extend it to 200m, I will give it a go! I have to be careful here as we are quite friendly with a couple of local farmers who allow hunting on their land, which adjoins ours. I am reluctant to put "No Hunt" signs everywhere as I am told it agrivates the situation as the hunt here seem to think English are wealthy and stupid and they can do what they like and do not understand French countryside laws!
I did have a run in with the hunt last year when they arrived and let their dogs roam accross our garden and poo on the front lawn. I marched up to the end of the driveway and asked them to remove their dogs from our garden. The chasse man ignored me until I eyeballed him and asked again politely, but forceably. He said he couldn't call his dogs as they were disobedient! My answer, well don't hunt with them if you can't control them. Fortunately, they did then leave.
The following week we were planting trees in the garden and saw a hunter in the garden with his dog, as soon as he saw me he hid and jumped over the ditch away from the house. When I approached him, I asked why he was there but he avoided me. A short time after we went to a local event at the salle des fetes and saw him again, he was decidely uncomfortable. I approached him and said I know you don't ? It turned out he was from the neighbouring commune and poaching on our patch. He is now worried I will report him to our commune, so stays well away!
I will make sure I am vigilant this hunting season, but if anything, it is the one thing that really gets to me through the winter as our peace and space is consistantly invaded, not just on a Sunday, but a Monday and Wednesday or whenever they feel like it!
Thanks for this Clare, having read it, I shall now be doing this for my own land soon, as I've lost a lot of young trees that I had planted, from hunters and farmers driving across my land as a shortcut, to save themselves a 200metre drive on the road adjoining the field!
Hello Alison. When I moved to Vienne 86, in 2006, a very nice chap appeared from some sort of countryside warden organisation and asked me if the hunters were coming too close. He left me a card to report any problems to, and I've lost it, but if I have a look and find it this week I shall be sure to pass it on.
I'm a scientist by nature and I have to say Brian's arguments make a lot more sense here. Sorry Jane.
I too, am not opposed to hunting. I rather favour Oscar Wildes's view, which is that hunting is fine, but some hunting ie fox, can be described as "the unspeakable in pursuit of the uneatable"
I think the hunting lobby has been highjacked by those who hunt purely for pleasure and have no concern for property, ecology an animal welfare and by some farmers who are more concerned with profit than ecology. I think pro hunters should split into two distinct camps, those who hunt for a very good reason and rid themselves of the pro-fox/pro cull for saving money lobbyists.
The hunt around us is pretty good, they do respect the 150m limit generously (after i'd gone and pointed out that there was a house there and it was lived in) but even so when I'm walking the dogs and I think there might be hunters around the dogs wear bells so they know that there's something there.
We have been told that if we have 4 strands of wire to fencing around your land then the chasse should not tresspass on your land. You can also notify the chasse that your land is "interdit de chasse"
In Corsica the official date for wild boar is August 15th...Can hear shooting at nights in the village I'm from... ;) For the rest of the year it's called poaching...But as for the rest the State seems not to care about that either...
Pace e Salute
I consider myself so lucky; we have lived just outside Parthenay for over four years and have only once heard guns, and that was about three years ago. It seems that none of the locals here hunt, so we never have to worry about wild animals being injured or pets finding themselves in the firing line. Perhaps people here are more enlightened.
By all acounts the worst place to be is next to a hunter since they seem to spend a lot of time shooting each other. I can never understand why they wear camouflage clothing then don a reflective bright orange vest on top.
Here is the official site for date for the country. Just select your region
http://www.oncfs.gouv.fr/Chasser-dans-les-regles-ru18/Dates-douverture-de-la-chasse-2012-2013-ar1313
We are in the Tarn & Garonne as well and the chasse here are a law unto themselves. It was so bad here once that they were parking on our driveway and on our land less than 150m from the house. The mayor would do nothing so I went to the prefecture in Montauban, who stamped on them. We had an official letter from them confirming the law to waft under their noses if they tried anything again. 12 months later we had a new incident within the 150m, I went down with a camera, photo'd their cars and them and they disappeared within seconds and we haven't seen them since. They know the law but if you let them they will abuse it! I don't object to hunting either but, when you have a young child and pets they should respect the distances. Did you also know that the mayor has the power to extend the 150m to 200m? Also a forgot to mention that if you own the land around your house, every four years you have the right to apply for the land to be faune sauvage via the prefecture and they can't go on the land then, anyway. This is what we did and we are protected for 4 years. Once applied for it is highly likely not be challenged in the future, but if they go on this land you can simply call the police and they will remove them. You need to check with the prefecture when the 4 year period starts and ends and application have to be made at least 4 months before the expiry period for consideration.
It seems to be all the year round here in Corsica!!!!
Here in the Beaujolais hunting starts on the 2nd Sunday in Sept so this year it will be the 8th.