PLANS by Tony Blair's local hunt to use a bird of prey to beat the ban on hunting with dogs have been condemned as cruel and dangerous.

Experienced falconer Phil Gibbons, from Spennymoor, County Durham, fears that using a bird to chase prey, as the South Durham and 30 other hunts are proposing, could lead to the bird being killed by hounds.

Mr Gibbons said only a bird as large as a golden eagle was suitable to go after larger prey such as foxes, but said they would just as likely go for the hounds as their quarry.

He said: "It is an animal welfare issue. The members of the Hawk Board are against it, but the hunts will not listen.

"They are talking about using eagle owls, which do not cost much to buy, about £90 to £150, but they are not big enough for the job.

"Also you need years of training and experience to fly a bird, you cannot just pick it up on a course lasting a few days. Owls are very stubborn and they are difficult to train.

"I cannot see how they can stop the dogs going for the bird if it pounces on the prey; they would tear it to pieces. I do not think the hunts care about the birds.

"If they tried an eagle, it could be very dangerous. They cost about £5,000, so it would be very expensive."

The Hunting Act 2004 says that no more than two dogs can be used to flush foxes to a waiting gun, although a pack of dogs can lawfully follow a scent or drag trail.

Some hunts say that when the bill was drawn up, no restriction was placed on the number of dogs flushing out wild mammals, including foxes, for a bird of prey to chase. This interpretation is disputed by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Mr Gibbons, head falconer at Ridgeside Falconry, said: "I support hunting and think the bill is very poor."

The South Durham Hunt already has a young eagle owl, but master Mark Shotton denied the hounds would go for the birds. He said: "They will be under control. If we cannot stop the hounds, we will not let the bird off.

"We are going after vermin of all kinds, not just foxes. There is a huge problem with grey squirrels, for example.

"It is very early days. We are just training at the moment. We have to try any means to save the infrastructure of the hunt."

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