reportage Running wild
The format is simple. A trail of scent is laid across open country, maybe six miles in length. In the past a fox’s scent was used: the cloth bedding of a captive fox was taken out and trailed to lay the scent, or fox urine was used to soak cloths for dragging. Nowadays in Kerry the cloth—a bundle of rags—is soaked in a mixture of fish oils and a critical active element, aniseed. Once this is dragged over the course, the dogs are freed. Nobody follows them across land: the men drive on to crossing points and wait for the hunt to cross the road. The concentration is intense, the excitement at start and finish tangible. As the dogs strain to be released the owners talk them up, firing them, whetting appetites for the chase. The barking builds to a crescendo, the passion feeding on itself.
Spring 1999 | Tony O'Shea and related links | Archive | Back | Next | 5 of 15