Meath majority want Ward Union banned 6 November 2007 A majority of people in Meath want Minister John Gormley to refuse a licence to the Ward Union hunt. According to a poll carried out by the Meath Post, nearly two thirds of residents in the Royal County now want the cruel hunt ended. The poll also found that only around a quarter of locals want the hunt to continue while nine per cent of those polled said that they didn't know. The results of a Meath Post opinion poll confirm that a majority of Meath residents want Minister Gormley to refuse a licence to the Ward Union deer hunt. ICABS welcomes the results of this poll and has brought them to the attention of Minister Gormley. Photos: carted deer hunting cruelty A deer, drenched in sweat, stands weakly in the Ward Union's livestock trailer at the end of a gruelling cross-country chase. Please ask your local TDs and Senators to save deer from this cruel blood sport Ward Union "deer handlers" wrestle the deer head-first into the ground at the end of a hunt. Animals are at great risk during this merciless move and at least one has been choked to death. At the end of a hunt, one of the Ward Union hunt's "deer handlers" prevents an exhausted and injured deer from escaping by grabbing hold of its mouth and ear. Another handler attempts to hide the head injury by holding his hand over it. The Ward Union's "deer handlers" surround an exhausted and injured deer at the end of a hunt and grab hold of its body to prevent it from escaping. Ward Union hunt members push and pull the injured deer back towards the deer cart at the end of a hunt. Videos: Carted deer hunting cruelty Ban the Ward Union Deer Hunt Duration: 00:30 Carted deer hunting Duration: 04:51 ACTION ALERT 1 Please contact Environment Minister, John Gormley, and appeal to him to stop carted deer hunt cruelty by firmly refusing a licence to the Ward Union. Sample Letter (If you have time, please compose your own personal letter. Otherwise, send the short sample letter below. Be assertive, but polite, in all correspondence. Thank you.) Minister John Gormley Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government Custom House, Dublin 1. Email: minister@environ.ie Tel: 01 888 2403. Fax: 01 878 8640. Dear Minister Gormley, I share the views of the majority of County Meath residents who, according to a Meath Post poll, want you to refuse a licence to the Ward Union hunt. There is no place in modern Ireland for a cruel activity like carted deer hunting and I appeal to you to please refuse a licence to this hunt. This move will be welcomed by a huge cross-section of people in Meath and around Ireland and the world. Thank you and best wishes. Yours sincerely, [Name/Location] ACTION ALERT 2 Please contact your local TD and Senator and ask them to make an appeal to Minister Gormley on your behalf. For the names of your TDs, please click on your county on the Irish Government website (http://www.oireachtas.ie/members%2Dhist/default.asp?housetype=0&HouseNum=30&disp=const) Contact your TD at: Dail Eireann, Leinster House, Kildare Street, Dublin 2. Tel: 01-618 3000 or 1890 337889 (1890 DEPUTY). For a list of Senators, please visit the Irish Government website (http://www.oireachtas.ie/members-hist/default.asp?housetype=1&HouseNum=24&disp=mem) Contact your Senator at: Seanad Eireann, Leinster House, Kildare Street, Dublin 2. Tel: 01-618 3000 or 1890 732 623 (1890 SEANAD). Sample Letter (If you have time, please compose your own personal letter. Otherwise, send the short sample letter below. Be assertive, but polite, in all correspondence. Thank you.) Dear [Deputy] or [Senator], I am writing to ask you to please spare 30 seconds to view an Irish Council Against Blood Sports video which exposes the cruel activities of the Meath-based Ward Union carted deer hunt. The video can be seen at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3f7NYyhDhg I trust that you will agree that this appalling blood sport has absolutely no place in modern Ireland. Please save deer from the suffering caused by carted deer hunting by joining the widespread calls on Minister John Gormley to ban this hunt. Thank you. Yours sincerely, [Name/Location] More information about carted deer hunting Carted deer hunting: Leaflet | Photos | Videos | Petition News Menu | Join | Top | Home