Oliver Francis Thompson, a 32-year-old man residing in Old Berkshire Hunt Kennels, Farringdon, has admitted to his involvement in two cases of animal cruelty. One of the incidents involved him inciting his Patterdale Terrier to intimidate a fox that had been trapped in a cage.
The offenses, which took place in 2020 in the Melksham area, occurred while Thompson was employed with the Avon Vale Hunt in Wiltshire. Evidence from July 2020 includes a video clip shared between Thompson and his acquaintances. The footage depicts Thompson with a young fox confined in a cage, provoking his dog Nellie to bark and act aggressively towards the helpless animal at close range. The video further shows Thompson removing the fox from the cage, holding it by the scruff, and throwing it towards the growling dog not less than 19 times.
In another shocking incident on Christmas Eve of the same year, Thompson—dressed in a hunting jacket—is seen digging out a fox from its burrow. This act, witnessed by his colleagues in traditional hunting attire, terriermen, and a minor, concludes with the live fox being thrown to a pack of hunting hounds.
Thompson admitted to these appalling actions at the Swindon Magistrates’ Court and faced sentencing on Monday, December 11. He was handed suspended prison sentences—20 weeks for instigating unnecessary suffering to a fox by encouraging hounds to maul the trapped animal and a 6-week term for causing harm to another fox by bringing it into dangerous proximity to a dog. Both sentences were suspended.
Additionally, Thompson’s dog, Nellie, has been removed from his care and rehomed by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA). Thompson has been ordered to pay £2,500 in court costs and a £128 victim surcharge. He is also required to complete 300 hours of unpaid community work.
Stuart Radbourne, an associate of Thompson also based in Wiltshire, appeared in one of the videos related to the case and was sentenced to an adjourned prison term in October 2023.
Chief Inspector Will Mitchell of the RSPCA’s Special Operations Unit expressed his shock and disgust at the incidents, calling them extreme examples of inhumanity towards animals. The actions depicted in the videos, such as throwing a live fox into a pack of hounds or inciting a dog to assault a fox, starkly contrast with the societal values of caring for animals. He extended thanks to everyone involved in bringing the culprits to justice.
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