There is a new member of the Association of Masters of Harriers and Beagles (AMHB) – after the South Wales-based Valley Beagles registered for the first time on 1 May.
The pack, which belongs to sole master and huntsman Ceri Olsen, have been in existence since 2002, but have only just joined the governing body.
“We want to show, to be able to be part of the studbook and use registered stallion hounds and draft hounds, to be able to register our own country and to gain the benefits that come from being an affiliated pack,” said Mr Olsen.
There used to be a pack called the Valley Beagles but they disbanded around 1984. Mr Olsen first took an interest in beagling as a child in the early 1990s and hunted with the Monmouthshire Beagles.
The present pack’s hunting country stretches from the M4 in the south, west to Swansea and north to the Brecon Beacons.
The kennels are at Treharris, south of Merthyr Tydfil, and the pack hunts on Tuesdays and Saturdays.
AMHB’s Lizzie Salmon said: “There are a few unregistered packs and we’d welcome them.”
Another new development in the beagling world is the amalgamation of the Stoke Hill Beagles and the North Dartmoor Beagles.
For information contact hunt secretary Kerris Jones on 01443 411677.
This news story was first published in the current issue of H&H (3 May 2012)
