Chainhurst 19th September 2010

The 19th September 2010 saw the members of the Working Section meet for the first time this season.  With the kind help of the Bolebrook Beagles we went draghunting at Chainhurst near Maidstone, Kent over a mixture of stubble and grass land alongside the River Beult.

It was mild and dry- a typical autumnal day but the hounds didn’t overheat.  Before the 22 beagles moved off to the first field there was a chance to catch up on the summer news and meet the owners of the 8 new hounds over a glass of port with a variety of nibbles. 

Often it takes a while to get the old hands back to the business of following the line and for the newcomers to understand that they are allowed, even encouraged, to run away from their owners, but this meet proved to be less chaotic than some.  Nelson Antonsen and Folly Peach ably assisted by Magic and Indy Beaney, four of our established working certificate holders, were happy to be back in the field, following the aniseed lure and showing everybody how it is done.  This left Buster Forbes and Riot McSheehy, the other workers, to bring up the rear and make sure that everybody returned.

One of our newcomers, Milo Barber, showed great promise but Daisy Terry had to be shown what to do by her owner running the line with her on the lead.  Another first timer was Lily McBain who didn’t connect her Flag Judging success (where she won Best Bitch at the Beagle Club BBQ) with the drag itself - it shouldn’t take long.  Missy Hankey, who just missed a Working Certificate at last season's trial, enjoyed showing Bertie Hankey how it was done, and by the last line, Bertie was doing it all by himself. 

The final line of the day provided an opportunity to run the whole pack together, which was a wonderful way to end the meet.  Once back at the cars, all the members had a chance to compare notes over the last of the nibbles.