RA Hunt Kennels
Mr Robert Moffat – HUNTSMAN
The Royal Artillery Hunt Kennels are situated at Bulford Camp in the County of Wiltshire.
Accommodation: The Kennels were built in 1934 and were purpose built in the traditional Hunt Kennel style of the time. There are three main lodges, each having an indoor area with raised bedding and an outdoor walled yard. The doghound lodge can house up to 20 couple of hounds and the bitch lodge can house up to 20 couple of bitches and the hot bitch lodge 10 couple at present there are 12 & half couple of dog hounds and 16 & half couple of bitchs. There is also a seperate block of 3 whelping lodges & 1 sick lodge During good weather the hounds can be turned out into the two well fenced grass yards (paddocks).
The Royal Artillery hounds follow an artificial scent. They hunt on Saturdays and Wednesdays during the season, which is from the end of the summer to mid April. On non hunting days the hounds can be seen daily exercising along the tracks around the Salisbury Plain Training Area with the Hunt Staff riding bicycles.
A year in the Hunt kennels
The hunting year runs from the 1st of May to the 30th of April, in late April the hounds are in let down mode,each day they are taken out for a walk of up to 40-50 mins which is very relaxed,but also a very important part of the training of the pups which may be still on couples depending when they were born.
May is very busy as preparing the kennels for the Puppy Show which is in the first week of June (painting,grass cutting & any repairs that need to be done)