Westerby Basset Hounds

Westerby Basset Hounds
Hunt type	Basset hunting
Country	England
History
Founded	1931
Parent pack	Walhampton Basset Hounds
Founded by	Dr Eric Morrison
Hunt information
Hound breed	English Basset
Hunt country	Leicestershire, Northamptonshire, Warwickshire & Rutland
Quarry	Hare
Kennelled	South Kilworth
Website	www.westerbybassets.co.uk
	v ; t ; e ;

Last updated April 29, 2019

The Westerby Basset Hounds is a working basset pack.

The Basset Hound is a short-legged breed of dog in the hound family. The Basset is a scent hound that was originally bred for the purpose of hunting hare. Their sense of smell and ability to ground-scent is second only to the Bloodhound.

History

The Westerby Basset Hounds descend from the Walhampton Basset Hounds, founded in 1889 by Christopher and Godfrey Heseltine at Lymington in the New Forrest. In 1902, whilst Godfrey Heseltine was posted to India, the pack was sold to the Marquess Conyngham of Slane Castle in Ireland, and were known as the Slane Bassets, returning to the New Forrest upon Godrey’s return in 1910. Between 1915 and 1920, whilst Godfrey Heseltine served in the Great War and subsequently again in India, the pack was loaned to the Royal Naval Dockyard Rosyth and were known as the Rosyth Bassets, again returning to Godfrey who moved the pack to Lutterworth in Leicestershire, where the pack remained until his death in 1931.^[1]^[2]

Lymington is a port town on the west bank of the Lymington River on the Solent, in the New Forest district of Hampshire, England. It faces Yarmouth, Isle of Wight, to which there is a car ferry service operated by Wightlink. It is within the civil parish of Lymington and Pennington.

New Forest is a local government district in Hampshire, England. It is named after the New Forest.

Marquess Conyngham, of the County of Donegal, is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1816 for Henry Conyngham, 1st Earl Conyngham. He was the great-nephew of another Henry Conyngham, 1st Earl Conyngham, a member of a family of Scottish descent which had settled during the Plantation of Ulster in County Donegal in Ireland in the early 17th century. The 'founder' of the dynasty in Ireland was The Very Rev. Dr. Alexander Conyngham, Dean of Raphoe. The earlier Henry was a member of both the Irish House of Commons and the British House of Commons and served as Vice-Admiral of Ulster and as Governor of the counties of Donegal and Londonderry. In 1753 he was raised to the Peerage of Ireland as Baron Conyngham, of Mount Charles in the County of Donegal, and in 1756 he was created Viscount Conyngham, in Ireland, also in the Peerage of Ireland. In 1781 he was made Baron Conyngham, of Mount Charles in the County of Donegal, with remainder to his nephew Francis Burton, and Earl Conyngham, of Mount Charles in the County of Donegal, which like the creations of 1753 and 1756 was created with normal remainder to the heirs male of his body. The latter titles were also in the Peerage of Ireland. Lord Conyngham was childless and on his death in 1781 the barony of 1753, the viscountcy and earldom became extinct while he was succeeded in the barony of 1781 according to the special remainder by his aforementioned nephew Francis. He was the eldest son of Mary, sister of the first Earl Conyngham, by her husband Francis Burton. The new 2nd Baron Conyngham, who had earlier represented Killybegs and County Clare in the Irish House of Commons, assumed by Royal licence the surname and arms of Conyngham on succeeding to the titles.

In 1932 the rump of the pack was purchased by Dr Eric Morrison who renamed the pack the Westerby Basset Hounds after the village of Smeeton Westerby. After World War II, due to the increased cultivation of arable land within the hunt’s county, a more active hound than a traditional basset was sought. After unsuccessful attempts at outcrosses with Welsh Hounds and Beagles, the now Colonel Morrison (after his World War II service) very successfully incorporated stud book Harrier blood into the pack, resulting in hounds with the same voice and nose, but less bone, shorter backs and shorter ears. The resulting hounds were the first of what was to be called the English Basset, a type of dog now used by a number of English Basset hound packs. More recently, further infusions with West Country Harriers, Beagles and pure Bassets have been incorporated into the type.^[1]^[2]^[3]

Smeeton Westerby is a village and civil parish in the Harborough district, located approximately nine miles south east from Leicester. Smeeton Westerby is situated in the Leicestershire countryside. It is close to Saddington, Kibworth and Fleckney and is situated 500m North of the Grand union canal. Smeeton Westerby is approximately 6.8 miles from the nearest railway station which is located in Market Harborough. The closest area for shops is Kibworth, which is approximately 1.4 miles North of Smeeton Westerby. Kibworth has numerous shops and in 2002 many new shops appeared, including a new branch of the Co-op UK. Smeeton Westerby doesn't have any shops of its own but it does have a traditional village pub, a village hall, a parish church plus several stables and farms.

Arable land is, according to one definition, land capable of being ploughed and used to grow crops. In Britain, it was traditionally contrasted with pasturable land such as heaths which could be used for sheep-rearing but not farmland.

The Welsh Hound is a breed of hunting dog of the foxhound type, indigenous to Wales.

Hunt country

The Westerby Basset Hound’s country extends from Melton Mowbray in the north to Daventry in the south and Nuneaton in the west to Uppingham in the east. The country encompasses the whole of the Fernie Hunt’s country and parts of the Atherstone, Cottesmore and Pytchley Hunt’s countries.^[3]

Melton Mowbray is a town in Leicestershire, England, 19 miles (31 km) north-east of Leicester, and 20 miles (32 km) south-east of Nottingham. It lies on the River Eye and the River Wreake and has a population of 25,554. The town is best known for its culinary speciality, the Melton Mowbray pork pie. In addition, it includes one of the six makers of Stilton cheese. Melton Mowbray is promoted as Britain's "Rural Capital of Food".

Daventry is a market town and civil parish in western Northamptonshire, England, close to the border with Warwickshire. At the 2011 Census Daventry had a population of 25,026, making it the sixth largest town in Northamptonshire. It is the administrative centre of the larger Daventry District, which had a population of 78,070 at the 2011 census.

Nuneaton is a town in northern Warwickshire, England. The population in 2011 was 86,552, making it the largest town in Warwickshire.

Related Research Articles

The beagle is a breed of small hound that is similar in appearance to the much larger foxhound. The beagle is a scent hound, developed primarily for hunting hare (beagling). With a great sense of smell and superior tracking instinct, the beagle is employed as detection dog for prohibited agricultural imports and foodstuffs in quarantine around the world. The beagle is intelligent but single-minded. It is a popular pet due to its size, good temper, and lack of inherited health problems.

The Harrier is a medium-sized dog breed of the hound class, used for hunting hares by trailing them. It resembles an English Foxhound but is smaller, though not as small as a Beagle.

Fox hunting is an activity involving the tracking, chase and, if caught, the killing of a fox, traditionally a red fox, by trained foxhounds or other scent hounds, and a group of unarmed followers led by a "master of foxhounds", who follow the hounds on foot or on horseback.

Scent hounds are a type of hound that primarily hunts by scent rather than sight. These breeds are hunting dogs and are generally regarded as having some of the most sensitive noses among canines.

Beagling is the hunting mainly of hares and also rabbits, but definitely not foxes, by beagles by scent. A beagle pack is usually followed on foot, but in a few cases mounted. Beagling is often enjoyed by 'retired' fox hunters who have either sustained too many injuries or lost the agility to ride horseback, or who enjoy the outdoors and the camaraderie of the hunt. It is also traditionally a way for young men and women to learn how to handle hounds on a smaller scale before they go on to hunt with foxhounds.

Anglo-Français de Petite Vénerie Dog breed

The Anglo-Français de Petite Vénerie is a medium-sized breed of dog used in hunting as a scenthound, usually in packs. It is one of the Anglo-French hound breeds which were created by crossing French scenthounds with English (Anglo) foxhounds. The name Petite Vénerie does not mean that dogs of the breed are petite or small, but rather that it is used to hunt small game.

The North Country Beagle, Northern Hound or Northern Beagle was a breed of dog that existed in Britain probably until early in the 19th century. The exact date of its extinction is not known; it is likely that it was gradually interbred with other breeds, particularly the modern Beagle, until the genuine North Country Beagle bloodline ceased to exist.

The Airedale Beagles is a beagle pack founded in 1891.

The Old Berkeley Beagles, or The OBB, is a beagle pack.

The Warwickshire Hunt is an English fox hunting pack founded in 1791.

The Emlyn Beagles is a Welsh beagle pack founded in 1966.

The Albany and West Lodge Bassets is a working basset pack.

References

1 2 David Hancock, Hounds: Hunting by scent, The Crowood Press Ltd, Marlborough, 2014, ISBN 978-1-84797-602-4.
1 2 The Westerby Basset Hounds, "The History of the Westerby Basset Hounds", westerbybassets.co.uk, retrieved 18 August 2017.
1 2 Liam’s hunting directory, "Westerby Basset Houndss", www.hunting-directory.co.uk, retrieved 18 August 2017.

External links

Baily’s hunting directory, "Westerby Bassets", www.bailyshuntingdirectory.com, retrieved 18 August 2017.
South Kilworth Village website, "The Westerby Bassets", southkilworth.co.uk, retrieved 18 August 2017.

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[Hancock-1] 1 2 David Hancock, Hounds: Hunting by scent, The Crowood Press Ltd, Marlborough, 2014, ISBN 978-1-84797-602-4.

[Westerby-2] 1 2 The Westerby Basset Hounds, "The History of the Westerby Basset Hounds", westerbybassets.co.uk, retrieved 18 August 2017.

[Liams-3] 1 2 Liam’s hunting directory, "Westerby Basset Houndss", www.hunting-directory.co.uk, retrieved 18 August 2017.