A NEWLY-formed anti-hunting group has launched a crowdfunding appeal to raise more than £2,000 to pay for a legal campaign to try to stop staghounds on Exmoor and the Quantock Hills.

Action Against Staghunting (AAS) is taking a stand against the last three stag hunts in the country, the Devon and Somerset, Quantock, and Tiverton packs.

Through an online crowdfunding page AAS raised nearly half its £2,160 target in a matter of days, with three weeks left of the appeal.

The money will help to fund a legal review of stag hunting in the UK, which it said now remained in ‘one final stronghold’ in West Somerset.

AAS spokeswoman Pip Donovan said despite a ban imposed by the Hunting with Dogs Act 2004, staghounds continued to exploit exemptions and legal loopholes to chase stags for hours until they collapsed and were shot.

Ms Donavan said: “Action Against Staghunting exists for one purpose, to stamp out these last remaining hunts, ending stag hunting in the UK forever.

“To do it, we need to hit them where they are weakest – their very shady interpretation of the legal exemptions which have allowed them to continue abusing wildlife and indulging their blood lust long after the ban should have stopped them.

“We are fund-raising to commission a full legal review of stag hunting in the UK.

“This will allow us to understand where they are weakest, and where they have run into legal trouble in the past.

“This knowledge will guide our whole campaign, as we raise public and political awareness of the fact they are still out there, hunting as they always have and meeting little resistance.

“The legal review will examine past successful prosecutions, established legal precedents, landowner rights and responsibilities, as well as scrutinising the intricate details of the exemptions the hunts are exploiting.

“In particular, the contentious ‘research and observation’ exemption will be thoroughly examined to explore avenues for challenge.”

Ms Donavan said AAS had commissioned expert lawyers with experience in the relevant fields to ensure a thorough and robust assessment.

She said: “We cannot allow these hunts to continue exploiting wildlife and indulging their bloodlust under the guise of legal exemptions.

“We suspect the majority of the public have no idea that stags are still being hunted with hounds in this manner.

“That is all about to change.”

Devon and Somerset Staghounds, Quantock Staghounds, and Tiverton Staghounds have been asked to comment.