Carrying hunt whips

[FitToBeTied]

I was pondering this recently since my young hunter has now been moved into a staff position. TBH I never thought he’d staff and never carried a whip with him. So this summer he’s been getting used to me carrying.

The hunt I first hunted with had a rule that only staff carried hunt whips. That’s been the rule I’ve always followed. The logic was that only the staff interacted with the hounds. Since then at different hunts I’ve seen a mix.

What’s it like at your hunts? Do ordinary field members carry a hunt whip?

[LCDR]

Yes “ordinary members” carry hunt whips. It is not unusual for the huntsman to ask someone in the field to help keep the hounds from wandering too far during checks. Of course, you don’t go overboard, maybe just let it dangle so the hounds know it is there as a boundary. And you only use your whip around hounds at a direct request from the huntsman. You can.use the whip for your own horse, just like you’d use a riding crop.

[Willesdon]

Yes, ordinary people use hunt whips because they are a useful tool. The hunt staff carry white ones.

[Foxglove]

Every hunt I’ve attended or where I’ve been a member, hunt whips were expected of staff and allowed by members. I carried one for years, but stopped when I found I never used it. Others in the field still do. When I stopped hunting after 58 seasons in April --I told the 4 people to whom I’d loaned whips to keep them. Each had already bought a new lash or two for the whip --so I didn’t think it fair to demand them back. Besides, I had no use for them in Ranch Riding. Oh! Why did I have 4 hunt whips? --When I was staff I was awarded a beautiful hunt whip --but as staff I’d already bought one --then I rode side saddle for awhile and acquired a “ladies” hunt whip. The last whip was given to me by a retiring member who thought I could “find a home for it,” I did.

[LCDR]

Hunt whips make wonderful toys for kittens. I had one cat who would drag hers around the house until the horn handle hooked a chair leg, then meow for her human to unhook it so she could continue strutting around with her whip.