Recalls an unnamed spectator who witnessed the full incident: "A
cry of 'fox, fox' went up and almost instantly three or four shots rang
out. It was definitely twitching on the ground for a few seconds,
indicating it was still alive."
"First a gundog went to investigate. Then, exactly a minute after it was shot, a beater walked over. He clubbed the injured fox once on the head with his stick which had a white flag on the end to scare pheasants into the air."
"The fox was then left on the ground for another four minutes while the shooting of the pheasants continued. When all the birds had come over and the shooting stopped, the same beater went back to the fox and stamped on its midriff."
Shooting tradition dictates that an animal is "finished off" by a beater. This was the explanation given following the publication of front page pictures showing the Queen calmly wringing the neck of the injured bird.
Animal welfare activist and organisations, including the RSPCA, have said a formal investigation should be launched into the incident surrounding the beating of the fox at Sandringham.
However, Buckingham Palace has refused to respond to the photographs, saying only: "This was a private shoot and we are not offering any comment."
What do you think: Do you approve of the Royal Family hunting and shooting? Please vote in our new poll and/or tell us your thoughts via the Comments section.
Comment: What kind of person takes pleasure from hunting down and slaughtering an animal? How do they get such enjoyment from beating a fox to death? There is something very wrong with these people.
Name: Claire Johnstone
Comment: Somewhat hypocritical of the RSPCA to take all of the benefits of having a 'Royal' in their name and then wanting to investigate their benefactors.
They should first hand back the 'Royal' and then they can truly claim to be independent. Until then very few will believe it if they find nothing wrong.
After all, they prosecuted a policeman for putting a cat out of its misery.
Name: Koshmar
Comment: Disgusting. But yet another nail in the coffin of British royalty. They do not represent us! All we need now is to get rid of the forelock tuggers...
Name: Jacqueline
Comment: Horrible..really horrible..you can't eat a fox so why hunt it..these people are sick.
Name: Tammy
Comment: I have been hunting with my parents since I was 13 years old. We have always eaten what we kill, and I believe it has shown me a respect for all animals. I have no problem at all with the hunting done by any member of the royal family.
Name: Patty Ann
Comment: Once again the Duke shows his ignorant and inhumane side. He doesn't have a "chip" in him that has any form/type of human emotions, even at the lowest level. He is a disgrace at even the lowest level. All of Britan should be ashamed...of him. His family doesn't have the good sense to be!
Name: M-M
Comment: Why the surprize ? Philip has not changed at all . Even when he was President of the Wild Life Association for so many years he still shot game in large numbers
Name: Muriel
Comment: I don't have anything against hunting per se. I don't like the idea of hunting just for fun, if you don't intend to consume what you kill. My husband occasionally hunts. He does not hunt anything we don't eat. To shoot a little fox just because it's there and might catch a bird for a meal, is, in my opinion disgusting. We've had fox' in our back yard, they're so pretty, they don't bother anything, I love to watch them. Once it was wounded, there was surely a better, more humane way to kill it than beating it with a flagpole!
Name: Lisa
Comment: I am not against hunting but I am against senseless killing of animals. A fox will run away in the presence of humans. There was no need to kill it.
Name: exploora
Comment: I think intentionally causing cruelty toward animals breeds a tolerance to cruelty between people, often at opposing ends of the have and have not spectrum. We have too much of both these days.
