Not for the faint of heart
South County Dublin Hunt, Rathcoole, Dublin
IT is an odd experience to find oneself following hounds with the swish of the N7 motorway in the background and the expanse of Dublin city a hazy presence on the horizon. Although officially designated harriers, the South County Dublin Hunt (SCDH) has always been a draghunt, and as such are able to work around busy roads and urban sprawl in a way that no pack hunting live quarry could hope to.
“The Souths”, as they are known among their fiercely loyal membership, owe their existence to John Dennis of Ballygall House, Finglas. He and his neighbours formed what was originally known as the County Dublin Harriers in the 1860s, to hunt a country which at that time lay exclusively within the county boundaries.
Urbanisation inevitably led to the hunt abandoning many of their traditional meets, and today they hunt a large and varied country in South Dublin, Meath,
