THE hunting season looks set to come to an early end because of the foot and mouth outbreak.

Dr Tim Lewin, secretary of the Ledbury Hunt, said hunting had been suspended for the foreseeable future.

He said: "We took the decision last week, when the first outbreak was reported. It was the sensible thing to do. Then the Countryside Alliance announced that all hunts would be doing the same thing and there would be no meets in the foreseeable future."

Dr Lewin added that it was unlikely that the Ledbury Hunt would ride again before the traditional end of the season, which is late March.

Valerie Allfrey, Joint Master of the North Ledbury Hunt said: "I and the fellow Joint Master, Derek Tyler, took the decision at Monday lunchtime that the North Ledbury Hunt would not be hunting again up to the end of the season."

The crisis could have spelt disaster for the hounds of the Ledbury Hunt.

Joint Master, Donald Haden, said that hounds were usually fed with dead stock from farms.

But MAFF has granted a special licence whereby farmers are allowed to drive carcasses to the kennels providing they travel directly there and back and providing their vehicles are disinfected at the kennels, before taking to the road again.