Right now, approximately 500 hares are being held captive on a racecourse outside the town of Clonmel, County Tipperary, in Ireland.

They have been transported there from all over Ireland, having been snatched by gangs of trappers from their natural habitats. The trappers used nets to capture these animals for the annual three day "festival" of live hare coursing due to be staged next month at Powerstown Park racecourse.

I wonder if any one of the 500 captives has an inkling of what lies in store for him or her?

Each hare will be coursed...possibly up to three times, meaning that if it doesn't get injured or horribly mauled first time around disaster may strike during the second or third course. A sick Russian roulette caper to which coursing clubs subject these timid, defencessless animals.

And even if a hare manages to avoid injury after three course the animal may die in the wild afterwards of stress-related aliments. And all of this is staged for the amusement of human beings who derive pleasure from watching the trapped hares running for their lives.

Though a number of animal protection groups will be protesting outside the racecourse on February 3rd (and I hope the demo is well supported) it's hard to accept that our legal system permits this annual Festival of Cruelty and that the public is expected to stand by and do nothing while those 500 sentient beings await a "sport" that many other jurisdictions have outlawed.

Some day, I hope, Powerstown Park racecourse will be nothing more than a rain and wind-swept abandoned heap of stone, steel and grass on the outskirts of Clonmel...grim testament to a vile and shameful practice that has long stained Ireland's image as a nation.