Yesterday marked the ‘Glorious Twelfth’, which signifies the start of the annual game bird shooting season.
Millions of animals will be killed or injured during the shooting season, including badgers, hares, cats, dogs and birds of prey.
Swans and waterfowl are often poisoned by ammunition from shotgun cartridges, which also damages the environment.
Traps set by hunters cause immense suffering, crushing the bones of the animals caught in their clutches.
Tom Quinn, director of campaigns at League Against Cruel Sports, said: “The collateral damage caused by getting a grouse to the table leaves a nasty taste in the mouth.
“People are given the impression that shooting game for the table is a healthy, sustainable and environmentally-friendly way of providing food. It is none of those things. The grouse themselves are often injured rather than killed outright, causing suffering, and the birds on the table will inevitably contain lead shot which is a health hazard to humans.”
He also explained how other wildlife is affected by the season.
“Millions of other animals and birds are deliberately killed to protect the grouse shooting industry. The environment is being devastated by the burning of grouse moors, and millions of tonnes of lead shot are left to poison the countryside.
“Add to that the fact that tax payers are subsidising the shooting industry to the tune of several million pounds per year, and it all adds up to the Glorious Twelfth being nothing more than a shallow PR attempt to hide what is an atrociously out-dated and unsustainable practice.”