Name of huntsman and where from: Ger Withers, Liscarroll, Co Cork.

Name of Pack: Duhallow Foxhounds.

Kennels based at: Rossinarna, Liscarroll, Mallow, Co Cork.

What type of hounds and how many: We have 40 couple of Old English Foxhounds (at the start of the season prior to the new litters of pups arriving).

Huntsman experience: This is my 20th season with the Duhallow Foxhounds. I spent nine seasons whipping in before becoming huntsman and the season of 2017/2018 is my 11th season hunting the hounds.

Biggest influence to date: My biggest influence on the hunting field would be the late Dan Coleman. He was the Duhallow huntsman when I was growing up and I always looked up to him, sharing his knowledge and hunting advice with me.

Daily role of a huntsman: The hounds are washed out and fed every morning. Any injuries there are then tended to. During the hunting season hounds are left to rest for the remainder of the day. On a non-hunting day around lunchtime the area manager for the following days meet is contacted and then the country must be walked.

Importance of good relations with landowners: Without the landowners you have nothing. At the end of the day you can have good hounds, a good huntsman, good meet managers but the landowner is the most important as without the land we have no where for our sport to go.

How do you choose the various meets: There are meet manager meetings held throughout the season and the card is made to suit what is decided at the meetings. We hunt every, Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.

How do you decide which of your hounds will go hunting? There are enough hounds in the kennels to be hunted every second day but some need to be hunted most days if they are sound.

Importance of local network of puppy walkers? The puppy walkers are brilliant. They give the pups a great start and education. We hold an annual puppy show which is the hunt’s way to thank the puppy walkers and all the locals and the farmers for their help and generosity.

What in your view is the best thing about hunting and being a huntsman? In my view the best thing about being a huntsman is getting to meet some great people and characters. My favourite aspect would have to be the hounds themselves. There is nothing as satisfying as having a great day and at least that keeps the critics off your back until the next day.