Heartbreak as foot-

Heartbreak as foot-and-mouth claims the most beautiful victims ................

Mr Lamacraft's livery business relies on the local fox and staghunting packs which hire out his hunters. On a spring weekend he would normally have saddled up all 30 of his horses, but because of a ban on riding on Exmoor, every one of them was left in its stable yesterday. "We have been wiped out by foot-and-mouth", Mr Lamacraft said. "We have lost 100 per cent of our income. There just isn't a penny coming in. I'm trying to be optimitic but I just cannot sustain that sort of loss. Each horse costs around £40 per week for feed, mucking out and labour. It's money I just haven't got, so I'm going to have to start disposing of the horses. Nobody wants them - I can't give them away."

The first four of the horses, including Geoffrey and stablemate Yeoman, are due to be put down this week, a decision which has left mr Lamacraft, 39, his wife Ruth, 38, and their two children heartbroken. "It's devastating," said mr Lamacraft. "We've already laid off the staff and now the only way left to cut costs is to get rid of the horses. The crisis couldn't have come at a worse time. We earn two-fifths of our annual income in March and September and another two-fifths between August and October. We have lost £45,000 over the last two months, and that's money we'll never get back. Hunting won't start again until the autumn, so we know we'll have no income until that time. That's why we have had to take this decision.'

Mr Lamacraft's family has run the KJ Lamacraft stables in Timberscombe, Somerset for three generations and is the largest supplier of hunters on Exmoor. 'My family has been involved in hunting for 80 years. We employ local staff and our business is part of the local economy', he said. 'We hire out horses to local packs like the Devon and somerset Staghounds and the Exmoor Foxhounds as well as four or five other hunts. All the other hunts around the country are finished at this time of year so everyone normally comes down to Exmoor. But not now.'

Mr Lamacraft's story is being echoed across the contry. And businesses which rely on riding, including blacksmiths and tack shops, are also facing ruin. Jill Grieve, of the Countryside Alliance said: 'Suspending hunting was the right thing to do but the repercussions are only now being felt. Country sports and those who make their living from them are on their kneeds at the moment.

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