Victory for the badgers in Ille-et-Vilaine: Press release
In a ruling dated 9 July 2026, the judge presiding over summary proceedings at the Administrative Court of Rennes granted an emergency suspension of the additional underground hunting season, which had authorised the hunting of badgers in the Ille-et-Vilaine from 1 June until the general opening of the hunting season on 14 September. This decision was secured by One Voice, AVES France, ASPAS and LPO Bretagne, represented by the law firm Géo-Avocats.
Following a request by the four organisations, the judge hearing the summary proceedings suspended the prefectural order which extended the badger hunting season into the height of summer, precisely when this year’s young are at their most vulnerable. As it had done on 10 June for the Finistère, the Administrative Court of Rennes confirmed its position on a key point of law: the definition of ‘young’ mammals, whom it is prohibited to kill.
Adopting the definition provided by the Administrative Court of Appeal in Bordeaux, the judge ruled that the term ‘young of all mammals’ should be understood to mean a young animal that has not yet reached independence, that is to say, one that is incapable of surviving on its own without relying on its mother. This state cannot be equated solely with the weaning period, as hunters regularly claim.
The judge thus points out that this non-selective practice can lead to the illegal killing of young badgers still dependent on adults, purely for the hunters’ pleasure.
For behind the terms ‘underground hunt’ or ‘digging-out’ lies an unbearable reality: badgers hunted right down into their burrows, cornered for hours, bitten by dogs, torn from their refuge… and then killed. A despicable, violent practice belonging to a bygone era.
Following cases in the Finistère, Haute-Marne and Cher, this latest suspension reinforces a clear body of case law in favour of badgers. One Voice and its partners will continue to fight to put an end to ‘digging-out’ wherever it is still permitted.
Victory for the badgers in Ille-et-Vilaine: Press Release
Victory for the badgers in Ille-et-Vilaine: the courts have granted an emergency suspension of the additional period of digging-out