What is fox hunting?
As to be expected with a blood sport such as this, the foxes are put under immense physical and mental stress during the hunt and are usually victims of a long, drawn out death.
Fox hunting is another traditional blood sport with long standing ties to UK history. Fox hunting originated as an upper-class sport where a group of self-proclaimed ‘hunters’ chase down and kill foxes using a pack of hunting dogs to track their scent.
As to be expected with a blood sport such as this, the foxes are put under immense physical and mental stress during the hunt and are usually victims of a long, drawn out death. To make things worse the odds are forever stacked against the foxes with very little chance of them being able to survive the encounter.
For example, if the fox tries to evade capture by hiding in a nearby hole or badger sett, the ‘fox hunters’ will either send the dogs in to retrieve and viciously maul them to death, or in some cases they will block up any escape routes the morning before the hunt.
The entire ordeal is cruel and torturous. Autopsies of killed foxes have revealed that they often suffer enormously before death, enduring numerous bites, gashes and tears to their necks and backsides before slowly succumbing to their injuries.
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Common stereotypes
Those who support fox hunting usually rely on the same old rhetoric, such as “fox hunting is pest control” or “foxes are vermin”, however these limp attempts of justification are laughable and can be dismissed very quickly.
For a fox to be considered a ‘pest’ they would have to be in excess supply and difficult to control, however studies have shown that the UK fox population has been in a steady decline, with a 41% drop since 1995.
Is fox hunting illegal?
More than 80% of people are against fox hunting, and this public outcry led to fox hunting being banned in England, Wales and Scotland under the Hunting Act 2004 and the Protection of Wild Mammals (Scotland) Act 2002. Sadly fox hunting still remains legal in Northern Ireland.
Although foxes were granted levels of protection from these well needed changes to legislation, there is overwhelming evidence suggesting that pro fox hunting groups are exploiting legal loopholes (or just flat out ignoring the law) to continue their bloodthirsty ‘sport’.
Trail hunting is the most recent example of this loose interpretation of the law. Trail hunting claims to be a non-lethal alternative to fox hunting, in which hunters follow a pre-laid trail rather than actively seeking out live foxes. This may appear harmless at face value, but there have been several exposés proving that this is in fact a smokescreen and that the chasing and killing of foxes is still happening under the guise of ‘trail hunting’.
The victims of fox hunting
There are many victims linked to fox hunting – the most obvious being the foxes themselves – but we must also consider the others.
DOGS
- Similarly to fox digging and badger baiting, the dogs used in fox hunting come out of the ordeal severely wounded and go without any real medical treatment
BADGERS
- If a fox retreats into a badger sett, then this will result in the sett being ‘dug out’. This destroys the habitats of badgers and in some cases can result in the badgers being mauled by the hunting dogs
COUNTRYSIDE
- A typical fox hunt consists of anywhere between 20-30 hounds and 4+ hunters on horseback. Once a scent is picked up it isn’t uncommon for the group to trample across private land and public pathways, all whilst disturbing and destroying wildlife
Reporting illegal fox hunting
If you believe you are witnessing illegal fox hunting taking place please report it directly to the police by dialling 999.
If it isn’t a ‘live’ incident, or you are suspicious of a person/group using dogs to hunt wildlife, you can either call 101, or alternatively make an anonymous report to our investigations team who will further investigate the matter. Our online form can be found by clicking the link below.
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