fox hunting

[nohorn]

As an American, I was wondering what the fall-out has been in Great Britain after a few years has passed and whoev er it is that was doing the hunting the fox on horses, has stopped doing so, do they miss it? Has there been an economic effect? Just wondering. Or does the average Brit even care?

[Ethel]

I don't they hunters are missing it too much:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-107865 5/How-hunt-shot-Labours-fox-Although-hunting-b anned-years-ago-sport-MORE-popular-ever.html

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-110194 4/Record-300-000-traditional-Boxing-Day-hunts- making-mockery-ban.html

[R1Geezer]

Well it's virtually impossible to enforce so it's been largely ignored. I belive there has been one private prosecution but the old Bill haven't bothered as it would be loads of effort when they have motorists to persecute, much easier!

[fredpuli47]

Economic effect? None. The pro-hunting people made this one of their main complaints, whilst forgetting to explain how a drag hunt (hounds follow a scent laid) employed fewer people, hounds or horses than regular hunting.

Miss it? See Ethel's link, above. They were never going to (see my first paragraph) unless they seriously miss the killing part or thought the kiling useful. Nobody really thinks they were doing it 'to control vermin'. Pest controllers don't need to keep horses and hounds to kill 'vermin' once or twice a week, whilst ensuring that there are enough vermin breeding to provide more vermin to kill next season.

Does the average Briton care ? No. It was always a minority interest. I'd bet that vastly more people care about Chelsea soccer club losing a match than care about fox hunting being kept or lost ! Very few of us came into contact with fox hunting, even in rural areas.There aren't many hunts, and in spite of what the Daily Mail says about now, historically it was in decline. For example, my late father hunted, as did other farmers in this village, but nobody else I know in this village does now and 'his' hunt is one of many that had to amalgamate with others.

I wouldn't permit hunting on this farm; it's a nuisance in damaging fences, hedges and even crops. Nobody has ever asked me to allow it. We have foxes but we have rabbits too. The foxes eat the rabbits.Quite what the economic benefit was in killing a fox, not in itself much of a pest , when leaving it would remove a lot of rabbits, which are, was always a bit of a mystery (it saves us a few shotgun cartridges which we'd otherwise use on their rabbits, too !)

[Quizmonster]

Despite the huge spread in Ethel's second link above, which clearly favours hunting, if you look at the small inset piece headed 'How they stay legal' you'll see the tiny phrase, 'The majority of hunts meeting yesterday were trail hunting'. In other words, they weren't actually fox-hunting at all! Didn't they enjoy themselves, nevertheless? Presumably they did or why bother?
This, of course, makes nonsense of the headline..."Ban, what ban?" You have to realise that The Daily Mail is a comic, not a newspaper.

[Octavius]

That as may be, but whilst trail hunting with artificial scents does go on, flushing also goes on with 2 dogs (legal) or more (illegal) and it is estimated that around 40% of �traditional� hunts are actually flouting the law.

I assume the remainder get their jollies from horse riding generally with point to point or trailing....... if that is at all possible...?

[Quizmonster]

You may well be right, O, but - if 40% are flouting the law - 60% aren't. Yet, as I suggested earlier, the 'hunters' in the 60% group are, I presume, still enjoying themselves. Accordingly, what need is there for a fox to 'participate' in any of the 'hunts'?
What is needed is for the 40% to be prosecuted whenever evidence against them is available. Alternatively, I suggest Fred and others like him around the country shoot a few of them if they ever stray onto his land!

[gelda]

DEFRA quotes that foxes are not classed as vermin!

[Octavius]

I would agree Q. Why they can�t just trot their gee-gees around our wonderful countryside without terrorising the wildlife, I�ll never know.

[jake-the-peg]

Well I keep chickens so foxes are vermin to me despite what DEFRA says!

However I don't think the best way of dealing with them is prancing around the countryside in a red jacket, and then quietly making sure there's good cover for them to build dens in the spring so as to ensure good sport the folowing year!

Frankly I'm pretty ambivilent about fox hunting, but I seem to be quite rare in that. Most people seem to have a pretty strong view on one side or the other and you can be rather surprised as to who takes what view.

[fredpuli47]

QM, I don't allow people to shoot foxes on my land. I don't see foxes as vermin but a benefit, in that they kill rabbits. If you keep chickens, you should protect the chickens from foxes and other attacks, not kill the foxes. If you put a stack of fox food in a pen you can't be surprised if you get foxes. A fox will kill what it can, faced with such an abundance. It expects to come back for or hide want it can't eat. That's its instinct, like a dog's.

It can't be difficult to protect chickens. Our egg producers have thousands of chickens and never lose any to foxes ! But seriously, it is possible.Losses in this village are now non-existent, because the accommodation for the chickens is secure. Somebody did lose a run full a few years ago, but none have been lost since.

[Gourmander]

A lot of them have found jobs with research labs, where they can torture animals as much as they like. All perfectly legal. I think R1 Geezer, who posted above, is one of them.

[Quizmonster]

Perhaps I phrased my earlier response badly, Fred, but what I was suggesting was that you shoot the huntsmen, not the foxes!

[gelda]

I totaly agree Quiz!

[Whickerman]

some of the tally-ho baxtards are coming here to Ireland to feed their blood lust, same as they do for coursing.

[Coldicote]

I may be a small voice in a wilderness, but I get a sick feeling that fellow humans actually enjoy chasing a creature to exhaustion and then seeing it torn to bits. A less humane way of killing is difficult to imagine and I feel only contempt for those involved.

What a lovely day - let's go out and kill something!

[LoftyLottie2]

Fred. Thank you.

So many people think us country folk agree with hunting. Some do, but most don't.

The Countryside Alliance (who I can't abide) represent very few of us.

You are not a small voice in a wilderness Coldicote. There are many, many of us.

[fredpuli47]

Thank you, Lofty! It seems common sense to me.

QM please remember that "He's shot our fox !" is the worst thing that foxhunters can think to say. " He's shot our whipper-in !" wouldn't be nearly as bad. Could be worth shooting one ( to 'abate a nuisance' as lawyers say) !

[LoftyLottie2]

They are not hunting on the estate around me. Thank goodness. They were the most disrespectful bunch of people ever. I would gladly have taken a gun to them, but the ones that took place around me included royalty and their mates, so I would have been hung, drawn and quartered!!

[missrandom]

Totally aggree Coldicote, its sickening. Most people I know do NOT aggree with fox hunting.