With the cub hunting season now well underway, an anti hunt campaigner and POWA member describes this barbaric practice:

Cub Hunting (Autumn Hunting)

In late summer, as the families of foxes are completing the rearing of the cubs, young hounds together with more experienced companions are taken out in the very early morning or in the evening to learn the art of hunting foxes as a pack. This unnatural activity has to be taught because the fox, a member of the same family as domestic dogs, is not a natural prey animal and dogs do not normally hunt other dogs to death.

An area where a fox family is known to live, often a small wood, is surrounded by people who are either on foot, horseback or wheeled vehicles. Hounds are sent in to scent the foxes out. As the foxes try to flee the people make a loud noise and drive the foxes back to the hounds. This is called holding up. The growing cubs are no match for the hounds and make easy meat. Those that escape to ground are dug out and killed and sometimes several cubs are discovered in one earth so whole families can be wiped out. Cubs that survive have learnt the fear necessary to make for a good hunt later in the season. The young hounds have learnt the taste of fox blood. Foxes are born between February and April. Cub hunting can start as early as July and continues until October when fox hunting proper begins. Fox hunting continues till March, April or even May.

In the New Forest the Foxhounds hunt under licence from the Forestry Commission. The cub hunting season does not start till September and holding up is not allowed. However lining out is allowed which is when a fox is prevented from running in a particular direction for a specific reason. Also, the digging out of foxes is not allowed on Forestry Commission land although entrance holes can be blocked prior to a hunt to prevent a fox escaping below ground. The fox hunt season ends in March in the New Forest.

Copyright: F James / 7-9-04
For details of the recent cub hunting kill that relates to this article click here