Fair Chase for the Fox

Sometimes someone says the right thing and I am pretty thrilled.

An example is Lt. Col. Dennis Foster, executive director of the Master of Foxhounds Association and Foundation, quoted in this excellent editorial in the Fredericksburg, Virginia Star:

THE BOND between man and dog has existed for thousands of years. Forged initially from mutually beneficial survival activities, the link has evolved into a satisfying symbiosis involving food, love, protection, care, and, sometimes, sport, including, from time immemorial, hunting and chasing game. But when does "sport" cross the line and become cruelty? Right at the gate of the fox pen.

The foxhound is the Virginia state dog, a noble breed born and bred for one thing: to chase foxes. Watching a fox hunt over free and open countryside with riders on galloping horses and hounds baying is a beautiful thing. Ol' Reynard is often crafty enough to find a tree stump, a hole, or a small nook in which to hide, and hounds return without prey, tongues lolling, happy just for the chase.

In years past, some people would train foxhounds on public lands, with a permit. This evolved into a different sport, foxhound field trials, in which the numbered dogs would be judged by their ability to find and chase the fox.

But public lands have begun disallowing this use, and in the last few decades another practice has grown: Private acreage is fenced, foxes are trapped and placed inside, and the hounds are released. Although the practice is regulated by the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, and hiding places are mandated, the deck is ultimately stacked against the fox, which generally ends up at the mercy of a pack of exhilarated dogs. This cannot be called "sport."

Lt. Col. Dennis Foster, executive director of the Master of Foxhounds Association and Foundation, draws a firm line between fox-hunting and fox-penning. "We don't consider [fox-penning] a sport," he said. "We forbid our hunts" to hold meets at fox pens. He points out that in fox-hunting, "chasing them is the point, not killing them."

Legislation in the General Assembly would ban fox-penning in the state. In fairness to the fox, that's a good idea.

The legislation is shelved for this year, but will be back.

It's principle problem is not that a ban on fox pens is not a good idea, but that the Humane Society of the U.S. is the entity pushing it.

Most knowledgeable people in the world of dogs and hunting have a reflexive loathing of HSUS as it is little more than a direct mail mill that will use any emotionally volatile issue as an excuse to separate little old ladies from their wallets. No one who really knows how HSUS works thinks for one second that they care a whit about wildlife or about hunting ethics of even canine welfare.   They care about direct mail returns, period.

That said, the fact that HSUS stinks like a dead fish on the beach does not make fox pens an idea worth defending. Fox pens are NOT part of America's fox hunting tradition and they need to be put out of business, and the people to lead that charge in Virginia should be traditional mounted fox hunters who have a legitimate interest in keeping their sport clean and above-board.  Time to saddle up and ride for this just cause.  If folks want to kick HSUS in the ass while they go about that, I will only applaud!

• Related Links:
  ** Hunting as Contest
  ** Virginia Fox Pens Under the Gun
  ** Canned Hunts Shame Us All
  ** How to Train a Scent Hound

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