Lords to vote on hunting ban for Britain

[Tab]

London, England, Nov. 15 (UPI) -- The British House of Lords is preparing to vote on the proposed ban on hunting with dogs Monday.

The barons, earls and dukes of Britain's nobility are at odds with the House of Commons, which has proposed a total ban on the hunts in 2006. The upper house of Parliament is expected to vote for licensed hunts from December 2007.

The debate over hunting foxes with dogs has raged for many years. Hunt supporters say the sport is a British tradition and necessary to keep the fox population at bay, while animal rights activists decry it as an inhumane bloodsport which causes unnecessary cruelty and suffering to the fox. However many now see the debate as symbolic of the struggle for supremacy between the upper and lower classes of Britain.
http://www.washtimes.com/upi-breaking/20041115-091743-8831r.htm

Old traditions die hard.

[SkipNewarkDE]

1. Fox Chasing

Fox hunting is very popular where I keep my horses in Chester County, Pennsylvania. A lot of the public distaste for the sport has been dispelled with a good bit of education coupled with conservancy.

Many people that talk to the media and local politicians regarding the sport have changed its moniker to "Fox Chasing" rather than "Fox Hunting." The fox is not actually caught nor killed, and the emphasis is more on the social aspects, and endurance aspects of following the hounds. Many of the local hunts do a ton of work raising money and awareness for conservancy efforts, as the encroaching development and cutting up of estate and farmlands poses more of a threat to the natural environment (including the fox) than a bunch of people racing through on horseback.

We also do a lot of mock hunts, paper chase events, etc.

You would think that people wanting to preserve this sport in England would alter the purpose of the hunt, protect the fox and maintain the conservancy efforts that the U.S. hunts have enacted.

[natrat]

2. when i lived in nj they dragged fox scent around

and chased the scent

[muriel_volestrangler]

3. Their purpose is to kill the fox, and have fun doing it

not killing it would make it pointless. Most people agree that the foxes are pests (they are a danger to free range hens, and I believe it's claimed they will attack small lambs too - how much that actually happens, I don't know), and people will be allowed to shoot them.

The question is whether it's acceptable to breed dogs to chase and kill foxes. The hunters regard it as an enjoyable and ancient tradition. It's the blood they're after - they have a tradition of smearing it on the face of a child at its first hunt.

[CottonBear]

4. Hunts are very important for rural land conservancy.

The organized hunts in Georgia, South Carolina and Florida have access to hundreds of thousands of acres of protected lands. The fox is not killed rather it is tracked. Coyotes are also tracked. Even if the hounds pick up no scent trail a great time is had by all of the participants - people, horses and hounds. It is an elegant and exciting sport that benefits all citizens by preserving the green infrastructure that provides clean water, clean air and wildlife habitat along with farmland for animals and crops. I have gone out with a hunt. It is very exciting and the countryside is so beautiful.

on edit: No blood smearing or killing takes place here in the USA.