Hunters prepare to cast the hounds for a chase. 

 Photo by William E. Clark. 



one or more field trials or bench shows every year 

 and expend a substantial amount for transportation, 

 meals, and lodging. 



The above estimates do not include expendi- 

 tures incurred in mounted fox hunting. There are 

 107 Hunts which are registered or recognized by 

 the Masters of Foxhounds Association of America 

 (Mather, letter of August 25, 1953). Of these, four 

 are in Canada and three are presently inactive, 

 leaving 100 active Hunts in the United States. 

 There are additional Hunts which are not affiliated 

 with this association, but there is no record of 

 their number. Mounted fox hunting represents a 

 considerable investment. The organized Hunts 

 maintain an average of about 38 hounds each, or 

 3,800 hounds. These Hunts also employ many peo- 

 ple, such as professional huntsmen, whippers-in, 

 kennel men, and grooms. 



The Hunt clubs and their members own a large 

 number of hunters, horses especially bred and 

 trained for fox hunting. About 5,000 horses are in 

 use in organized fox hunting. In addition to their 

 fox hunts, the Hunts stage a large number of race 

 meetings, horse shows, and hunter trials. 



Perhaps the sale of red foxes to fox hunters 

 who wish to stock their ranges should be men- 

 tioned. Usually such foxes have been obtained as 

 cubs taken from dens and held for sale at a later 

 date. They are bought because there are few or no 

 foxes in the area which is being hunted or because 

 it is believed that the running qualities of the 

 foxe^: on the range will be improved by addition of 

 new blood. Occasionally, they are used in "drop 

 hunts," in which the foxes are held captive until 



Hounds rest after a long chase. Photo by Hy 

 Peskin, from Sports Illustrated. 



released for the chase. This practice is not ap- 

 proved by the Masters of Foxhounds Association. 



Killing the fox by the hunter is considered 

 unethical in parts of the country inhabited by those 

 who believe in running foxes for the chase simply 

 as a test of stamina, speed, and ability of the 

 hounds to follow the trail. The hunt is terminated 

 when the trail is lost, or the fox is "marked to 

 earth" or killed by the hounds. It is widely rec- 

 ognized that the red fox runs before the hounds 

 better than the gray fox, and, in areas where both 

 foxes occur, the killing of the grays may be prac- 

 ticed in the belief that when the reds are displaced 

 by grays the quality of the chase deteriorates. 

 Thus, some areas have, in the red fox, a resource 

 that may be utilized without removal of the annual 

 surplus. Whether some of the foxes are killed 

 makes little difference in these areas, except that 

 removal of excess numbers provides for a healthy 

 and productive fox population, minimizes the haz- 

 ards of a rabies infection, and possibly improves 

 the quality of hunting by reducing the number of 

 trails. 



Hunting for which the death of the fox con- 

 stitutes the primary objective is carried on largely 

 in the northern states. It may be practiced in a 

 wide variety of forms. The fox is sometimes trailed 

 by two or three hounds while the hunter, with a 

 gun, conceals himself on a likely crossing. Also 

 the red fox may be decoyed within shooting range 

 with a call which simulates the squeal of a rabbit 

 in distress. Seagers (1945:55-6) has described a 

 novel method of hunting called "belling" or "toll- 

 ing." One hunter moves through good fox territory 



13 



