Photo By Gretchen Pelham
Anyone who follows foxhunting in England knows that the sport has been under assault for decades. Illegal for 17 years, its successor, trail hunting, took a big blow last year following the hacking of an online meeting of the MFHA.
Forestry England and the National Trust, two of the largest controllers of public lands, denied access pending the outcome of a trial involving members of the organization. Although initially found guilty, those charges have been overturned on appeal, but access has not yet been restored and may never be. But the sport of mounted hunting is nothing if not resilient. The New Forrest Hounds recently announced they are transitioning into a bloodhound pack. Is this the next evolution? Is chasing people somehow more acceptable than chasing other animals? If so, what happens to those wonderful English bloodlines that have been preserved for centuries? During World War II several packs in the United States accepted hounds from England to maintain those lines. Will that happen again? Only time will tell!
Please see the previous articles related to this: Verdict of Guilt Is Reversed (foxhuntinglife.com) and New Forest Hounds Have Converted to a Bloodhound Pack (foxhuntinglife.com).
Editor’s Note: The fallout from Mark Hankinson’s conviction (despite his appeal overturning the guilty verdict) has affected all Great Britain. Forestry England put a trail hunting ban last year post-conviction on its public lands, with no indication that it will reverse that decision.
Natural Resources Wales (the “NRW”) announced in September 2022 that it would not reverse its November 2021 ban on trail hunting within its lands, despite Mr. Hankinson’s guilty verdict being overturned. NRW’s statement said that the factors they considered for last year’s decision had not changed. Factors that had nothing to do with the conviction of Mr. Hankinson.The NRW board members cited concerns about the cost of resources required to ensure that trail hunting would be operated legally. Natural Resources Wales took over the management of the natural resources of Wales in 2013.
The Scottish government has introduced a new bill that will limit the hunting of live game with hounds and ban trail hunting altogether within the borders of Scotland. This “Hunting with Dogs Bill”, introduced this spring, does have many loopholes and provisions for hunting with more than two hounds. This bill is a bit of a head-scratcher as there are many exceptions to the ban.
Northern Ireland Assembly rejected a proposed ban on hunting with dogs post-conviction last December. However, the ban is expected to be reintroduced this year.