What is "fox hunting"

n. mounted hunters follow hounds in pursuit of a fox [syn: foxhunt]

Fox hunting is an activity involving the tracking, chase, and sometimes killing of a fox, traditionally a red fox, by trained foxhounds or other scent hounds, and a group of unarmed followers led by a "master of foxhounds" ("master of hounds"), who follow the hounds on foot or on horseback.

Fox hunting with hounds originated in the 16th century, in a form which was practised legally, until 2005, in England and Wales. It continues to take place legally in several other countries including: Australia, Canada, France, Ireland, Italy, and the United States. In Australia, the term also refers to the hunting of foxes with firearms, similar to deer hunting or spotlighting. In much of the world, hunting in general is understood to relate to any game animals or weapons (e.g., deer hunting with bow and arrow); in Britain and Ireland, "hunting" without qualification implies fox hunting (or other forms of hunting with hounds— beagling, drag hunting, hunting the clean boot, mink hunting, or stag hunting), as described here.

The sport is controversial, particularly in the UK, where its traditional form was banned in Scotland in 2002, and in England and Wales in November 2004 (law enforced from February 2005), although certain modified forms of hunting foxes with hounds are still within the law, and shooting foxes as vermin also remains lawful.

Proponents of fox hunting view it as an important part of rural culture, and useful for reasons of conservation and pest control, while opponents argue that it is cruel and unnecessary.

Fox hunting or fox hunt or similar can mean:

• Fox hunting, a form of hunting for foxes using a pack of scent hounds, often involving hunters on horses.
• Fox hunting is transmitter hunting in amateur radio
• Foxhunt (EP), a 2005 EP by Dukes of Windsor
• Fox Hunt (novel), a novel by James Clancy Phelan

Fox hunting is a Vadim Abdrashitov's film, released in theaters in 1980.