So, you may be aware that fox hunting with dogs was made illegal in England and Wales after the introduction of the Hunting Act 2004 (2002 for Scotland). However, despite the ban, a dirty little secret still continues in the countryside…
*Warning: This blog post contains information which some viewers may find upsetting and distressing. Please proceed with caution.*
The red-coats seem to think their pompous attire puts them above the law, parading through the streets on their physical and metaphorical high horses, while compliant crowds applaud them for reasons I can’t decipher. They call it “tradition” and unbeknownst to those applauding these countryside tyrants, the hunters have been snidely slipping through the loopholes of the law for over two decades. Since the Hunting Act 2004 was brought into effect, they’ve been disguising their cruel intentions under the name of “trail hunting”, a form of hunting which is supposed to mimic the “real” version but without the needless violence and killing of foxes and other wildlife. Sounds like a good compromise, right? Well, believing it would be an easy mistake to make if it wasn’t for all the evidence which highlights and proves just how much of a guise trail hunting is.
Firstly, as with “real hunting”, the foxhounds are trained to follow a scent, leading those on horseback as they charge through the countryside, trampling over private farmland and putting livestock at unnecessary unease. You might assume the scent which trail hunting foxhounds are trained to follow would be anything but the scent of an actual animal - you know, therefore making it unlikely for any wildlife to be located and chased... As it happens, trail hunting actually uses fox urine as the scent, which makes absolutely no sense if you’re claiming to not be hunting foxes. Furthermore, the fox urine trail is carefully and conveniently laid to pass by real fox earths (the underground dens where foxes live), thereby increasing the chances of disturbing a real fox, ultimately leading to their pursuit. And to top it all off, trail hunters also recruit “terrier men”, whose job is to send terriers down into fox earths to fight and flush them out. Terrier men are only necessary when a fox has been located and killing is imminent - they would not be needed if the hunters didn’t already intend on killing foxes.
So, examining the evidence, we can clearly see that trail hunting is nothing more than a smokescreen for real hunting. The red-coats have somehow repeatedly gotten away with it, despite the endless footage recorded and provided by hunt saboteur drones and cameras. Yet, if you still need convincing for why hunting needs to end for good, if all this information wasn’t enough to prove how outrageous this bloodsport is, then let me tell you about how the hunt treat their actual animals - living beings who they see as nothing more than tools or objects to amplify their hunting experience.
As you can imagine, an entire pack of off-lead foxhounds charging around in pursuit of a scent (or an animal) is bound to be unruly and uncontrolled, potentially even dangerous to other animals - not just the unfortunate animal they’re chasing/seeking. They pose a threat to livestock while trampling through the countryside, infiltrating on private farmland (which many farmers have said they find disruptive and disrespectful). There have also been several cases of foxhounds charging through towns and villages, instinctually chasing neighbourhood cats, which has led to the heartbreaking deaths of many beloved pets, many of which are treated as mere nonchalant “accidents” or completely ignored by the hunters. This isn’t to blame the hounds, of course, they’re following their natural instincts and obeying the orders of what they’ve been taught to do. But it’s extremely irresponsible of the hunters to allow this to happen.
What’s even more disturbing and heartbreaking is that many hounds have been injured or killed via road accidents and train collisions during hunts as there’s nothing in place to stop them running out onto roads or train tracks. The hunters don’t seem to care about losing their hounds in this manner, allowing it to happen time and time again. In fact, a situation just like this happened as recently as January 2026 - an estimated 20 or so foxhounds crossed a railway in Lincolnshire while following a scent, leading to a couple of them being hit and killed by a passing train. The hounds which are fortunate enough to survive this blatant irresponsibility aren’t so lucky either. When a hound is no longer deemed “useful”, acquires an injury, or simply doesn’t have a strong enough drive for hunting, the hunters destroy them as though they’re nothing more than disposable assets, often by shooting them in the head. In most cases, these dogs are around 5 or 6 years old when no longer useful to the hunt, but some dogs as young as puppies have been killed as a result of insufficient hunting instinct, a lack of obedience, or merely an absence of aesthetic standard. Not to mention how the hounds are beaten and threatened for being “disobedient”. To put it simply, even the hunting dogs themselves suffer in the hunting industry.
And it’s sickening.
The hunt also hit, kick and whip their horses for “disobedience” and force them over dangerous and difficult jumps and terrain in the countryside, leading to injuries and fatalities. The terrier men force their terriers down into underground tunnels and fox earths, where there’s likely to be a battle between dog and fox as they both fight for their lives, putting both animals at risk of severe injury - the terriers are also transported in small, cramped and uncomfortable “terrier boxes”. And, as I’m sure will be no surprise, the hunters treat other humans as shockingly as they treat animals. Many hunt saboteurs and anti-hunt protesters have been on the receiving end of physical and verbal assault, harassment and aggression, with a few cases leading to them being purposely knocked down by vehicles or trampled over by horses - merely because they were standing up for the rights of defenceless animals.
Fortunately, there’s hope on the horizon!
The Labour government have finally acknowledged their pledge to tighten the loopholes on hunting and at long last officially ban trail hunting for good! It’s taken them almost two years to get round to it but us animal lovers and animal rights activists finally have some hope that animal welfare will be taken seriously for once and no more sentient beings should have to suffer as a result of the barbaric hunting industry! A ban can’t come soon enough and I can only hope that the government commit to their promise on this matter.
Of course, the hunters and those who support them have had a lot to say about the government’s recent announcement to ban trail hunting… they’re really scraping at the bottom of the barrel to find any excuse to keep their sick pastime from being banned. They’re even threatening to have their foxhounds killed in mass numbers in order to justify keeping their obsession with destroying wildlife alive! Supposedly, the foxhounds will have nowhere else to go and the hunters will have no further use for them… so congratulations on confirming that you definitely do not care about your dogs then, I guess? Also, foxhounds can be (and have been) rescued by loving families many times previously. There is no reason why this shouldn’t be the case now. Pro-hunters will say anything to justify themselves, yet by doing so, they’re merely showing themselves up for the twisted individuals they are.
All I can say is “It’s about f***ing time and good f***ing riddance!!”
If you’ve been following me for a while, you may recall the anti-fox hunting illustration I created back in 2023, featuring a Dalek exterminating a hunter; it was based on the iconic scrap between the Daleks and Cybermen from the Doctor Who episode “Doomsday” - most notably the line, “This is not war, this is pest control!” - which I used as inspiration due to pro-hunters frequently referring to foxes as “pests” as reasoning to kill them, when the real pests are the hunters themselves, those who find a great deal of twisted joy from hurting other living things. I recreated the illustration at the end of 2024, adding a lot more detail compared to the original version (which was admittedly rather basic). You can see the updated 2024 version below:
With the recent announcement of a trail hunting ban on the horizon, I wanted to recreate the illustration once more, but this time turn it into a fully fledged short comic, featuring the entire Daleks Vs Cybermen scene instead of just the one line. While I’ve most certainly put my very own anti-hunt spin on it, the overall plot takes a lot of inspiration from the same specific Doctor Who episode. I haven’t quite finished the comic yet but I hope to do so within the next couple weeks or so - make sure to keep an eye out for it on my social media pages! I’m really looking forward to sharing it with you all - it’s something I’ve been working on for weeks now and I’ve put so much time, thought and effort into it, so all and any support would be massively appreciated once it goes live!
While I can’t quite share the entire thing for now, I have included a little teaser for you below:
Thank you for reading this month’s blog post and I hope I’ve encouraged you to join the movement in protecting all wildlife from the vile hunting industry, and I’m so grateful to anyone who spared a few minutes of their time to read and hopefully learn about it - all the support is hugely appreciated!!
Keep an eye out for the short comic, keep fighting for animal welfare, and remember… if you hunt, you are a… C***!
Farewell for now!
Do you want to show your support for wildlife and your anti-hunt views? Why not purchase one of my anti-fox hunting badges? They make bold and fun animal-rights orientated accessories to showcase your loathing for the hunting industry and your love for these awesome animals!
