{Fox-hunting [continued]}[24th March 1970]

[Redbook1:135-137][19700324:0000a]{Fox-hunting [continued]}[24th March 1970]

Thursday 19^th March 1970.

[continued]

            As to the moment of killing itself: there are several ways of killing animals, one at least of which must be used to control the population of pests like foxes.  Traps are slow and painful, however little the foxes’ ability to feel pain; in relative terms, if time and degree of pain mean anything to  a fox -- and one must assume that time at least does -- the trap is relatively unkind.  Gas is not the humane killer it seems: it is instructive that while more furore is raised over hunting and shooting animals than gassing them, the use of gas and other chemical poisons in warfare is regarded as far more odious than the use of guns, jets and other hunting devices.* Like traps, gas is dangerous for humans in the area also.  Shooting is slow in inexperienced hands, but for that very reason it has its own code of behaviour to try to ascertain that animals are wounded as little as possible and when they are, they must be hunted down if possible.  I have yet to hear of a fox which was caught by hounds and survived, wounded or otherwise; death under those circumstances, though unpleasant to watch, is the nearest to being reliably instantaneous of all of the methods.  The fox has no reason to believe he will die or be hurt if he is caught -- he runs from alarms by instinct.  He is only caught once; the more times he gets away with it, the less logical reason he has for being frightened the next time (although I doubt whether that makes any real difference).

*We prefer guns and jets in warfare because they give the victim a chance, although that increases his fright; we prefer gas etc for foxes because it gives no chance for the fox to become frightened. 

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