Why we have a moral duty to call off the dogs

JUDGING by the antics of the supporters of fox hunting, it would seem that they consider themselves above the law.

This attitude is not really surprising when one thinks of their attitude to the fox: chasing it for miles with a pack of dogs, watching it being torn to pieces when caught.

How can they justify this ghastly business? What arguments do they use in their defence?

I. Keeping the numbers of foxes under control.

2. Providing jobs in the countryside.

3. Protecting their freedom to pursue their "sport".

No doubt they will think up others, but to deal with just these three:

I. Hunting with a pack of dogs cannot keep control of numbers, even if a control of numbers was necessary, and this is dodging the issue of the method of killing.

2. If a chase on horseback is the exciting part, then a chase on horseback can still be had using an artificial smell drag, not a live fox. No loss of jobs, just a loss of barbaric cruelty.

3. Their "sport" of fox hunting in the 21st century is well and truly out of date, a relic from the cruel past of the witches’ ducking stool, the burning of religious opponents and the public hanging of those caught stealing food, all long ago abolished by law.

Hunting foxes from horseback with a pack of dogs must also be banned.

A Delahoy, Silverknowes Gardens, Edinburgh