On Thursday morning, I spoke, along with many other opponents of the cruel practice of fox penning, at a meeting of the Board of the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. The DGIF has never actually put the issue of fox pens on the Board’s agenda in 2012 even though they were asked to look into the matter during the last session of the General Assembly. Since this was the last meeting of the year, people concerned about the cruel practice of fox penning came to speak to the Board and ask them to place a moratorium on the issuance of fox pen licenses and to begin to change the regulations that permit this practice in Virginia. At the Thursday morning meeting, there were more than twice as many public speakers opposed to fox penning as there were speakers who support this cruel behavior. After the public comment period was over, the Board decided to have the staff of the DGIF solicit more public comments and come up with recommendations regarding possible new or changed regulations on the subject during the coming year. This will not change the fact that a bill will be introduced again during this coming session of the General Assembly to have the legislature institute a moratorium on the issuance of more fox pen licenses.
While a moratorium would be a good thing and better than the current situation, the best approach would be for our state to simply outlaw the unethical practice of fox penning which has already been outlawed in Florida. Fox penning is simply not hunting and bears no relationship to mounted fox hunting or any other form of traditional hunting which honors the ethics of fair chase.
Any reasonable person would actually think that fox penning would fall under the terms of our felony animal fighting law here in Virginia. The abhorrent practice of catching live wild foxes, releasing them in an enclosure where there is no escape and then setting large numbers of hounds on them to chase them until they are caught and often torn apart limb by limb is bizarrely one that is currently licensed by Virginia through the DGIF. And, yet, it is impossible for anyone to articulate why this practice does not fall within the precise terms of the Virginia felony animal fighting statute.
The most remarkable moment of the public comments made before the DGIF Board on Thursday morning occurred after the large group of fox penning opponents had finished. Kirby Burch who is the president of the Virginia Hunting Dog Alliance and a loud defender of fox penning went on a tirade about how this issue was being pushed entirely by the Humane Society of the United States (ignoring entirely that I and a large number of other speakers not associated with the HSUS had just finished speaking against it). He urged that no compromise whatsoever on the issue should be tolerated and then likened those who oppose fox penning to Adolf Hitler – I am really not making this up. Mr. Burch apparently is not familiar with Godwin’s Law which is a well circulated Internet adage that once someone makes a reference to Hitler in support of an argument he has lost all credibility and has lost the argument.
After the public comments were finished and the proposal for the DGIF staff to come up with recommendations had been passed, Scott Reed the Chairman of the DGIF Board urged that both sides in the matter seek to find a reasonable solution and to treat each other respectfully. I agree with him completely and note that it is the advocates of fox penning, not the opponents who are engaging in irresponsible rhetoric likening people of good intentions and compassion for animals to Hitler and labeling them as terrorists. Such hyperbolic and incendiary language is unacceptable and leads to no positive outcomes for anyone. Certainly not for the animals.
Robin Robertson Starr is the chief executive officer of the Richmond SPCA. To read her biography or that of our other bloggers, please click here. Before posting a comment, please review our comment guidelines. Please note that our comment policy requires a first and last name to be used as your screen name.
Robin Starr can attempt to paint a gruesom picture of fox penning. It is amazing that she is able to do this with no eye witness experience. How many fox pens has she visited? How many walks has she taken inside one of these enclosures to see how it operates and just how many escape options are available to the fox when they so choose to make use of one? I do not see how she can relate this to dog fighting? Does she really think the mouunted fox hunters don't catch and kill foxes in the wild as well, again something I'm sure she has not mounted up and tried to see how that to is done. I don't really know if she should be matched to Hitler but wasn't his fame to brain wash his people. Those that are opposed should get a first hand experience and go on a hunt in a fox pen and ask to see how it is operated, how the foxes are cared for, see just how crafty a fox is when pursued etc. I know of a single individual last year that had been brain washed by false accusations, that after visiting a pen first hand did a 360 on her attitude towards them and spoke of suport. Don't take Robin Starr's opinion and let us not forget that Robin mentioned that she is not behind HSUS, I can tell you this by first hand experience she was elbow to elbow and shoulder to shoulder with them at last years hearing at the Capital on fox penning.
Posted by: Wayne Proffit | October 23, 2012 at 08:02 PM
Mr. Proffit, it is true I have not visited a fox pen during an active chase of prey by dogs. Frankly, I couldn’t stand to watch the horror that ensues. Similarly, I don’t need to watch murder or the commission of any other violent crime to know that it is morally repugnant. Regarding your statement that a visitor to a pen who had opposed fox pens beforehand did a 360 after the visit doesn’t demonstrate any achievement of “progress” on your part in convincing her that this act is anything less than what it is – abhorrent. In fact, if she did a 360, she came right back to where she started.
Fox penning is offensive to people who love animals. It should also be offensive to those who identify themselves as ethical hunters. Moreover, the continued analogy of me and others who care deeply about the wellbeing of other sentient beings to Hitler is offensive to anyone who recognizes the atrocities that he inflicted upon so many during the Holocaust.
Lastly, I said that the HSUS was not the only organization that opposes fox pens. The Richmond SPCA very certainly also opposes fox pens, and therefore we are aligned with HSUS and a host of other individuals and organizations on this important issue. In fact, by a margin of 8 to 1, Virginians oppose having fox pens in our state. So, you and others who share your support of fox pens, are very much in the minority.
Posted by: Robin Starr | October 24, 2012 at 11:44 AM
I have an idea - since fox penning is so much fun for all of the participants, including the fox, let's start using domestic pet cats in these pens instead of foxes. Wait a minute, does that sound a bit too much like what happens to stray animals and even pets who have the misfortune to cross a dogfighter's path, and end up as 'bait animals'? On second thought, let's abandon that idea.
I'm also glad to see that proponents of fox-penning are invoking one of my favorite journalists in their sound and fury. Dave Barry once said that to win arguments, compare your opponent to Adolf Hitler. To quote Mr. Barry: "This is your heavy artillery, for when your opponent is obviously right and you are spectacularly wrong. Bring Hitler up subtly. Say: 'That sounds suspiciously like something Adolf Hitler might say' or 'You certainly do remind me of Adolf Hitler." Well done, fox penners.
Posted by: Lee Anne Holdren | October 25, 2012 at 08:28 AM