Fox hunting with hounds is banned in England and Wales but continues in controversial forms, with ongoing welfare debates about trail hunting and alleged illegal hunting.
Fox hunting with hounds, where it occurs, involves prolonged pursuit that causes extreme stress, fear, and exhaustion in the fox before death by predation. Even supporters of hunting acknowledge the welfare cost as inherent to the activity. Trail hunting, if used to conceal live fox hunting, continues the welfare harm under legal cover. The welfare case for maintaining and enforcing the Hunting Act is supported by evidence about fox physiology and the duration of pursuit.