Beagling is a sport in which a pack of dogs hunt a hare with their powers of smell. The sport gets its name from beagles, the breed of dog most widely used in the hunt. Beagling takes place in rural areas. It originated in the United Kingdom and became most popular in that country. Beagling is also a sport in the United States, where the dogs hunt rabbits.
Beagling resembles fox hunting because dogs hunt primarily through their sense of smell. However, beagling hunters follow the pack on foot. In fox hunting, hunters ride on horseback.
A typical beagle pack consists of 5 to 20 couple (pairs) of dogs. A master and several assistants called whippers-in supervise the pack. The dogs pursue the hare until they account for (catch and kill) it, or until it evades them. The hunting season in the United Kingdom typically ran from September or October to March. Beagling clubs generally hunted three times a week during the season.
Hunting hares is an ancient sport. However, beagling in its present form originated in England in the 1600’s. Beagling has become controversial, especially among animal rights activists who consider the sport cruel to animals. In 2002, the Scottish Parliament banned hunting with dogs in Scotland with many exemptions, including beagling and fox hunting. In 2004, the British Parliament passed a law restricting hunting with dogs, which includes beagling as well as fox hunting. The law, which went into effect in 2005, covers England and Wales. Supporters of the sport challenged the new law.
