Hunting the clean boot is a term that has been used in
Britain
Britain most often refers to:
* The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands
* Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...
to refer to the use of packs of
bloodhound
The bloodhound is a large scent hound, originally bred for hunting deer, wild boar and, since the Middle Ages, for tracking people. Believed to be descended from hounds once kept at the Abbey of Saint-Hubert, Belgium, in French it is called ...
s to follow a natural human scent trail.
The 'clean boot' refers to the absence of either an artificial scent such as
aniseed, as used in
drag hunting, or animal urine, as used in
trail hunting
Trail hunting is a legal, although controversial, alternative to hunting animals with hounds in Great Britain. A trail of animal urine (most commonly fox) is laid in advance of the 'hunt', and then tracked by the hound pack and a group of followers ...
.
[ Whilst today the term has become synonymous with the use of bloodhound packs, most breeds of dog can be taught the skill individually with varying degrees of success.][
Typically, clean boot hunts are run along similar lines to fox hunting (now prohibited in Great Britain), with a field of mounted riders following a pack of bloodhounds which trails the scent of a runner. Like other forms of mounted hunting with hounds, hunting the clean boot usually occurs in the autumn, winter and early spring.][
In order to improve the speed, agility and pack hunting instincts of the bloodhound, the ]Dumfriesshire Hound
Dumfriesshire Black and Tan Foxhounds were a pack of foxhounds kennelled at Glenholm Kennels, Kettleholm, near Lockerbie until they were disbanded in 2001. They were established by Sir John Buchanan Jardine, author of ''Hounds of the World'' (1 ...
was used by several packs as an outcross.[
]
See also
* Trail hunting
Trail hunting is a legal, although controversial, alternative to hunting animals with hounds in Great Britain. A trail of animal urine (most commonly fox) is laid in advance of the 'hunt', and then tracked by the hound pack and a group of followers ...
* Drag hunting
References
External links
Masters of Draghounds and Bloodhounds Association, ''bloodhoundhunting.co.uk''
retrieved 17 August 2017.
retrieved 17 August 2017.
Belgian Clean Boot Hunting, ''cleanboothunting.be''
(only available in Dutch and French), retrieved 17 August 2017.
Dog sports
Equestrian sports
Hunting
Hunting with hounds
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