DESPITE disagreeing with Mr J G Monkhouse's support for fox hunting (Letters, November 6), I welcome his opposition to deer hunting and hare coursing and his criticism of many of those who take part.

I can assure Mr Monkhouse that we don't see foxes as 'cuddly pets' but neither are they the 'vermin' that those with a vested interest in seeing them hunted would have us believe. A fox doesn't kill for sport, only man does.

Carnivorous animals, including lions and tigers, will kill more than they can eat if they can because the meal can be saved for another day when food is short. This is an entirely natural response.

Occasionally, a fox does become a nuisance to a farmer, in which case it can be shot or captured in a humane cage-trap. However, it is better to protect vulnerable stock rather than to kill foxes, because if a vacuum occurs, other foxes will simply move in to fill it.

In Mr Monkhouse's home county of Cumbria a second artificial earth has just been found with dead sheep left in a pit for foxes to feed on. These artificial earths prove once again that the pastime of fox-hunting has nothing to do with pest control but sport.

J YOUNG (Lancashire League Against Cruel Sports support group), Abbey Village, Chorley.