The hunting season lasts from October or November until the end of March. Late spring is usually a rest time for the hunt horses and a time for breeding hounds. Summer is a time for getting horses and hounds fit, and doing work in the countryside like making or rebuilding jumps. No hunt ever releases a caged animal for the purpose of hunting it. Foxhounds hunt by scent, not sight, and many MFH's are happy to simply see their hounds following the trail of the fox well.
Land is essential to foxhunting.
Large tracts of open land are needed to properly foxhunt, as fox, like other wildlife, require habitat in order to live. The decrease in open space may be the greatest challenge to foxhunting in the 21st century. Joint Masters Common The Master of Foxhounds is the person responsible for all the financial and physical responsibilities of the hunt. He or she chooses and breeds a pack of hounds suited to the local countryside, keeps the landowners happy and provides sport for the hunt members or subscribers. The MFH is assisted in these duties by a huntsman whose job it is to know the countryside inside and out and to control the pack of hounds.