Editorial Report

Editorial: 600 hound owners join rabbit hunt By BILL KARR/WON Staff WriterPublished: May 01, 2012

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EDITORIAL While California considers banning the use of dogs for hunting, beginning with bear hunting, but without doubt intended to expand to control of all hunting dogs, 600 beagle owners are gathering for a rabbit hunt at Boonville, Indiana. The World Hunt is sanctioned by the American Rabbit Hound Association and the National Kennel Club and is hosted by the Erie Canal Beagle Club, which is based in Lynnville, Ind. The staging area for the hunt is at Thresherman Park, where it has been for more than 20 years, and many of the same people attend each spring. The event brings 600 beagles and their owners from across the country to ramble across some of Warrick County's former strip mine sites. The competition itself is fairly simple. The dogs are sent out in a group of five, called a cast. A judge runs with the dogs and awards them points for how well they flush out and track rabbits. The winner of the cast advances to the next round until an overall winner is finally determined. There are three classes, based on the dogs' levels of experience. The competition, which got under way last Thursday, continued all day Saturday. Many of the people and dogs camp nearby, though some stay in local hotels. While California, in it's "feel good, my way or the highway" mental state, wants to control what dogs you can own and how they can be used, others are enjoying their rights under the Constitution, and a free society. Pray that California does not pass this restriction, it would be the end of one more of our freedoms, and could spread to other states.