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| "M" stands for |
"MAMA!" -- the silent cry nearly uttered on the descent in response to "C". |
| Manners |
Deportment of hounds, horses, and members of the hunt field. |
| Mark to Ground |
Hounds indicate that a fox has gone to ground by giving tongue and digging (worrying) at an earth. |
| Mask |
Fox's head or face. |
| Master |
Master of Foxhounds, MFH. Individual in charge of hunt operations in field and kennels. |
| Meet |
Assembling of a hunt on a given day. See Fixture. |
| MFH |
Master of Foxhounds. See Master. |
| MFHA |
Masters of Foxhounds Association. Foxhunting's governing body. |
| Mob |
To surrond and kill a fox before it has a chance to run. Also, Chop. |
| Mouthy |
A babbler, a noisy hound. |
| Move Off |
Hounds, staff, and field head out to begin the hunt. |
| Music |
See Hound Music. |
| Mute |
When a hound follows a line without giving tongue. |
| Muzzle |
Hound's nose & mouth. |
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"N" stands for
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"NEVER AGAIN!" -- a promise to oneself after saying "E". |
| Noisy |
A babbler, a mouthy hound. |
| Nose |
Hound's ability to detect and interpret scent. |
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| "O" stands for |
"OH, FUDGE!" -- the last thing one remembers saying before uttering "H". |
| Open |
A hound first gives tongue on a line. |
| Open Cubbing |
Cub hunting during the few weeks before the regular season when the membership is usually welcome to participate. |
| Out Cross |
Infusion of new blood in line breeding. |
| Override |
To press hounds too closely, especially at a check. Also, to get in front of a Field Master during a run. Both are bad manners. |
| Overrun |
Hounds shoot past a change in the line of scent. |
| Own the Line |
A hound speaks to or honors a line. |
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| "P" stands for |
"PLEASE" -- a term used in response to an offer of a touch from a flask, usually following "F". |
| Pack |
All the hounds owned by the Hunt. Also, the group of hounds taken to hunt on a given day. |
| Pack Sense |
Hounds working well as a group, honoring each other, running in mass. |
| Pad |
Fox's foot. Also, the center cushion of a hounds foot. |
| Panel |
Jumpable section of a fence, or a jump built into a fence line which will keep livestock in. |
| Paneling |
Installing jumps and gates and clearing trails to facilitate cross-country riding. |
| Pie |
A cream or fawn hound color. Badger-pie: legs, head, belly, and tail of cream while ears and back shade into black with ligher badger-colored hair tips. Hare-pie: similar,but hairs shade to brown, ends are a lighter hare color. |
| Pink |
The red/scarlet coat with white breeches ensemble, not the color of the coat. |
| Pipe |
Branch tunnel/hole in an earth. |
| Point |
Distance covered during a run as the crow flies. Also, place where a whipper-in is sent to watch for a fox. |
| Point-to-Point |
Annual fund-raising horse races sponsored by the hunt. Sponsorships are our bread & butter. Early versions had only the start and finish defined, riders picked their own routes (an "old fashioned"). |
| Popper |
The piece at the very end of a hunting whip which makes the cracking noise. Also, cracker or lash. |
| Puer |
Hound dung. |
| Pup |
Young fox, cub, kit. |
| Puppy |
Young hound who has not yet been entered. |
| Puppy Walking |
Taking a young puppy to raise for the summer to civilize it until it's returned to the kennels for pack training. |
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"Q" stands for
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"QUIT FOR THE DAY" -- what one one does after "H". |
| Quarry |
The hunted animal: fox or coyote. |
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| "R" stands for |
"RING" -- the sound in ones ears after "H". |
| Rat Shot |
#11 or #12 shot (salt-size) shot in a .22cal revolver used to alert (the bang) or punish (the sting) hounds for rioting. Used when a hunting whip would be inadequate. |
| Ratcatcher |
Informal hunting attire. |
| Rate |
A warning cry to warn or punish hounds or sometimes staff. |
| Rat-Tailed |
Horse or hound having few long hairs on its tail |
| Recover |
To pick up the scent line after a check. |
| Refuse |
Horse stopping in front of a jump. |
| Ride |
Trail, path, or lane cut through woods. |
| Ringing Fox |
One which runs in a circle never very far from where it was found. A ringer. |
| Riot |
When hounds chase anything they shouldn't. |
| Riotous |
Undisciplined hounds which persist in riot. |
| Rising Scent |
When scenting is poor at ground level but scent is detectable at riders' height. |
| Run |
The time when hounds are actively hunting a line, from the time they open until they lose it for good. |
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| "S" stands for |
"STAND" -- the interesting process that follows "H". |
Sab
(see also:
Hunt Saboteur) |
Misguided individual intent on spoiling foxhunters' sport by interferience with hounds, fox, horses, scent line, etc. or by violence and intimidation against participants, bystanders, staff, and facilities; and they often break the law in doing so. Sabs range from self-righteous animal-rights activists to paid thugs who commit atrocities in the name of anti-foxhunting. (Note: these animals hunt in packs, since they are cowardly by nature; and their leadership are often politically motivated.) |
| Scarlet |
Proper term for the color of a red coat. |
| Scat |
Fox droppings. Billett. |
| Scent |
The distinctive musky odor a fox left on the ground, grass, foliage, and in the air. Formed by glands at the base of the brush and between the toes, urine, scat, and perspiration. |
| Scenting |
The ability of hounds to follow a scent trail on a given day as a function of weather: moisture, temperature, wind, etc. This is separate from nose, the skill of the hounds themselves. |
| Sculk |
A group of foxes. |
| Second Field |
Followers who do not plan to jump but who try to keep up with the first field. |
| Skirter |
A hound or field member who doesn't follow the line but cuts corners. |
| Soft Mouth |
A low-voiced, bell-toned hound. |
| Spar |
A New Zeland term for a piece of wood attached to a top wire to facilitate jumping. (See: Irish Jump under BRH Terms)
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| Speak |
To give tongue when on the scent. |
| Spotty |
When scenting is uneven. |
| Staff |
Huntsman, whippers-in, and kennelman.
Paid: professional. Unpaid: honorary. |
| Stained |
A line fouled by other animals. |
| Stale Line |
Weak scent line due to elapsed time. |
| Staying Power |
Stamina or endurance. |
| Steady |
A hound that is not flighty or flashy. Also, a huntsman steadies his hounds when they are uncertain. |
| Stern |
Hound's tail. |
| Stick, Ability to |
Gameness of a hound. |
| Stirrup Cup |
Libation served to mounted followers before they move off. Also a style of cup with a fox's head (usually) as its base. |
| Stop Hounds |
Staff calls-off hounds going into impassable or forbidden territory or onto a highway using voice or whip. |
| Strike |
To find the scent of a fox. |
| Strike Hound |
Hound that found the scent first. |
| Stud Book |
Record of names, dates of entry, and breeding records of all hounds in the pack. |
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| "T" stands for |
"TOSS" -- what one has gotten if unable to utter "C" and preceding "F" or "H". Landed ahead: "took a header." Landed behind: "came a crupper."
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| Tab |
The leather piece at the end of a hunting whip's crop to which the thong is attached. Also, keeper. |
| Tag |
White tip on a red-fox's brush. |
| Tailgate |
Informal snacks after a hunt. |
| Tail Hounds |
Hounds running at the back of a pack. |
| Tally Ho |
A fox has been viewed. See: Signals in the Field. |
| Tally Ho Wagon |
Vehicle with unmounted followers and refreshments aboard. |
| Thong |
The braided part of a hunting whip. |
| Thruster |
Thoughtless, nuisance rider who larks and overrides hounds, other riders, or the Field Master. |
| Timber |
A jumpable obstacle made of wood. |
| Trail Clearing |
When new trails are hacked or old trails improved during the off-season. |
| Trail Ride |
An off-season social fund-raiser where members, guests, and visitors can ride through hunting country. |
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| "U" stands for |
"UNDER THE WEATHER" -- what one will be for a couple of days following a "T" without sufficient "Y". |
| Uniform |
Attire for members of the field. |
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| "V" stands for |
"VICTORY" -- the feeling one has after a long, hard day without encountering a "T". |
| View |
To see (or sight of) the fox, making sure that it is a fox. |
| Voice |
See Cry. |
| Vixen |
Female fox. |
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| "W" stands for |
"WHOOOEEE!" -- the thought that precedes hollering "C". |
| Walk, At |
Puppies are sent to farms to be raised at liberty and broken off chasing farm animals then returned to the pack. |
| Whelp |
A young puppy. Also, to give birth to a puppy. |
| Whip |
Hunting whip. Also, incorrect shorthand for a Whipper-In. |
| Whip-In |
To act as a Whipper-In. |
| Whipper-In |
Staff who assists the huntsman with hounds, usually going out ahead to watch for a fox going away or to keep hounds off a highway. |
| Work a Line |
Search for the scent and follow it along the fox's track. |
