North American mink were introduced into the UK in 1928 to be farmed for fur and following their release and escape into the wild can be found across most of Britain. The Masters of Mink Hounds Association (MMHA) was formed in 1978 to govern and promote the hunting of mink in the UK after otters became a protected species. Some otter hound packs turned their attention to hunting mink while new packs were formed to hunt mink. Currently the MMHA represents 21 packs of minkhounds.
Mink live along the banks of rivers and streams and therefore mink hunting was a river/lake/stream activity. One of the functions of the MMHA was the registration of hunting country. This meant that an individual mink hunt had exclusive use of an area which may have comprised a river system, a group of rivers or those rivers within a defined geographical area; nearly all rivers and streams in rural England and Wales were within the registered country of a mink hunt. As a condition of registration with the MMHA each mink hunt had to supply a map of its country to the MMHA so that the boundaries between individual mink hunting countries were known and each mink hunt within such boundaries could operate exclusively within it. On occasions a hunt would invite another to meet on a river in its own country. This was known as an “invitation meet”.
Registered mink hunts usually had between 10 and 30 hounds. Most hunts bred their own hounds but also obtained draft hounds from other mink hunting packs and other hunts. In the latter case it was important for a hound which had previously hunted fox to transfer its attention to mink, which it soon learned from other pack members. A pack of mink hounds normally consisted of a mixture of Otter hounds, foxhounds and foxhound crosses.
The mink hunting season ran from April to early October, depending on local water and weather conditions. All hunts hunted at least once a week, normally a Saturday and often on weekday afternoons or evenings. The meet would normally take place at 11.00 am and at a pre-arranged place such as a public house, a farm or a convenient location where cars could be parked. Mink hunting was carried out on foot along a river bank. Initially the huntsman would draw along the river bank trying to pick up the scent of a mink while hunt supporters followed on behind. The huntsman was assisted by whippers-in whose task was to help to control the hounds and their hunting activity by stopping them from hunting non-target quarry and keeping them away from such places as roads and railway lines. Also following the hunt would be a terrier man whose role was to use terriers to flush out mink that had gone to ground.
The hounds would search the river bank until a mink had been found at which point the hounds would start speaking, as in other forms of hunting. Often the supporters would spot a mink and alert the huntsman of its presence. The mink would be hunted by scent along the river bank where it would make maximum use of cover and water. If the hounds lost the scent the huntsman would cast backwards and forwards along the river and if unsuccessful would then cast both sides of the river away from the banks along drainage ditches, tributaries and hedgerows in an attempt to re-find the mink.
Mink have small territories (less than a mile of river bank) and so do not travel far once they are roused. The mink used it size, agility and swimming ability to evade the hounds, doubling back and retracing its tracks in order to confuse the pursuing pack. Often the mink would take refuge in holes in the river bank or tree roots whereupon the hunt would attempt to flush out the mink using terriers, sticks or spades so that it could be hunted once more. Mink also attempted to escape the hounds by running up trees; in this instance hunt supporters would shake the branches with poles or throw stones to dislodge the mink. If this was not successful the mink would be shot (the MMHA Rules stated that each hunt should have access to a suitable firearm during the days hunting). Once in full swing the hunt would be going up and down the river in a small area chasing the mink from one refuge to another. If the mink was caught it was thrown live to or killed by the hounds, drowned or released to be hunted again. Only occasionally was the mink shot.
A mink hunt could last up to 2 hours once one was located, depending on scenting conditions, the ability of the hounds, the terrain and the skill of the huntsman. In some cases a mink may be killed very quickly or “chopped” but more often than not a mink was able to evade the hounds in the first instance.