First, this is an incredibly cruel, violent, and unnecessary "sport" that is created for profit and to score hunting dogs. The fox or the coyote is often torn to shreds inside an inescapable pen. The coyotes and foxes are caught by the heavy steel jaws of a leg hold trap and suffer excruciating pain and terror. The trap can tear the flesh, cut tendons and ligaments, and break bones. When the animals struggle to free themselves, they aggravate their injuries. A trapped animal may chew or twist the limb caught in the trap in an effort to escape. Later, the animal is removed from the trap and packed into a cramped cage with other injured animals. The animals are routinely sold and transported across state lines to operators of pens. Untreated for their injuries, the coyotes and foxes are released into an enclosure.
In the pens, packs of hound dogs are released to pursue the animals. Exposure to repeated, prolonged and unavoidable pursuit result in stress for the coyotes and foxes. Death is another possibility, even with the presence of escape shelters. The penned coyotes and foxes often meet a cruel end when torn apart by packs of dogs.
Transporting wild animals for penning purposes has directly led to the spread of rabies and other diseases dangerous to wildlife, pets and people.
Under natural conditions, coyotes tend to be solitary animals outside of the breeding season, minimizing disease transmission between individuals. However, in the artificial conditions that are found in penning, the risk of spreading these diseases between individuals of the same species or to the dogs and their handlers is greatly increased.