SIR - In her latest anti-hunting letter (May 12) Helen Smart clearly admits there has never been a hunt-organised fox breeding programme. She then accuses virtually all farmers with some woodland of breeding foxes if they leave these areas undisturbed' during the summer. It's time Ms Smart accepted that artificial earths are not a secret, their use is both simple and effective. The earths are there to encourage foxes away from areas where they are a pest, such as sheep farms. I wonder if she would prefer the alternative, which is shooting during the breeding season and leaving cubs to starve.

Jon Burgess, Malvern.