Apparently the old game gets played better when you pit bloodhounds against man instead of foxes.

Hunting foxes can be a dangerous pastime, and not just for the fox. That’s because foxes show so little concern for the welfare of their pursuers: They’ll dart across major roads and leap over train tracks, with unwitting members of the pack following doggedly along behind. Sometimes to their doom.

Which is why some 30 years ago the veteran fox hunter and co-founder of the Coakham, Nigel Budd, decided to develop a sport that “would combine all the arts of venery together with a controllable quarry.” A human being.

Men, Budd argued, can be instructed to stay away from roads and railway tracks. They also avoid disturbing farmers’ livestock. And they can choose to lead the hounds and horsemen on a challenging chase over the highest hedges and the triangular wooden fences known as tiger traps.

Another risk to be avoided is getting shot by a fox.

A wounded fox shot its would be killer in Belarus by pulling the trigger on the hunter’s gun as the pair scuffled after the man tried to finish the animal off with the butt of the rifle, media said Thursday.

On second thought, there is risk that a human witness would tell a different story than a fox — a man accidentally shot himself in the leg and then made up a story about a scuffle to avoid embarrassment. In that case playing the game with humans might actually be worse.