Fox Hunting

[Anomalocaris]

Hunting would seem somewhat pointless if doesn't kill the prey, wouldn't it?

Not at all. Just as many thousands of 'recreational' fishermen practice 'catch and release'.

To have pack of dogs chase, catch and tear an an animal to pieces is barbaric and disgusting in my opinion..

I suspect being chased, caught and torn apart would not be an unusual fate for a small fox like animal in a healthy ecosystem without any human hunters.

Also, foxes are predators, and predator to prey ratio amongst mammals being what it naturally is, every fox chased, caught and torn apart by dogs is literally scores of other wild small, furry critters not chased, caught and torn apart by the fox.

Catch and release seems to be more of a way to appear to still have the cake after eating it too, since the hook injury and long struggle to escape probably means most of the released fishes are almost as good as dead.