223 AMERICAN GAME BIRD SHOOTING. 



too greedy. We carried our own tent, food, and cooking 

 utensils, so tliat we were entirely independent of farmers, 

 and ready to camp wherever night overtook us. While 

 we were shooting, one man drove the team and received 

 the birds, and the one who first became tired took his 

 place and allowed him to join in the sport. All Avere 

 able to rest in turns by this plan, and as we drove 

 slowly, neither dogs nor horses were fatigued, and were 

 therefore able to resume operations the next morning in 

 as fresh a condition as if they had not left camp. The 

 dogs were fed each evening, no limit being placed on 

 the quantity of their food, but they received nothing 

 the next day until they returned to camp. Mr. Horace 

 Smith, the veteran sportsman and writer, gave me the 

 following recipe for feeding dogs on a shooting expedi- 

 tion: "Take the hearts, kidneys, livers, and gizzards 

 of birds, and a hare or squirrel when it can be pro- 

 cured, and boil them into shreds. Then add corn meal 

 until the mixture is as thick as it can be made; stir 

 constantly, and boil thoroughly. When cooked, lay the 

 food on a board or plate to cool, and when it is cool 

 enough let the dogs have all they want to eat. Do 

 not feed them the next day until they get home." 



This is certainly a simple, good, and cheap way of 

 feeding the animals, and the food is better than any 

 dog biscuits. A deep bed of prairie grass should be 

 prepared for them under the wagon at night, so 

 that they may be protected from the cold and the 

 night dew, which are liable to cripple them with rheu- 

 matism. The horses ought also to be blanketed in 

 cool weather, and receive a liberal supply of oats, beside 

 the prairie grass or the hay which is sometimes carried 

 along for their use. If the animals are cared for in 

 this manner, and not worked too hard, they will always 

 be ready for duty, and return home in finer condition, in 

 all probability, than when they started on the expedition. 



