BREAKING AND HANDLING. 123 



intense liking for the sport. Not infrequently they work 

 simply as an act of obedience. It is requiring too much of 

 them. They have not the strength of limb or hardiness of 

 body or constitution necessary to withstand the effects of the 

 severe labor and exposure. There is no more pitiable sight 

 than that of a good setter or pointer, shivering violently be- 

 tween shots, fatigued from violent exertion and chilled to 

 the marrrow from exposure to ice, cold and mud, water and 

 raw winds. They have not the natural properties for the 

 work that the Chesapeake Bay dog and Irish water spaniel 

 have. The former is stockier in structure, heavier in bone 

 and muscle, denser in coat, and is a much more powerfully 

 built dog in every respect, as is necessary to meet the re- 

 quirements of his special work. Extremely cold water, or 

 work in mud and ice, does not have the distressing effect 

 on him that it does on the setter and pointer. The Irish 

 water spaniel has an extremely heavy, oily coat, and is very 

 powerful in proportion to his size. Both these breeds are 

 naturally water dogs, working in water from choice. The 

 setter and pointer love water at such times as they are warm 

 from exertion, but they do not favor cold water in cold 

 weather. Too often the mere fact that they will retrieve 

 ducks is taken as sufficient evidence that they are consti- 

 tutionally fitted for the work. Aside from humane consid- 

 erations, the value of the dog as a hunter is, by duck re- 

 trieving, first impaired and afterward gradually destroyed. 



In common practice, there are two methods of teaching 

 retrieving, namely, the forcing system and what is commonly 

 called, or miscalled, the natural method. As these systems 

 differ materially in details, they will be described under 

 separate heads. 



THE NATURAL METHOD. 



This method is applied by taking advantage of the 



