BREAKING AND HANDLING. 247 



be efficacious in bringing him in if he is fond of hunting 

 and is not gunshy. The same artifice is not to be practiced 

 too frequently. If the dog runs home, follow him, put on 

 the spike collar, and bring him back to the place he ran 

 from, even if it is five miles away. Lead him back and 

 give the collar a jerk betimes to make the return trip as 

 unpleasant as possible. A few lessons in obedience to the 

 order Come in can then be given. It is not advisable to 

 cast him off again until his fears are thoroughly allayed. 

 A long, light checkcord may be attached to the collar and 

 he may then be permitted to run, if he will, and snubbed 

 with the checkcord. Many dogs will not attempt to run if 

 they feel the spike collar on their necks, hence it is advan- 

 tageous to leave it on such when necessary. If a dog is 

 cunning and will not run when he feels the checkcord and 

 spike collar on his neck, he may be deceived by taking off 

 his kennel collar and still keeping on the spike collar; when 

 he runs he may be brought up to a standstill with the check- 

 cord and spike collar. After the dog is restored to his or- 

 dinary humor, cast him off; but it is better to refrain from 

 giving him orders until he has forgotten the unpleasant- 

 ness. If he starts to run, he generally expects to be chased. 

 If he stops to look at his handler, he merely wishes to see 

 if he is in pursuit. If the handler appears indifferent, the 

 manner puzzles him. A dog can read by his handler's ac- 

 tions what his intentions are, in many cases. In hunting on 

 the same grounds, it is unwise to have an unpleasantness 

 twice in the same place, as thereafter, at the slightest alarm 

 in such place, he may bolt. The cause of running away in 

 the field may be remedied by long continued yard breaking, 

 if it admits of being so done. It is commonly a grave 

 error to whip a dog for running away, such treatment 

 naturally having a detrimental effect on the next repetition 

 of the act; nevertheless, a professional trainer who knows 



