OTTER-HUNTING 



much of interest when hounds can own it, as the 

 actual hunting after the otter is afloat. With 

 entered hounds which try the banks carefully it is 

 possible to find an otter without touching a drag 

 at all. This frequently happens after a late meet, 

 when the huntsman is a real trier, and can depend 

 on his hounds. Still, we imagine that the majority 

 of keen otter-hunters enjoy watching the pack at 

 work on a drag, and the music seems a fitting 

 prelude to the chorus that arises when finally 

 hounds mark and acknowledge in no uncertain 

 tones that their quarry is " at home." 



Under favourable conditions the scent of an 

 otter will lie for a very long time. In the shade, 

 amidst tall herbage, or among the water lilies, 

 hounds can speak to it hours after their otter has 

 gone, and it is sometimes difficult to know whether 

 they are the right way or running heel. Then is 

 the time to look for the seal of your otter in the 

 sand, mud, or other soft places, and note whether 

 the footprints point up-stream or down. Half the 



pleasure of otter-hunting is to see hounds draw, 



81 F 



