BEMAIIES.] 



I'Oli MOUNTAIN, FIELD, AND FAllM. 



[UBEEDIKO. 



weat!it»r; good boiled ontiiK'al, flesh (or 

 greaves), with potatoes boiled iti the soup, 

 and occasiouallj cabbage sliced into it, and 

 plenty of salt, which he thoiiglit tho best food 

 for dogs at all times. A\'lu'ii at tho moors, 

 and ono has not tho same convenienco for 

 cooking, ho usetl barley-Hour instead of oat- 

 meal (as it only requires scalding), with 

 «« nrreavos" and salt, and milk, if ho could 

 get it. 



The miserable accommodation for dogs that 

 cue generally meets with on subscription 

 luoors is well known, and mostly consists of 

 some wretched baru or outhouse, with the 

 roof half off, no door, and the door as wet as 

 a snipe-ground. In this case, the comfort of 

 having your own servant will, in itself, repay 

 the expense of taking him down with you, 

 instead of trusting to some man whom you 

 may hire as bag-carrier, &c., at four or five 

 shillings a day, and who, having no interest in 

 your dogs, neither feeds nor takes care of 

 them as he ought. Tour own man will, with 

 a few boards, &c., make the best of the place 

 in which they have to live. He will also pre- 

 pare their food properly before you go out in 

 the morning, so that they may be fed imme- 

 diately on your return, instead of being left 

 for an hour or so, during which they have 

 curled themselves up to sleep, and are too stiff 

 and tired to leave their benches to eat. He 

 will also let them out for a i'ow minutes the 

 first thing in the morning, whilst he is clean- 

 mg out their kennel; putting in a little fresh 

 etraw, if required, and filling their troughs 

 witii fresh water, &c. All dogs' feet should 

 be dipped in strong salt and water imme- 

 diately on coming off tiie moors ; and a couple 

 of minutes with the "dandy-brush" will, if 

 tiiey come in wet, cause them to dry in half 

 the time that they otherwise would. Do"s, iu 

 hunting, are sometimes bitten by vipers. 

 Tiiese reptiles, the only venomous of the three 

 British varieties of the snake, abound on some 

 moors ; and, unless the bite is promptly 

 treated, a valuable dog's lite may be lost. 

 Sweet oil, the fat of vipers, train oil and tar, 

 and numerous other remedies, are advised ; 

 but the common " burdock" is an excellent j 

 Kpeoific. This was told us by an old poacher ; ' 

 and, thougli we constantly used to lose dogs, 

 sheep, and even cows, notwithstanding all our 



care, before wu know of this reinodv, wo never 

 lost another anitnal afterwards. Tlio mode of 

 using it is to slico or scrape a largo handful of 

 tho root, and pour upon it about two quarts of 

 boiling water ; when this infusion is cooi, 

 foment the bitten part with it many times 

 a day, and pour about half a wine-glass of it 

 down the dog's throat three or four times a 

 day. We never knew this to fail, and tho dog 

 is fit for work in a couple of days. This sub- 

 ject, however, will bo treated more at largo 

 when we come to speak of the diseases and 

 accidents to which dogs aro subject. 



BREEDING, BREAKIiNG, AND TRAINING 

 SPANIELS, SETTERS, AND POINTERS. 



There has been much written on this subject ; 

 and dog-breaking, at the present day, is pretty 

 much the same as it was in the time of Ger- 

 vase IMarkhara. The art of breeding, however, 

 has occupied the attention of many able sports- 

 men. In a state of nature, the sexual appe- 

 tency of a bitch occurs only once a year; but, 

 in a state of domestication, it occurs oftener, 

 within six, eight, or nine months. This arises 

 from the difference of food upon which the ani- 

 mal is fed, and the consequently changed con- 

 dition of its habits and constitution. In breed- 

 ing dogs, the in-and-in system has had both its 

 advocates and its opponents. One interested 

 in this subject says, that there have been va- 

 rious animals of the finest qualities bred from 

 parents very nearly related to each other ; and 

 this is perfectly true : if we have a male and 

 female full brother and sister, and both of very 

 fine quality, the chances are that we shall have 

 a fine progeny. " I had a very fine greyhound 

 from this method; at the same time, one of 

 the whelps was quite an idiot, and I was forced 

 to destroy it when about two months old. 

 My personal experience, with regard to the 

 lower animals, is not very extensive; but, 

 being naturally fond of the study of natural 

 history, I have taken every opportunity of 

 gaining information ; and I find among fanners 

 a constant habit of introducing a male from 

 some other family. Gamekeepers pursue the 

 same plan with regard to dogs ; they call it 

 introducing fresh blood : they generally adhere 

 to the same kind, but not always: tho best 

 greyhounds have a cross with the bulldog; 

 aud, I believe, though I speak with diffidence, 



4i7 



