THE AFRICAN HUNTING DOG 



found to-day is precisely that wherein it is unlikely to 

 be met with to-morrow. The rifle must therefore gene- 

 rally be the most useful agent in keeping down their 

 numbers. If the breeding holes of a pack can be found 

 it may then be possible to poison or trap a good many of 

 the females, and capture the whelps ; but unless steps are 



AFRICAN HUNTING DOGS 



taken immediately the place is discovered, the mothers 

 are likely to return and remove their offspring elsewhere 

 the moment the coast is clear. 



A ranger once poisoned eight, at the carcass of a cow 

 waterbuck which they had just pulled down. He res- 

 trained the impulse to fire, and contented himself with 

 merely driving them off without alarming them too 

 much. He then poisoned the kill as quickly as possible 

 and withdrew. The dogs, which had only withdrawn 



