120 ANIMAL LIFE IN AFRICA 



eyes and nose he will find, as a rule, enough discarded 

 victuals to maintain his strength. 



I have known individuals when wounded yelp much 

 like domestic dogs ; but as a rule they maintain silence, 

 both when first hit and when being dispatched at close 

 quarters with sticks or spears. 



The Hunting Dog possesses three distinct calls. The 

 best known is the peculiar and rather plaintive howl 

 usually heard after nightfall and in the early morning : 

 this strongly resembles the last note in the call of the 

 common cuckoo, and is repeated from eight to a dozen 

 times in quick succession. It is the rallying cry used 

 to collect the individuals of a pack, and to communicate 

 the whereabouts of each after a hunt. When suddenly 

 disturbed or alarmed Hunting Dogs spring to their feet 

 uttering hoarse barks, much more resembling those of 

 baboons or bushbucks than of domestic dogs. When at 

 a kill, and also, I believe, at other times, they give vent 

 to a curious whining chatter, probably expressive of 

 satisfaction*- -^ 



Hunting Dogs, when caught young, become quite tame 

 and friendly with their masters, but never quite lose 

 their wild instinct, and, when grown up, are not very 

 reliable in temper. A low country resident once kept 

 two half -grown ones, which accompanied him on his 

 hunting trips ; but he said he could never teach them 

 to be really obedient, nor to refrain from running in and 

 tearing at fallen game, though he found them tolerably 

 docile in other particulars. I have found small whelps 

 very friendly indeed, and they whine and yelp much like 

 ordinary puppies. 



