RETRIEVERS AND THEIR BREAKING 



T) ETRIEVERS are now by far the most popular gun-dogs 

 Xv. in this country, whereas in America they are considered 

 useless, with the exception of a few that are kept exclusively for 

 duck shooting, and which are called Chesapeake Bay dogs, and 

 are a distinct breed from any we have in England. Ninety- 

 nine-hundredths of the work of English retrievers is on land, 

 and although a retriever can hardly be called perfect unless he 

 will hunt in water, and get a winged duck if that be possible, 

 yet it is absolutely impossible to have a dog that is perfect in 

 everything (or so it appears), and therefore a shooter exercises 

 a wise moderation in his demands when he insists on perfection 

 in one department rather than moderation in all. 



People purchase and use retrievers for either one or more 

 of several reasons : 



1. Because they like a dog. 



2. Because they like to collect more game than they shoot. 



3. Because they do not like to leave wounded things to die 



in prolonged pain. 



4. Because when they are out of the house they like to have 



something that they can order about. 



5. Because the dead game that can be seen is easy for the 



dog to retrieve. 



6. Because the wounded game that cannot be seen is difficult 



for men to pick up. 



7. Because a handsome retriever gives a finish almost equal 



to neat spats to a shooter's turn-out. 



8. Because it is much easier to gain credit for sportsman- 



ship at a dog show than in the field and covert. 



176 



