OTTER'S HAUNTS AND HABITS 



all right. He was just hanging up his lamp, when 

 something — he could not see what — rushed out 

 past him. When he went to look at his lamb, he 

 found a young otter lying with the lamb." 



The account goes on to say that on the particular 

 night in question, the local rivers were in flood. 

 The above seems to point to the fact that the bitch 

 otter had been flooded out of the drain, and had 

 carried her cub to the shelter of the shippen. A 

 photograph of the lamb and the otter cub was 

 reproduced in conjunction with the above letter- 

 press. 



Otter cubs, like young foxes, are born blind. 



Fox cubs remain so for a period of about three 



weeks, and it is probable that a similar length of 



time, or perhaps rather more, elapses ere young 



otters can see. In the Field of November 26th, 



192 1, there is an account of an otter cub whose 



mother was inadvertently killed by hounds. This 



cub was rescued and brought up by hand. When 



taken from the holt its age was estimated at 



fourteen days. Sixteen days later the cub opened 



45 



