TRAINING DOGS FOR THE GUN. 123 



Iced collar is merely a leathern strap, through which are inserted 

 a dozen or more small nails, the points of which should extend 

 half an inch beyond the surface of the inside. On the outside 

 a piece of leather must be sewed over the heads of the nails, to 

 prevent their starting back when the dog presses upon their points. 

 This is to be buckled round the dog's neck, the points of the 

 nails inward, and the drag cord attached to it. Thus, when it 

 becomes necessary to check him on his attempting to run in, or 

 behaving otherwise unruly, the admonition, or rather correction, 

 will be much more impressive ; in a little time, his neck will be 

 very sore; and he must be contumacious beyond measure if this 

 mode of punishment dees not produce the desired effect. 



The most difficult part of dog-breaking is, perhaps, the re- 

 ducing of the animal to perfect obedience in respect to hares. 

 In the first instance, a young dog will eagerly pursue larks or 

 thrushes, or in fact any of the feathered tribe which he happens 

 to meet with ; the partridge being a larger object, and making 

 considerable noise when taking wing, will be pursued by him with 

 much more ardour ; a similar remark will equally apply to the 

 pheasant, which he will still more eagerly pursue : but very soon 

 discovering the attempt to be hopeless, he will shorten the dis- 

 tance of his pursuit, and ultimately abandon the chase altogether. 

 Not so, however, with the hare ; for perceiving that it does not 

 leave the ground, but runs like himself, he will not very easily 

 relinquish the hope of overtaking her, but will rush forward with 

 ungovernable ardour, and, even when lost sight of, will continue 

 to follow the chase by the nose. But there are few dogs which 

 may not be rendered steady in respect to hares by the means 

 which we have pointed out ; and that where hares are numerous 

 much sooner, of course, than where they are seldom met with. 

 There is one effectual mode of reducing a dog to obedience in 

 this respect, should the whip, the drag-cord, and the spiked collar 



fail of the desired effect. For this purpose a living hare should 



L2 



