8 THE FOX 



Chapman, and he notes the likeness to a small breed 

 of Spanish sporting dog, which is popularly believed 

 to be a cross between a fox and a dog. Mr. Busk 

 confirms this, and writes that the animal was pro- 

 bably a Podenco or Andalusian rabbit dog of the 

 variety known as the ' Caleva or Paterna breed.' 

 This strain is popularly thought to have originated in 

 a cross between a fox and a dog (bitch). I have 

 often heard of such dogs taking to the hills and 

 living wild, preying on sheep and goats and exhi- 

 biting much of the astuteness and cunning of the 

 fox and wolf in keeping out of the way of human 

 beings. The editor of the ' Field ' remarks on the 

 likeness of the animal, of which a careful drawing 

 illustrated the article, to the Spanish fox (Me/ano- 

 gaster), and, he goes on, its general aspect ' appears 

 to lend some support to the popular belief in Spain, 

 that when domesticated dogs run wild, as they some- 

 times do, and take to preying for themselves, they 

 occasionally mingle with the fox of the country and 

 produce a litter of hybrids.' These facts could not 

 be passed over, but they hardly amount to a proof; 

 and it is equally possible that the Podenco may be a 

 descendant of a dog-and-wolf cross, degenerate in 

 size through selection for many generations by 

 Spanish sportsmen. 



