TERRIERS AT WORK. 73 



he snatched it up and followed the chase with it in 

 his mouth, shaking- it as he went, till he threw it 

 down dead. He was one of the most reckless dogs 

 I ever knew in the way he took hold of anything, 

 but his pluck ahvays carried him through. 



When terriers are rabbiting in a gorse they 

 should all disappear in it instantly, and for this 

 work a good smooth dog with a proper jacket and 

 thick skin is as good as any wire-haired. In 

 hedgerows the dogs should not be allowed to skirt, 

 and they should be made to come away and follow 

 on when a rabbit goes to ground. 



The great thing in entering terriers underground 

 is never to try to force them in. The dog should be 

 allowed to sniff about the earth and watch a kennel 

 companion at work, and his curiosity will then lead 

 him to enter himself. On no account, however, 

 should he begin this part of his education too 

 young — never before he is a year old, and then 

 only in company. By the time he is two years 

 old he may try single-handed, as he will then have 

 confidence in himself I have seen unfortunate 

 little animals shoved into a drain, and a stone put 

 up at the mouth to prevent them from coming out. 

 The poor things are, of course, frightened out of 

 their wits, and are given a distaste for their work 

 which they never lose. If instead of treating them 

 so they had been gently pulled back and prevented 

 from going in, their curiosity would have been 

 excited, and they would have been wild to know 

 what was happening inside. 



