ijo IV/LD SPORTS OP- TtiE ttlGHLANbS chap. 



once roused by being bit or scratched in its attacks on vermin, 

 tlie Skye terrier fights to the last, and shows a great deal of 

 cunning and generalship, as well as courage. Unless well 

 entered, when young, however, they are very apt to be noisy, 

 and yelp and bark more than fight. The terriers which I have 

 had of this kind show some curious habits, unlike most other 

 dogs. I have observed that when young they frequently make 

 a kind of seat under a bush or hedge, where they will sit for 

 hours together, crouched like a wild animal. Unlike other 

 dogs too, they will eat (though not driven by hunger) almost 

 anything that is given them, 'such as raw eggs, the bones and 

 meat of wild ducks, or wood-pigeons, and other birds, that every 

 other kind of dog, however hungry, rejects with disgust. In 

 fact, in many particulars, their habits resemble those of wild 

 animals ; they always are excellent swimmers, taking the water 

 quietly and fearlessly when very young. In tracking wounded 

 deer I have occasionally seen a Skye terrier of very great use, 

 leading his master quietly, and with great precision, up to the 

 place where the deer had dropped, or had concealed himself; 

 appearing too to be acting more for the benefit of his master, 

 and to show the game, than for his own amusement. I have 

 no doubt that a clever Skye terrier would in many cases get 

 the sportsman a second shot at a wounded deer with more 

 certainty than almost any other kind of dog. Indeed, for this 

 kind of work, a quiet though slow dog often is of more use 

 than the best deer-hound. I at one time had an English bull- 

 dog, which accompanied me constantly in deer-stalking ; he 

 learned to crouch and creep up to the deer with me, never 

 showing himself, and seeming to understand perfectly what 

 I wished him to do. When necessary I could leave him for 

 hours together, lying alone on the hill, when he would never 

 stir till called by me. If a deer was wounded, he would 

 follow the track with untiring perseverance, distinguishing the 

 scent of the wounded animal, and singling it out from the rest, 

 never making a mistake in this respect ; he would also follow 

 the stag till he brought him to bay, when, with great address 

 in avoiding the horns, he would rush in and seize him either 

 by the throat or the ear, holding on till I came up, or, as he 

 once did, strangling the animal, and then coming back to show 

 me where he had left it. 



