72 
HABITS OB THE POLECAT. 
adopter of this practice, but the terrier in general abjures it, preferring a constant 
changing of his hold, which is certainly less fatal, though eventually a far more 
severe mode of punishing for the time. While poor “ Jemmy” was undermost, 
my friend cared little about the result, but now it was quite a different affair; 
accordingly, catching both animals up in his hands, and rushing to the kitchen, 
he plunged the combatants over head and ears into a bucket of water. Nothing 
else would have caused these animals to have quitted their holds; and I may 
take this opportunity of informing such as keep Ferrets, that the latter animal 
possesses the same dread of water; and if two should unfortunately quarrel, a 
sudden immersion is the surest way of separating them. If, however, this takes 
place while you are in the middle of a field, or dry sandy Rabbit-warren, where, 
perhaps, water cannot be very readily come at, a sudden and violent puff of 
breath into the faces of the combatants will commonly produce the same result; 
but in any case the animals must be separated and removed immediately on their 
letting go, otherwise, on recovering from their surprise, they will instantly return 
to the conflict, which would, if uninterrupted, terminate in the death of one 
or both. 
“Jemmy’s” food consisted of butcher’s meat in a raw state, or birds, which I 
occasionally shot for their skins, and afterwards threw him; milk he delighted 
in; Rats were a favourite repast, and it is remarkable that he always ate the 
head first, and left the rest, if another Rat still remained whose head he had not 
as yet devoured. So much for the talk of a Rat’s head being poisonous—an idea 
that has so far got possession of many as to make them deprive their Cat or Dog 
of any Rat it may happen to catch, lest it should eat the head! It is also a 
common idea, that a Cat will reject the head of her own accord, unless very 
hungry. These notions are both as erroneous as that of the spittle of the Weasel 
( M. vulgaris) being poisonous—a superstition which has given rise to many idle 
tales, some of which I shall relate when I come to speak of that animal. 
Having heard it asserted that the Polecat will attack Bee-hives for the honey 
they contain, I brought him to gardens where they were kept, and was disap¬ 
pointed, for he took no notice of them; however, when honey has been presented 
to him on the finger, he has appeared very fond of it. He delighted in eggs, and 
would break and eat them with great dexterity. He generally broke them at 
the smaller end, biting the sides of the shell down as he proceeded, and would 
first lap the interior with his tongue, and then lick it all round until he left the 
shell as clean as if it never had any contents. If (as I have tried) an apparently 
perfect shell, emptied by careful blowing, were presented to him, he would take 
it, and eagerly crack it, but on discovering his mistake, would evince his rage and 
disappointment by smashing the empty shell in pieces with his teeth and paws. 
We had a large Cat in the house with whom “Jemmy” was on no very good 
