132 THE AMATEUR TRAINER, 
being called in and scolded, Sport comes crawling 
to his master’s feet to beg pardon, as it were, with 
sorrow plainly visible upon his face, as if to say : 
“please, master, don’t be angry, the entisement 
was so great that I forgot myself— 1 promise to be 
mindful next time, Sir.”—The man who whips a dog 
after coming in from a chase makes a bad mistake, 
because the dog will consider it a punishment for 
not having caught the bird, will be cowed and may 
be hard to induce to work again for some time. 
The hunt goes on over rough ground, studded 
with heavy weeds and clumps of briers, etc., and 
soon it is evident that Sport has materially slackened 
his former pace; he gets slower and slower, at 
times squats down to lick his paws, and finally 
comes in to follow slowly at heel, hardly able to 
walk! What’s the trouble? — The dog’s feet not 
having been hardened previous to the hunt are worn 
sore and bleeding; it is impossible for him to work 
longer and the hunt for the time being is at an end. 
In the writer’s experience during many years at 
handling bird dogs in the field, one thing more than 
any other was the cause of great annoyance—foot¬ 
soreness of the dogs. In working a dog day after 
day, no matter on what ground or in covert, his feet 
will become worn sore, disabling him till healed; 
and if the particular dog is to be depended upon as 
a helpmate during an entire seasons’ shooting, then 
the condition of his feet is of considerable im¬ 
portance. To guard against foot-soreness proceed 
