Jan. 2, 1909.] 
FOREST AND STREAM 
^7 
The Reporter Dog. 
Continued from page 1019. 
By nature, dogs prefer to hunt in packs. With 
a reasonable amount of experience they become 
accomplished team workers. Each one not only 
knows how to exercise his aggressive forces as 
an individual, but he also learns how to co¬ 
ordinate, to the best advantage, his efforts with 
those of his fellows. Thus each, in his special 
way, insures the greatest success in securing the 
prey with a minimum of individual risk and 
effort. 
The methods of a brace of greyhounds, for 
instance, serve well to illustrate the advantages 
of team work. When a brace has worked to¬ 
gether a few times in the pursuit of prey, each 
hound learns to “run cunning”; that is, one 
takes up the running at his highest speed to 
force the pursued animal to a turn, whereupon 
the other hound, running more at ease a few 
yards behind, dashes at his topmost speed across 
the angle made by the change of course and 
takes up the running. Then his mate in turn 
loafs a few yards in the rear. Thus they alter¬ 
nate in their fierce dashes till their prey is caught 
or escapes. 
This act of intelligence on the part of the 
greyhound disqualifies him for coursing, as, in 
competition, each hound must run independently 
of his competitor. Hence, brains in the grey¬ 
hound are a handicap in competition, though in¬ 
dispensable to success in wild life. 
It will be noted that each hound running cun¬ 
ning, takes a distinctly specialized part, involv¬ 
ing complicated mental processes and varied 
physical effort, but all co-ordinating admirably 
in furtherance of the common result. They com¬ 
prehend each other’s purposes. 
In fighting their prey, the same masterful ob¬ 
servance of means to ends obtains among ex¬ 
perienced dogs. For instance, one will engage 
the victim in front while a second one ham¬ 
strings it or tears open the flank, if the animal 
is large; if small, one will throw it off its feet, 
while the other closes on it and kills instantly. 
In particular, country dogs are notorious for 
their self-hunting proclivities. When they de¬ 
sire a hunt together, they communicate their 
purposes with ease and precision. One will call 
at the home of another, extend in doggy lan¬ 
guage an invitation to go hunting, and forth¬ 
with they gallop merrily away to be gone all day 
or several days, according to their powers of 
endurance or the available food supply obtain¬ 
able in their vagrant wanderings. Let us as¬ 
sume that they find a rabbit in a brush pile. 
They then display masterful strategy. One 
forces himself into the pile on one side, while 
the other guards the opposite side, eager, alert-, 
ready to spring instantly to right or left, the 
moment that the rabbit breaks cover to flee. 
Whether it be rabbit, woodchuck or other prey, 
in brush pile, stone heap or wall, there is a dog 
always on opposite sides, insuring a complete 
blockade, and so displaying intelligent team 
work. They have learned the lesson that, when 
both dogs are together on one side of the refuge, 
the prey has a free field for escape on the other 
side. 
Foxhounds frequently exhibit in a high degree 
the finesse of team work. They recognize the 
voices of their pack members, know from ex¬ 
perience whether the cry is from a reliable or 
unreliable hound, comprehend the significance of 
the different notes, and act promptly and intel¬ 
ligently according to circumstances. Hounds of 
special intelligence and initiative, after learning 
the runway of a fox from repeated experiences, 
leave the pack, cut across to some intercepting 
point, and await the foxe’s coming as the rest 
of the pack drives him on. There are hounds 
which are notoriously certain to be in at the 
death, though not seen much with the pack in 
the main chase. This comprehension of special 
effort, to accomplish a remote consequence for 
the general good, is but a different manifesta¬ 
tion of the intelligence exercised by the reporter 
dog. 
As illustrative of the dog’s predilection for 
team work, an instance, described in Col. Hutch¬ 
inson’s English work on dog training, is pre¬ 
sented as follows: “Lord A’s head gamekeeper 
was singularly aided—he possessed a four-legged 
whipper-in. * * * The keeper brought into the 
field a brace of powerful retrievers and a team 
of spaniels, among which were two that had 
never been shot over. On the first pheasant 
being killed, all the old spaniels dropped to shot, 
but one of the young ones rushed forward and 
mouthed the bird. The person who had fired 
ran on to save the bird, but the keeper called 
aloud and requested him not to move. The man 
then made a signal to one of the retrievers to 
go. He did so instantly, but instead of meddling 
with the bird, he seized the spaniel, lifted him 
up and shook him well. The moment that the 
pup could escape, he came howling to the heels 
of the keeper and lay down among his com¬ 
panions. The keeper then confessed that a 
couple of the spaniels had never been shot to— 
but he confidently assured the sportsmen they 
would see before the day was over that the 
pups behaved fully as steadily as the old dogs, 
and explained to the party how the retriever 
did all the disagreeable work, and indeed nearly 
relieved him of every trouble in breaking in 
the youngsters. On the next few shots this 
novel schoolmaster was again deputed to show 
his pupils that he would not allow his special 
duties as a retriever to be interfered with. Both 
the young dogs, having thus been well chastised, 
became more careful—made only partial rushes 
to the front, when a recollection of their punish¬ 
ment and a dread of their four-footed tutor 
brought them slinking back to their older com¬ 
panions. As the keeper had averred, they soon 
learned their lesson completely—gave up all 
thought of chasing after shot, and quietly 
crouched down with the other dogs.” 
It should be borne in mind that the dog’s idea 
of sport refers directly to the material results, 
which in turn refer directly to his appetite. He 
loves the sport with all his heart, but also he 
loves it much more with all his digestive tract. 
Refinements of methods are naught to him. Re¬ 
sults are everything. Therefore, when a re¬ 
porting dog informs his master that birds are 
found, his purpose is not that his master may 
have personal enjoyment, tlis master is recog¬ 
nized as a leader of the pack, and therefore a 
factor in achieving success. The results are 
always the consideration. 
When the dog hunts in the company of man, 
his natural methods are not changed. They may 
be restricted or repressed accordingly as they 
best serve the purposes of man. In so far, then, 
as the trained dog is permitted to hunt at all. 
his methods are his own. When he has an 
opportunity to self hunt, he reverts to his own 
unrestrained methods. When he hunts for man, 
he considers him one of the pack, a dominant, 
forceful, unpleasant member perhaps, yet one 
who must be considered. 
Taking a pointer or setter as an example, he 
is restricted to an exceedingly limited partici¬ 
pation as compared to that which he enjoys in 
a state of freedom. He may search as diligently, 
find as skillfully, and point as accurately and 
staunchly as may be, but further than that he 
may not go. The actual capture, the fruit of 
his efforts, is reserved for the pleasure of his 
master. Nevertheless, even within this restricted 
scope, he has some opportunities to exercise his 
proclivity for team work. This is exhibited 
when he endeavors to co-operate intelligently 
with the efforts of the shooter. There are many 
recurrent situations in which this purpose is 
manifested. 
[to be continued.] 
Hunting in California. 
San Francisco, Cal., Dec. 24.—Editor Forest 
and Stream: The flight of canvasback ducks 
from the Klamath Lake and other northern re¬ 
gions to the grounds frequented by local sports¬ 
men has at last commenced. About a week ago 
the ducks began to arrive at the upper end of 
San Pablo Bay and were also reported to be 
numerous in the Sacramento Valley. Now the 
birds are scattered all along the marshes around 
the bay and the increased attention that is being 
given the sport is very noticeable. Stormy 
weather ruled here about the commencement of 
the month, but this has been followed by cool, 
clear weather that adds zest to hunting. The 
result of the storm}' weather was to drive the 
ducks inland and until the arrival of the can- 
vasbacks, the local sportsmen have had but little 
success without making a journey to Los Banos, 
Newman, Gustine or other points in the San 
Joaquin Valley. The storm has badly scattered 
the birds, but as there was not rain enough to 
form new ponds in either the Sacramento or 
San Joaquin Valley regions, it is expected that 
they will soon be wending their way back to 
the bay shores. Duck shooting has not been 
furnishing all of the sport in the vicinity of Los 
Banos of late, there being several good bags 
of snipe killed. 
Quail shooting in Monterey county has been 
excellent after the recent rain, the ground being 
in splendid condition for the dogs to work to 
advantage. In addition to the results attained 
on the Empire Club grounds, many unattached 
hunters secured limit bags. Around the bay, 
quail shooting is now indifferent,- except in in¬ 
stances where shooters are allowed to hunt in 
vineyards and other inclosed places. This sport 
has been very poor so far this season in Sonoma 
and Marin counties, although birds seemed to 
be plentiful earlier in the season. It was thought 
that when cool weather commenced after the 
first rain that the birds would be easier to find, 
but somehow the game seems to have eluded the 
hunters thus far. A. P. B. 
All the game laws of the United States and 
Canada, revised to date and nozv in force, are 
given in the Came Laws in Brief. See adv. 
