KENNEL NOTES.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1510, 7 February 1901, Page 36

KENNEL NOTES.

- BY TE KURIABOHA

” J (Ail communications should be addressed to the Kennel Editor

The Woodyille A. and P. Association hold Wr ahnual show on the 6th ms ~ at Woodriilo. The results; Will be published next, week * ' *

The Mhsfcerton A, alld 1 hold tfc&fc aaauai sltow o»_ th - in _ - iiy w- •: -•- ■ ■ -■. ' • ■ . ■•■ v;:;

~ : run r; : those usually- mcurrea jy* where, very -: 'they work ui -°^ e without ■ ?i. :iksly ’ W-s dSturbed. Consequently, anyone ■ as companions big they some e tackle poaehdogs', specially himself owning Tnu* a in little extensive cox - sorts, ohat These mfjht.dogo .are ox « _ "€«iar. , most useful are bun *Strong animals, weighing, mastiff., twenty pounds '£ . n:tS "it and very K -a~, , that will he di^% t u the keeper, and yet aorsres- ■ ogeutie Witi* one . 1 ' j take a iUfU':>. his .t aeml S o ;e theydn l,e dent of fssoises Invariably thoroughly depended upo that et g lvhen Se has StleWs it » chain that might K a huge mu^. y &Tmmeli Sg-whipt a mfde in the various surrounding JilCm. You see the idea? To frighten mer who might be inclined, after dark, Z kv for a' few rabbits or pheasant. .'SxiTis' always part cf the programme c k The dogs are trained by being caused :ij have tussles with men who wear thick "' lelothing and have boxing-gloves or other " protection,- on their hands. The dog, muzzled, is urged on to pursue the man, and bring him to the ground. After .... a while trie man energetically thumps , and bangs the dog, who soon begins to enter into the spirit of the thing. All ■ this sounds easy, but, as a matter of : fact, much tact and care have to be exercised. You see, when the man strikes the deg he thinks he is being chastised for doing something wrong, - and probably goes slinking away quite cowed. But, as I say, a smart animal soon gets to understand, and many ox • them greatly enjoy tnese bouts. Ut course, even with the dog muzzled, it . is not' everyone who is anxious- to .start playing these games. When he is used to one man the dog is then tried with f two, and three, or more. These' make off across tire fields and the dog is sent f after them. What lie naturally does is . to bring down a man and keep on worrying him. But this is not what is wantedT When he has thrown down one man he should go after another, and in tliis way a keen, speedy dog. will detain two or three.

Gatekeepers’ dogs should not ue digit tmctly marked, but should be of a tawny t colour that will net show at night time. When, darkness sets in on a moonless night, out go the keepers and the dog, to prowl in the lonely coverts. Frequoafcly, where poachers are encounter- ■) ’ e d, it is the dog who first gives indication of their presence. Needless to say, keepers 1 dogs are not barkers. On being dis~.t. covered the game robbers bolt, lahe dog after tnem. If, however, they turn and ■ show fight, very likely the dog’s muzzle y is .removed. One seldom hears much as to ■ ' these encounters, but terrible battles A-’have been, fought out in this way- be- ; - twen men and. dogs. A really game dog i f: is never done so long as he can stand ; but, of course, the slipping of the muzd z \ e is rather exceptional, and the keener, as a rule, only does this when he is outnumbered, and face to face with brutal trespassers. Old poachers have confessed to me. their fear of these dogs. "I’d rather have five—men after me than. . two and a big dog,” declared one of v them. C have 'known men caught by , a •* mall dog. *ln one case the men were seen some distance off. The dog wap. loosed, and went after them as they ran. All would have escaped, had C not: the dog singled out one man,, and. " by throwing itself at him. brought mm to the ground four times, the man all the time shouting to Iris flying comrades y v'to, stop and shoot the animal. He was r ' taken.; As proving the wholesome fear :n ] . w hich 'these animal s are held. one fellow ;• .told ’me how. early one night, he and three companions saw a keepers dog with head, down standing m a little open- - ing. To run would onlv give the alarm, and all four stood stock-still for- • about half an hour, hardly daring to breathe. ■Then, the moon came out, and the keeDer3 , dog, was shown to be ■ a deer . quietly brows ing.

* * #

I heard: another somewhat amusing tale of a gamekeepers 5 -dog. It was given to him by his sweetheart, being positively the. ugliost-looking customer her savings could buy. The girl was always in fear lest the man should get injured

by poachers, and, besides obtaining the dog she did something more. The keeper was laid up by rheumatism for a, lew days, and when he got out again he heard some news. The report had gone round that he bad been nearly eaten by his own huge dog, which had mistaken him one night for a poacher. The man was wise enough not to deny this; but, secretly, he tried to find out- how the story started. And he ran ib to earth in the home of the young-woman herself, who had even gone so far as to exhibit a torn and bitten coat that she was mending, and which this ingenious maiden declared to be the one the savage dog had!' mutilated. That story spread far and wide; and no poachers ever put the dog J s prowess to the ‘test. These are the dogs that- Continental armies use for stalking scouts, despatchrunners; and so forth, and experts believe that there is a great future for them in warfare. Many of those already in use have been got from gamekeepers, and some , bave merely been lent to the military authorities for experimental purposes. The dog has, of course, the advantage over man that he can scent a human being who out

of sight say, , hiding in a bush and so. the trained gamekeeper’s dog himself becomes a valuable scout. Our own War Office, I may mention, is paying attention to this question, andl the time may yet come when every British outpost will have one of the ‘ r dog,s cf war.” I need hardly add that the gamekeepers’ dog works bestfor his own master, and, fierce as he looks, is, in a rough way, often a great pet.