Working dog

“ The training of a sheep-dog for his profession begins at a very early age. The first thing is to take him out with his mother and let him see her working. He blunders lightheartedly, frisking along in front of the horse, and his owner tries to ride over him, and generally succeeds. It is amusing to see how that knocks all the gas out of a puppy, and with what a humble air he falls to the rear and glues himself to the horse's heels, scarcely daring to look to the right or to the left, for fear of committing some other breach of etiquette. ”

“ The sportsman's Spaniel—which is not commonly the show-bench animal—is of hardy constitution, taking the water in the coldest of weather, doing his [68] eight or ten hours' work in a day, and roughing it in the matter of food and kennelling.
The progeny of the working dog are not any more trouble to rear than those of a rough-and-tumble Terrier.
The "soft" constitution of so many black and Sussex Spaniels is due to that foolish system (in breeding) having been carried beyond all sense of reason.
All are water-loving dogs, and, when properly trained, retrieve their game tenderly. ”

“ The main thing is to see that the points which the exhibitor strives to produce are not incompatible with working qualities. The aim of these gentlemen is to breed a symmetrical dog which shall be built much upon the lines of a hunter, and it is necessary that he should have a hard coat fitting him for duties in all weathers. The markings, mere externals, are immaterial, although it is a common thing to hear a novice enlarge upon the beauties of his terrier because he happens to have some nice even black and tan upon his head. ”

“ This is easily managed by taking them out whenever you go walking or riding, or letting them be loose all day, kennelling at night, and when this is done, by a mild dose of physic a fortnight before the season, and additional exercise along a hard road to harden their feet, say two or three hours daily, you have your dogs in fair working order. ”

“ The man then gave the dog something more to encourage him, and the dog repeated his rounds, till the birds were attracted by his motions, and followed him into the mouth of the ditch—an operation which was called 'working them.' The man now retreated further back, working the dog at different holes, until the ducks were sufficiently under the net. ”

“ If one of the working classes, or a small tradesman, buy a dog in the streets, it is generally because he is “of a fancy turn,” and breeds a few dogs, and traffics in them in hopes of profit.
The homes of the dog-hawkers, as far as I had means of ascertaining—and all I saw were of the same character—are comfortable and very cleanly. The small spaniels, terriers, &c.,—I do not now [54] allude to sporting dogs—are generally kept in kennels, or in small wooden houses erected for the purpose in a back garden or yard. ”

“ There was a breed of wire-haired black-and-tan English terriers, but I imagine them to be nearly, if not altogether, extinct, that from all accounts must have been really good terriers in the true meaning of the term.
In working dogs, be careful only to put in one at a time: you thus economize your forces, and avoid the risk of their fighting in the earth. ”

“ Doubtless this prejudice in favour of working dogs has been engendered by the circumstance that many owners of celebrated bench winners care nothing about their dogs being trained, in some cases generation after generation having been bred simply for show purposes. ”

“ The discipline of the trained dog is such that an untrained dog, harnessed with him, would be compelled to submit to all the movements of the former. On the march, and under fire, one can rely on his working till absolutely exhausted or mortally wounded. These are the qualities which can be developed in the breeding kennel, and in his subsequent training. The four wheels of the little gun carriage 107are made of tubes of steel, light, low and stable, and fitted with pneumatic tires. ”

“ By holding the guide in the left hand and working the push-rod back and forth, the dog should work freely and without a hitch in all the varied positions that it is possible for it to assume. With fine brad fasten the tail. Bore holes thru head and ears, and pivot them on a loose joint so that they will swing when the pup is busy scratching. ”

“ The dog jumps into it at a sign from his master, and as the wheel turns the sparks from the forge fall about the animal in showers. Each dog is expected to work five or six hours; then, when his task is done, he is allowed to amuse himself as he pleases, while a comrade takes his turn at the wheel. The nail-makers discovered long ago that dog labour was cheaper than boy labour, and not so troublesome. ”

“ Yet the life of a work dog that has a kind and considerate master is not an unhappy one. The dog is as full of the canine joy of life as though he had never worn a collar, and not only sports and gambols when free, but really seems to like his work and do it gladly. ”

“ He will chafe at inaction; he will come eagerly to the harness in the morning; often will come before he is called and ask to be harnessed; and if for any reason—lameness or galled neck or sore feet—a dog is cut out of the team temporarily, to run loose, he will try at every chance to get back into his place and will often attack the dog that seems to him to be occupying it; while a dog left behind will howl most piteously and make desperate efforts to break his chain and rejoin his companions and his labour. ”

“ The dog is a member of society who likes to have his day's work, and who does it more conscientiously than most human beings. A dog always looks as if he ought to have a pipe in his mouth and a black bag for his lunch, and then he would go quite happily to office every day.
A dog without work is like a man without work, a nuisance to himself and everybody else. People who live about town, and keep a dog to give the children hydatids and to keep the neighbours awake at night, imagine that the animal is fulfilling his destiny. ”

“ In the first place, it must be acknowledged that unless the master has himself studied the subject with the utmost care and keen perception, success in teaching a dog to work sheep will not fall to his lot. Many a good dog has been spoiled in the hands of an unthinking and unsympathetic would-be trainer, and, conversely, many a vicious, timid, or “wild” dog has been converted by the master hand into a brainy, intelligent servant. ”

“ When nothing else will do, this staff is thrown at the offending animal. The staff is so heavy that the animal may readily get its death by such a throw. The dogs know this, and in consequence are so afraid of this grim implement that the rattling of the rings is sufficient to induce them to put forth extreme efforts. During rests the team is tied to the staff, which is driven into the snow. The dog harness is made of inch-wide straps of skin, forming a neck or shoulder band, united on both sides by a strap to a girth, to one side of which the draught strap is fastened. ”

“ If one has access to a vacant lot, a common, a park, or other open space where he may allow his dogs to run unmolested, always provided he is at hand to watch them, then the question settles itself, but where this is not possible there is only one other way and that is to take the dog out on lead, walking him from one to three hours, according to the breed and the requirements of the individual, for as previously stated, some dogs require more exercise than others. ”

“ The travail sledge. When the ground is hard, or in the absence of snow, dogs are frequently used to draw a contrivance known as a “travail”; this is made by attaching two long tough sticks, slightly turned up at the hind ends, to the neck collar of the dog. The small ends of the sticks should rest nearest the head of the dog; by some dog drivers these are made to just cross each other over the dog’s neck, where they are bound to each other by a lashing of hide; others prefer attaching each stick in a line with the body of the dog, as in the above illustration. ”

“ We fed our dogs on fish, giving them only one meal a day, and that one, when the day’s work was done. To feed them in the morning, caused them to be sluggish and stupid for some time thereafter; and the same happened if they were fed at noon. Long experience has shown, that the dogs thrive the best, and are able to do the most work, on one good meal given to them before their long night’s rest. The dog-shoes, which are so essential to their comfort and recovery when a foot is frozen or badly injured, are much prized by them. ”

“ A pointer has pleasure in finding game, the terrier worries rats with eagerness and delight, and the bull-dog even attacks bulls with the greatest energy, while the poor turnspit performs his task with compulsion, like a culprit on a tread-wheel, subject to scolding or beating if he stops a moment to rest his weary limbs, and is then kicked about the kitchen when the task is over. ”

“ There is a natural predisposition for the office he has to discharge, which it requires little trouble or skill to develop and perfect.
It is no unpleasing employment to study the degree in which the several breeds of dogs are not only highly intelligent, but fitted by nature for the particular duty they have to perform. The pointer, the setter, the hound, the greyhound, the terrier, the spaniel, and even the bull-dog, were made, and almost perfected, by nature chiefly for one office alone, although they maybe useful in many other ways. This is well illustrated in the sheep-dog. ”

“ The maneuvering of sheep at a distance is a feature in sheepdog trials for which more points than are now granted should be given, as it demonstrates unmistakably the excellence of the training and also the actual utility of a dog for field work. Many dogs are under perfect control as long as they are within reach of their master’s stick, but cannot be relied upon implicitly when far away; such a dog is obviously improperly trained. ”

“ It is worth a consideration whether it would not be advisable to train the retriever employed with a team to give this assistance. A dog of a quarrelsome disposition could be taught, by your urging him, to seize any spaniel who might be mouthing a bird, in the same manner you would set on a young terrier to fly at a rat. [Pg 493]
54. Doubtless it is the highest training to teach a team to "down-charge," but most breakers make their spaniels come into "heel," or rather gather close around them—by the word "round"—whenever a gun is discharged. ”

“ It is, however, as an assistant to the flock-master the farmer, the butcher, and the drover that the Collie takes his most appropriate place in every-day life. The shepherd on his daily rounds, travelling over miles of moorland, could not well accomplish his task without his Collie's skilful aid. One such dog, knowing what is expected of him, can do work which would otherwise require the combined efforts of a score of men. ”

“ The training of dogs for this class of work can be—and has been—carried to great lengths. A man crawling on patrol [322] work can take a dog with him, also in a crouching position, on a leash. A little tug at the leash causes the dog to rise, to retire, or to change its direction, and a properly-trained animal will answer to the leash as satisfactorily as a horse does to the reins. Such a dog is of immense help at night, when he can be taken quite close to the enemy. ”

“ He must be made to work at first with an old sheep-dog, for though he has the impulse to fly about and do something, he does not know what to do and does not understand his master's gestures and commands. ”

“ The men got out and belled their dogs and old Job stood quietly at Chet’s heel while Chet filled his pockets with shells. The other dogs were racing and plunging, breaking across the wall, returning impatiently at command, racing away again. When they were ready the three men went through the bars, and with a gesture Chet sent Job into an alder run to the right. The great dog began his systematic zigzagging progress, designed to cover every foot of the ground, while the younger dogs circled and scuffled and darted about him, nosing here and there, wild with the excitement of the hunt. ”

“ Always feed your worked dogs immediately they get home. If you wait awhile, and they are tired, they curl themselves up, get stiff, and don't feed properly; and if they so refuse their food, and are by any accident to be out next day, they will not be up to the work. ”

“ The good sheep-dog has a duty to perform that he likes, and he does it well, but ask him to do anything besides, and he objects, and gets his way. The spaniel’s business is the most taxing of all, and requires the best breaking, except when the retriever is broken to do spaniel’s duty as well as his own, as he can. That is to say, he can find live rabbits in their seats and turn them out to the gun, and stand still as they go. This is far more of a tax on any dog than steadiness in pointing, when the breaker turns out the pointed game. ”

“ Of course each owner wishes his flock kept from mingling with others; and this business devolves on his dog. If one sheep slips away, by a motion of the hand, or one word of command, the master signifies his desire, and the truant is instantly sought and returned, [121] the dog always holding it by the side of the head, so as not to bruise the body. His eye is continually on his master’s countenance, anxious to learn his wishes, or on the particular flock he has in charge. As difficulties multiply, his sagacity becomes almost human, and he seems to know every individual belonging to his flock. ”