The Common Fennec is found over the whole of Africa. Its favourite food is dates and any sweet fruit, but it is also fond of eggs, and will eat mice and insects. It is probably the original hero of the story of the fox and the grapes. The large-eared fennec, which is sometimes called the Silver Fox, is found from the Cape to as far north as Abyssinia. It is 23 inches long, and lives mainly on insects and fruit.
DOMESTIC DOGS.
BY C. H. LANE.
The Dog, almost without exception, shows a marked liking for the society of human beings, and adapts itself to their ways more than any other animal.
Fox-, Stag-, and Hare-hounds—the latter better known as Hariers and Beagles—have many points in common, much beauty of shape and colour, and great suitability for their work, though differing in some other particulars.
Another group—Greyhounds, Whippets, Irish Wolf-hounds, Scottish Deer-hounds, all of which come under the category of Gaze-hounds, or those which hunt by sight—are built for great speed, to enable them to cope with the fleet game they pursue. In the same group should be included the Borzoi, or Russian Wolf-hound, now very popular in this country, with something of the appearance of the Scottish deer-hound about it as to shape, but with a finer, longer head, deeper body, more muscular limbs, and shaggier in the hair on body and tail.
The Otter-hound is one of the most picturesque of all the hound tribe. This variety somewhat reminds one of a large and leggy Dandie Dinmont terrier, with a touch of the blood-hound, and is thought to have been originally produced from a cross between these or similar varieties.
The Blood-hound is another, with much style and beauty of shape, colour, and character about it which cannot fail to favourably impress any beholder. The matches or trials which have of late years been held in different localities have been most interesting in proving its ability for tracking footsteps for long distances, merely following them by scent, some time after the person hunted started on the trail. By the kindness of my friend Mr. E. Brough, I am able to give as an illustration a portrait of what he considers the best blood-hound ever bred.
Photo by F. H. Dembrey] [Bristol.