Uncle Dick and Lisa's Old Time Animal Tales

The most remarkable case of intelligence and tractability in swine of which we have heard, is of a sow trained to hunt, an account of which is given in the following extract from Daniel’s Rural Sports:
“Toomer [formerly one of the king’s keepers in the new forest, afterwards game keeper to Sir Henry Mildmay] broke a black sow to find game, and to back and stand. Slut was bred in, and was of that sort which maintain themselves in the new forest without regular feeding, except when they have young, and then but for a few weeks, and was given, when about three months old, to be a breeding sow, by Mr. Thomas to Mr. Richard Toomer, both at the time keepers in the forest. From having no young she was not fed or taken much notice of, and, until about eighteen months old, was seldom observed near the lodge, but chanced to be seen one day when Mr. Edward Toomer was there. The brothers were concerned together in breaking pointers and setters, some of their own breeding, and others sent to be broke by different gentlemen; of the latter although they would stand and back, many were so indifferent that they would neither hunt, nor express any satisfaction when birds were killed and put before them. The slackness of these dogs first suggested the idea that, by the same method, any other animal might be made to stand, and do as well as any of those huntless and inactive pointers. At this instant the sow passed by, and was remarked as being very handsome. R. Toomer threw her a piece or two of oatmeal roll, for which she appeared grateful, and approached very near; from that time they determined to make a sporting pig of her. The first step was to give her a name, and that of Slut [given in consequence of soiling herself in a bog] she acknowledged in the course of the day, and never afterwards forgot. Within a fortnight she would find, and point partridges or rabbits, and her training was much forwarded by the abundance of both which were near the lodge; she daily improved, and in a few weeks would retrieve birds that had run, as well as the best pointer; nay, her nose was superior to the best pointer they ever possessed, and no two men in England had better. She hunted principally on the moors and heaths. Slut has stood partridges, black game, pheasants, snipes, and rabbits, in the same day, but was never known to point a hare. She was seldom taken by choice more than a mile or two from the lodge, but has frequently joined them when out with their pointers, and continued with them for several hours. She has sometimes stood a jacksnipe when all the pointers had passed by it; she would back the dogs when they pointed, but the dogs refused to back her until spoke to, their dogs being all trained to make a general halt when the word was given, whether any dog pointed or not, so she has been frequently standing in the midst of a field of pointers. In consequence of the dogs not liking to run when she was with them, [for they dropped their sterns and showed symptoms of jealousy,] she did not very often accompany them, except for the novelty, or when she accidentally joined them in the forest. Her pace was mostly a trot, was seldom known to gallop except when called to go out shooting; she would then come home off the forest at full stretch, for she was never shut up but to prevent her being out of the sound of the call or whistle when a party of gentlemen had appointed to see her out the next day, and which call she obeyed as regularly as a dog, and was as much elated as a dog, upon being shown the gun. She always expressed great pleasure when game, either dead or alive, was placed before her. She has frequently stood a single partridge at forty yards’ distance, her nose in exact line, and would continue in that position until the game was moved; if it took wing she would come up to the place and put her nose down two or three times; but if a bird ran off, she would get up and go to the place, and draw slowly after it, and when the bird stopped she would stand it as before. The two Mr. Toomers lived about seven miles apart, at Rhinefield and Broomey lodges; Slut has many times gone by herself from one lodge to the other, as if to court the being taken out shooting. She was about five years old when her master died, and at the auction of his pointers, etc., was bought in at ten guineas. Sir Henry Mildmay having expressed a wish to have her, she was sent to Dogmerfield Park, where she remained some years. She was last in the possession of Col. Sykes, and was ten years old, and had become fat and slothful, but could point as well as ever. She was seldom used, except to show her to strangers, as the pointers refused to act when out with her. When killed she weighed 700 pounds. Her death warrant was signed in consequence of her having been accused of being instrumental to the disappearance of sundry missing lambs.”
Instances are given of hogs having been trained to work in harness, and to draw carriages; and an excentric old gentleman near St. Albans, is said to have had, about thirty years ago, a team of four of these bristly steeds, which he used to drive at a brisk trot round the country, harnessed to a chaisecart. And in the island of Minorca, it is said that the ass and hog may to this day be regularly seen working together turning up the land.-Albany Cultivator.