Dogs and All about Them

CHAPTER IX THE OLD ENGLISH SHEEPDOG Intelligent and picturesque, workmanlike and affectionate, the Old English Sheepdog combines, in his shaggy person, the attributes at once of a drover's drudge and of an ideal companion. Although the modern dog is seen less often than of old performing his legitimate duties as a shepherd dog, there is no ground whatever for supposing that he is a whit less sagacious than the mongrels which have largely supplanted him. The instincts of the race remain unchanged; but the mongrel certainly comes cheaper. Carefully handled in his youth, the bob-tail is unequalled as a stock dog, and he is equally at home and efficient in charge of sheep, of cattle, and of New Forest ponies. So deep-rooted is the natural herding instinct of the breed that it is a thousand pities that the modern shepherd so frequently puts up with an inferior animal in place of the genuine article. Nor is it as a shepherd dog alone that the bob-tail shines in the field. His qualifications as a sporting dog are excellent, and he makes a capital retriever, being usually under excellent control, generally light-mouthed, and taking very readily to water. His natural inclination to remain at his master's heel and his exceptional sagacity and quickness of perception will speedily develop him, in a sportsman's hands, into a first-rate dog to shoot over. These points in his favour should never be lost sight of, because his increasing popularity on the show bench is apt to mislead many of his admirers into the belief that he is an ornamental rather than a utility dog. Nothing could be further from the fact. Nevertheless, he has few equals as a house dog, being naturally cleanly in his habits, affectionate in his disposition, an admirable watch, and an extraordinarily adaptable companion.