The Pointing Pig
Dog Willing
Pannage is the practice of letting pigs freely roam around a forest so that they can feed on fallen acorns and other nuts. In medieval times it was beneficial to the forest since all those pigs rooting around would help turn the soil and since they were basically gorging on nuts, the pigs would quickly fatten for slaughter. An additional benefit was that by eating green acorns, which can be toxic to other farm animals, they reduced the risk of poisoning in horses and cows. In 1809 two brothers who bred and trained pointers and setters realized that they could train a pig to help them in yet another way. The could use it to find and point game!
From: The Pig. A Treatise on the Breeds, Management, Feeding, and Medical Treatment, of Swine; with Directions for Salting Pork, and Curing Bacon and Hams by William Youatt, 1847
The well authenticated account of the sow trained by Toomer, a game keeper to Sir Henry Mildmay, testifies to the teachability of these animals; and therefor , as it is our intention to defend them from many of the aspersions cast upon them, we will quote it. Toomer ( formerly one of the king's keepers in the New Forest, and afterwards gamekeeper to Sir Henry Mildmay ) actually 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 that 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 gratefu , and approached very near; from that time they were 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 lodg ; 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, pheasant , 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 several hours. She has sometimes stood a jac -snipe 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 that she has been frequently standing in the midst of a field of pointer. In consequence of the dogs not liking to hunt 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 strength, 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 ber out the next day, and which call she obeyed as regularly as a dog, and was as mueh elevated 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 an exact line, and would continue in that position until the game 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 pointer , etc. was bought in at ten guineas. Sir Henry Mildmay having expressed a wish to have her, she was sent 10 Dogmersfield Park, where she remained some years. She was last in the possession of Colonel Sykes, and was then ten years old, and had become fat and slothful, but could point game as well as ever. She was not often used , excepting to show her to strangers, as the pointers refused to act when out with her. When killed she weighed 700 lbs. Her death - warrant was signed in consequence of her having been accused of being instrumental to the disappearance of sundry missing lambs.”
