The examiner., 1886-01-02
CALIFORNIA osTRIcHEs.
Some Characteristics of the 1

Some Characteristics of the Dird. The sight of a dog is sufficient to frighteu
 m ostrich badly. At such vision, if per-
 mitted so to do, the ostriches in the corrals
 would immediately be speeding over the
 sandy plain, through waste of tall wild
 sunfowers, at a gait that would astonish
 a horse-trainer. Dr. Sketchley has three dogs on his farm, but they are all kept be-
 hind the buildings out of sight of the os-
 triches. When a keeper approaches them
 to annoy them they emit a hissiug noise
 like goose, and try to bite the intruder.
 They have no strength in their bills, how
 ever, and are harmless unless they get .
 chance to kick. Unlike the emu, which is
 exhibited often as an African ostrich, they
 have but one toe on each foot. This is a. terrible weapon. The bird kicks forward.
 The force is shown by the exploit of one
 bird, which kicked a stout board on the
 side of it's corral and broke it in two at one
 blow. The toe is pointed and will cut like
 knife. The bird which was killed with
 one kick had it's breast laid open with an
 ugly wound. Of the young birds all are
 perfectly shaped, except one which has
 club foot and which walks on the back Of
 the clubfoot, the toe turning up The gait of even this bird is elastic. All the birds
 walk precisely after the fashion adopted by
 many young ladies in San Francisco of late,
 whose gait may therefore, perhaps, be cor rectly described in the future as the sos- trich walk" It is as if the birds stepped on hot gridirons The feet are taken briskIy up and raised high and the body and head oscillate. This style was learned in South Africa and not in San Francisco and is as old as the race of desert birds.
 Silly fear and ferocity are the character istics of ostriches everywhere. Some are more ill-tempered, but all are dangerous if not approached with care. No method has been discovered by which they can be plucked except that of drawing stocking over the head, leaving hole that the bird may breathe. To accomplish this the bird is lured close to the fence of the corral by e delicacy like corn, and is then seized by the neck. Just as soon as it is hooded in this way 1t is comparatively helpless, for it will not kick unless it can see what it is kick ing at. One way to pluck them is to have small corral, the back of which is mova- ble. By pushing this up they could be pinioned. The feathers are taken from the breast, wings and tail, all above the dreaded kicking apparatus. At present the ostrich keepers press upon the bird from behind, and as long as they keep be- hind they are safe. The man who plucks proceeds with dispatch. An adult bird is plucked every seven months, and yields about twenty-five long feathers and several
 ups. He ups are edkeu IFOm the wings The feathers on the back are left for the protection of the bird. During this pluck ing operation men have been kicked by the birds, but not to be hurt. Had the birds had a fair forward kick, the result could hardly have been other than fatal to the person kicked. The young ostrich which for some time went about on one wooden and one natural leg was injured through fear. The boards on the corral were out side of the posts. The bird was frightened at something and ran against a post, leg was made, or a sort Of stIIt, to take the place of this, but after little the bird died. It was an object of interest to all visitors.-[San Francisco Bulletin.