Some have to be mended, having been torn; some are cast aside altogether because weak and rotten.

The twine having been frequently saturated with water has decayed.

All the nets are of a light yellow colour from the clay and sand that has worked into the string.
These nets almost filled a sack, into which he also cast a pair of 'owl-catchers,' gloves of stout white leather, thick enough to turn a thorn while handling bushes, or to withstand the claws of an owl furiously resisting capture.

His ferrets cost him much thought, which to take and which to leave behind.

He had also to be particular how he fed them--they must be eager for prey, and yet they must not be starved, else they would gorge on the blood of the first rabbit, and become useless for hunting.
Two had to be muzzled--an operation of some difficulty that generally results in a scratched hand.