The Sleen
The Perfect Hunter
An Animal Unlike Any Other
Although sleen can, and are, trained and somewhat domesticated, it must be remembered that they are still wild animals, and can very well revert to their nature. Sleen are not cute, cuddly creatures, their pups lovable pets. Figure the size of a full-grown sleen, compared to an animal of similar size on Earth; now imagine the newborn offspring of that Earth-beast, the size and such; now imagine the sleen pup, born at most, four in a litter. Sleen pups usually make their first kill by the age of two months. Sleen do not happily share the petting of many hands; sleen are notorious for responding to one master in a lifetime. A sleen whose owner dies, is generally killed and eaten, as the likelihood of it turning on a new owner is almost certain.
"It was a precisely trained beast, but no training is perfect. It is a balancing of instincts and conditioning. It is never perfect. The beast, at the nearness and intensity of my scent, was becoming uncontrollable. The critical attacking distance for a sleen in the wild is about twenty feet. This distance, in a herd sleen, of course, is much smaller. I could see its excitement mount. The fur about its neck rippled and bristled. Then I saw it gather its four hind legs beneath it… The beast was well trained. It knew well how to herd a slave girl. It had a sense of the distance, and of my limitations; its speed and endurance which, I suspect, were superior to my own. It had herded other girls. It kept me at my limits, not permitting me to think, but only to run, frenziedly, madly, a driven, herded slave girl, seeking her cage." — Slave Girl of Gor, page 184.
"These animals, trained prairie sleen, move rapidly and silently, attacking upon no other provocation than trespass on what they have decided is their territory. They respond only to the voice of their master, and when he is killed or dies, his animals are slain and eaten." — Nomads of Gor, page 9.
So what, exactly, is a sleen?
The sleen is probably one of Gor's most dangerous carnivorous animals. It is a tenacious hunter and a skillful predator. Depending upon the variety of the species, sleen can reach a length from seven to twenty feet (7-20') and up to approximately eleven hundred pounds (1,100 lbs.) in weight. 
Though a mammal, the sleen looks much like a furred lizard, with six legs and a viper's head, fully equipped with deadly fangs. The odor emitted by the sleen is somewhat akin to that of a weasel, though much greater. The sound that a sleen makes is that of a hissing sound. There are five (some argue four, others six) varieties of sleen mentioned in the books. Sleen can be found most anywhere on Gor, with the exception of the jungles in the Ushindi region. There are some sites that incorrectly notate the existence of a miniature sleen. This is inaccurate information. The beast in question, the zeder, is not a sleen, but one resembling a sleen, only considerably smaller.
"There are many varieties of sleen, and most varieties can be, to one extent or another, domesticated… The sleen is a dangerous and fairly common animal on Gor, which has adapted itself to a variety of environments." — Slave Girl of Gor, page 185.
"It is at night that the sleen hunts, that six-legged, long- bodied mammalian carnivore, almost as much a snake as an animal." — Outlaw of Gor, page 26.
"I caught a strange, unpleasant scent, much like a common weasel or ferret, only stronger… Then I saw it, on its six short legs, undulate across the road, like a furred lizard, its pointed, whiskered snout swaying from side to side testing the wind… It was indeed a young sleen, not more than eight feet long, and it lacked the patience of an older animal. Its attack, it should detect my presence, would be noisy, a whistling rush, a clumsy squealing charge." — Outlaw of Gor, page 34-35.
"I saw the sleen, this time a fully grown animal, some nineteen or twenty feet long, charging toward me, swiftly, noiselessly, its ears straight against its pointed head, its fur slick with rain, its fangs bared, its wide nocturnal eyes bright with the lust of the kill." — Outlaw of Gor, page 36.
"I saw it, in the darkness, emerging from the brush. I thought, at first, because of its sinuous movement, that it was a great snake, but it was not. I thought, seeing it, holding itself closely to the ground, but yet free of the ground, that it might be a long-bodied lizard. Then, as moonlight fell through the tree branches in a pattern across its snout and neck, I saw not scales, but rippled fur, long and thick. Its eyes caught the light and flashed like burning copper. It snarled. I gasped. It had six legs. It was perhaps twenty feet in length, perhaps eleven hundred pounds in weight. It approached sinuously, hissing… Domesticated, it is often used as a tracker. Once it sets out upon a scent it commonly pursues it unwaveringly. Evolution, in its case, has, among other things, apparently selected for tenacity. This is a useful feature, of course, in tracking… It is called a sleen." — Slave Girl of Gor, pages 39-40.
"Conspicuously absent in the rain forests of the Ua were sleen. This is just as well for the sleen, commonly, hunts on the first scent it takes upon emerging from its burrow after dark. Moreover it hunts single-mindedly and tenaciously. It can be extremely dangerous to men, even more so, I think, than the Voltai, or northern, larl. I think the sleen, which is widespread on Gor, is not found, or not frequently found, in the jungles because of the enormous rains, and the incredible dampness and humidity. Perhaps the sleen, a burrowing, furred animal, finds itself uncomfortable in such a habitat." — Explorers of Gor, page 312.
Varieties of Sleen
There are five distinct species. Some suggest that count is truly four species, if indeed the water sleen and sea sleen are one and the same, and others perhaps six, from the misinformation surrounding the so-called miniature sleen. However, upon noting the various differences, more than likely, the water sleen which was only mentioned as inhabiting the canals of Port Kar, is not the more vicious variety that lives in the colder northern waters. The species are as follows:
Forest Sleen
The forest sleen grows larger than the prairie sleen, black or brown in color, and often are domesticated, can reach lengths of up to twenty feet (20') and approximately eleven hundred (1,100) pounds in weight.
"The two most common sorts of trained sleen are the smaller, tawny prairie sleen, and the large, brown or black forest sleen, sometimes attaining a length of twenty feet." — Slave Girl of Gor, page 185.
"The animal was some twenty feet in length, some eleven hundred pounds in weight, a forest sleen, domesticated. It was double fanged and six-legged…" — Beasts of Gor, page 12.
Prairie Sleen
This rather small sleen (in comparison to the others) generally is about seven feet (7') in length and tawny in color. This variety of sleen is commonly found in the camps of the wagon peoples.
"… farther to one side I saw a pair of prairie sleen, smaller than the forest sleen but quite as unpredictable and vicious, each about seven feet in length, furred, six-legged, mammalian, moving in their undulating gait with their viper's heads moving from side to side, continually testing the wind…" — Nomads of Gor, page 2.
"As we passed among the wagons I leaped back as a tawny prairie sleen hurled itself against the bars of a sleen cage, reaching out for me with its six-clawed paw. There were four other prairie sleen in the cage, a small cage, and they were curling and moving about one another, restlessly, like angry snakes. They would be released with the fan of darkness to rum the periphery of the herds, acting, as I have mentioned, as shepherds and sentinels. They are also used if a slave escapes, for the sleen is an efficient, tireless, savage, almost infallible hunter, capable of pursuing a scent, days old, for hundreds of pasangs until, perhaps a month later, it finds its victim and tears it to pieces." — Nomads of Gor, page 28.
"The two most common sorts of trained sleen are the smaller, tawny prairie sleen, and the large, brown or black forest sleen, sometimes attaining a length of twenty feet." — Slave Girl of Gor, page 185.
Sea Sleen
The sea sleen 
can reach twenty feet (20') in length and is ound mainly in the cold, northern waters, although some have been spotted occasionally farther south.
"The sea sleen, vicious, fanged aquatic mammals, apparently related to the land forms of sleen, are the swiftest predators to be found in Thassa; further, they are generally conceded to be the most dangerous; they tend, however, to frequent northern waters. Occasionally they have been found as far south, however, as the shores of Cos and the deep inlets of Tyros." — Slave Girl of Gor, page 360.
"There is even an aquatic variety, called the sea sleen, which is one of the swiftest and most dreaded beasts in the sea. Sea sleen are found commonly in northern waters. They are common off the coast of Torvaldsland, and further north." — Slave Girl of Gor, page 185.
Snow Sleen
The snow sleen, known for their luxuriant thick white coat, are often domesticated in the north. Wild sleen are known to roam the arctic north and are especially dangerous as they hunt in packs in size of anywhere from a handful to well over one hundred.
"In the north, I am told the snow sleen has been domesticated." — Slave Girl of Gor, page 185.
"The red hunters are generally a kind, peaceable folk, except with animals. Two sorts of beasts are kept in domestication in the north; the first sort of beast is the snow sleen; the second is the white-skinned woman." — Beasts of Gor, pages 75-76.
"I saw a woman putting out a pan for a domestic snow sleen to lick clean." — Beasts of Gor, page 196.
"In a few minutes Imnak returned with a snow sleen on a stout leash. Soon it was hitched to the sled. It was Akko's animal, and he, in the fashion of the red hunters, had cheerfully volunteered its services." — Beasts of Gor, page 215.
"It was a snow sleen, easily identified by the thickness of the coat, the narrowness of the ears, the breadth of the paws." — Beasts of Gor, page 253.
"Snow sleen, however, remain white-pelted throughout their life." — Slave Girl of Gor, page 185.
"Wild snow sleen, particularly when hunger drives them to run in packs, can be quite dangerous." — Beasts of Gor, page 266.
"There are upon occasion wild snow sleen in the tundra, half starved and maddened by hunger. They constitute one of the dangers of traveling in the winter. Such sleen, together with the cold and the darkness, tend to close the arctic in the winter. No simple trader ventures north in that time." — Beasts of Gor, page 291.
"I could not well count the animals in the uncertain light and shadows, and with their dark minglings and changings of position, but it was clear that there were a large number of beasts there, probably more than fifty. Some sleen packs run as high as one hundred and twenty animals." — Beasts of Gor, page 331.
"Some fifteen or twenty sleen had been killed, all by other sleen in the pack. The remaining sleen had fed on these. Some still fed, pulling and tearing at the bones and exposed ventral cavities and limbs of the fallen sleen. Several of the animals, gorged with meat, curled in the snow, in a white coil, and slept." — Beasts of Gor, pages 332-333.
Water Sleen
The water sleen inhabits the canals of Port Kar. It is not noted, however, if the water sleen is the same as the sea sleen. Most likely not, if you read the differentiations between the two.
"This reasoning also led me to suppose that it would not be likely to be anything like a water sleen or a giant urt from the canals of port Kar." — Nomads of Gor, page 205.
Miniature Sleen
I've found a few notations in various sites mentioning a "miniature sleen." There is no such beast, but, there is a beast known as a zeder, and although it may look similar to the sleen, it is not a sleen. This small creature is found in the jungles of the Ushindi region.
"There is, however, a sleenlike animal, though much smaller, about two feet in length and some eight to ten pounds in weight, the zeder, which frequents the Ua and her tributaries. It knifes through the water by day and, at night, returns to its nest, built from sticks and mud in the branches of a tree overlooking the water." — Explorers of Gor, page 312.
Wild Sleen
Yes, so it's established that sleen can be domesticated and trained. But what of their wild counterparts? Is there any viable chance of bringing home a wild sleen and making it into a trained beast? Generally, this is not possible should a sleen be fully grown for such beasts tend to revert. Even young pups do not train well, unless they are taken prior to the first taste of blood, which is accomplished at about two (2) months of age. Although there are times when a sleen attacks silently, sleen generally are noisy in their attacks, snarling, hissing and squealing.
"In the wild, the sleen is a burrowing, predominantly nocturnal animal. It is carnivorous. It is a tenacious hunter, and an indefatigable tracker. It will attack almost anything, but its preferred prey is tabuk. It mates once a year in the Gorean spring, and there are usually four young in each litter. The gestation period is some six months. The young are commonly white furred at birth, the fur darkening by the following spring. Snow sleen, however, remain white-pelted throughout their life. Most domestic sleen are bred. It is difficult to take and tame a wild sleen. Sometimes young sleen, following the killing of the mother, are dug out of a burrow and raised. If they can be taken within the first two months of their life, which seems to be a critical period, before they have tasted blood and meat in the wild, and made their own kills, there is apparently a reasonably good chance that they can be domesticated; otherwise, generally not. Although grown, wild sleen have been caught and domesticated, this is rare. Even a sleen which has been taken young may revert. These reversions can be extremely dangerous. They usually take place, as would be expected, in the spring, during the mating season. Male sleen, in particular, can be extremely restless and vicious during this period." — Slave Girl of Gor, page 185-186.
It is true that sleen sometimes make kills swiftly and silently. "It could be a panther come from the woods, or a strayed larl," said one of the men. This was less likely than a sleen attack. Though panthers and larls can be extremely dangerous to men they will usually attack men only if they are disturbed or other prey is not available. Sleen, which ten to be fine hunters and splendid trackers, which are swiftly moving, aggressive, serpentine, generally nocturnal animals, particularly in the wild state, are less fastidious about their eating habits. — Players of Gor, page 184.
Sleen hunters customarily eat the heart of the sleen that they kill, considering it to bring them good luck, although not as much as the lofty larl. There is another ritual involving those who hunt and train sleen, which is a blood-brothership, binding two men forever.
"Then, as sleen hunters do, for luck, and because I was hungry, I took my sword and cut through the fur of the animal and ate the heart… It is said that only the heart of the mountain larl brings more luck than that of the vicious and cunning sleen." — Outlaw of Gor, page 36.
"Greetings, Lady," said Tup Ladletender. He had emerged from between the huts. Thurnus threw away the emptied goblet, into the dirt. "It is a harmless draught," he said. "Tup Ladletender and I, as young men," he said, "have fished and hunted sleen. Once I saved his life. We are brothers by the rite of the claws of sleen." Thurnus lifted his forearm where one might see a jagged scar. Ladletender, too, raised his arm, his sleeve falling back. On his forearm, too, there was such a scar. It had been torn by the claw of a sleen, in the hand of Thurnus; the same claw, in the hand of Ladletender, had marked the arm of Thurnus; their bloods had mingled, though they were of the peasants and merchants. "He now, has, too saved my life," said Thurnus. "I am pleased to have had the opportunity," said Ladletender. — Slave Girl of Gor, pages 235-236.
Thurnus, at the feast, stood up. He lifted a goblet of paga. Tup Ladletender," said he, "by the rite of the claws of sleen, is my brother. I lift my cup to him. Let us drink!" The villagers drank. Tup Ladletender rose to his feet. "You have shared with me tonight your paga and your kettle," said he. "I drink to the hospitality of Tabuk's Ford." There was a cheer. The villagers, and Thurnus, and Ladletender, drank. "And, too, this night," said Ladletender, "I drink to one with whom I do not share caste but that which is stronger than caste, the blood of brotherhood, Thurnus, he of Tabuk's Ford." — Slave Girl of Gor, page 239.
Breeding Sleen
The breeding of sleen is generally found within the peasant villages. Most likely this is due to the availability of land for the various pens and training areas that would be needed. Tabuk's Ford is the leader of such villages, known to house the best sleen breeders on all of Gor. As stated previously, the domesticating of wild sleen is quite rare, except in the instance of perhaps a newborn pup. Therefore, breeding can be quite a profitable endeavor.
It is common for sleen to mate for life, at least among the wild sleen. The mating period of sleen is once a year, taking place in the Spring. The gestation period is six months, with litters of generally four (4) pups. The sleen pups are born with white pelts, and, depending on the variety of sleen, their fur will grow darker fur come Spring. Although in the wild, the sleen pups make their first kill at the age of two (2) months, this is reserved for the domesticated beast, feeding them instead by hand to prevent reverting to their true nature.
"Tabuk's Ford is a rich village, but it is best known not for its agricultural bounty, a function of its dark, fertile fields in the southern basin of the Verl, but for its sleen breeding. Thurnus, of the Peasants, of Tabuk's Ford, was one of the best known of the sleen breeders of Gor." — Slave Girl of Gor, page 135.
"In the wild, the sleen is a burrowing, predominantly nocturnal animal. It is carnivorous. It is a tenacious hunter, and an indefatigable tracker. It will attack almost anything, but its preferred prey is tabuk. It mates once a year in the Gorean spring, and there are usually four young in each litter. The gestation period is some six months. The young are commonly white furred at birth, the fur darkening by the following spring. Snow sleen, however, remain white-pelted throughout their life. Most domestic sleen are bred. It is difficult to take and tame a wild sleen. Sometimes young sleen, following the killing of the mother, are dug out of a burrow and raised. If they can be taken within the first two months of their life, which seems to be a critical period, before they have tasted blood and meat in the wild, and made their own kills, there is apparently a reasonably good chance that they can be domesticated; otherwise, generally not. Although grown, wild sleen have been caught and domesticated, this is rare. Even a sleen which has been taken young may revert. These reversions can be extremely dangerous. They usually take place, as would be expected, in the spring, during the mating season. Male sleen, in particular, can be extremely restless and vicious during this period. The mating of sleen is interesting. The female, if never before mated, flees and fights the male. But he is larger and stronger. At last he takes her by the throat and throws her upon her back, interestingly, belly to belly, beneath him. His fangs are upon her throat. She is at his mercy. She becomes docile and permits her penetration. Shortly, thereafter, their heat growing, they begin, locked together by legs and teeth, to roll and squeal in their mating frenzy. It is a very fierce and marvelous spectacle… After the female sleen has been taken thusly once, no longer need she be forced. She follows the male, often rubbing against him, and hunts with him. Sometimes she must be driven away with snarls and bites. Sleen, interestingly, often pair for life. Their rutting, however, is usually confined to the spring." — Slave Girl of Gor, page 185-186.
Training Sleen
When training sleen, generally the trainer uses a slave girl, or several slave girls. It also helps train the slave girls, and keep them well-disciplined. The sleen are trained in a well-fenced in training pit, with cages strewn about for girls to run to for safety. It should be noted that a trained sleen, upon the death of its master, is killed and eaten. As with mating for life, sleen respond only to one master in life as well.
I fled for the cage. I must reach it! I threw myself into the cage on my hands and knees. I turned wildly and seized the bar and flung it down behind me. The snout of the beast thrust viciously part way between the bars. It snarled, and squealed and hissed. I shrank back in the tiny cage. On the other side of the bars of the vertically sliding, lowered gate the blazing eyes of the sleen regarded me. I cried out with misery. Had I run more slowly it would have caught me and torn me to pieces. It turned its head and, with its double row of white fangs, bit at the bars. I heard the scraping of the teeth on the bars; it pulled the cage, moving it, until it caught against the chain and stake which anchored it. Then it moved about the cage on its six legs, its long, furred body angrily rubbing against the bars. It tried to reach me from another side. I knelt head down, shuddering, my hands over my head, in the center of the tiny cage. Once its snout thrust against me, and I whimpered. I smelled its breath, felt the heat of it on my flesh. The bars were wet where it had bit at them; the ground, too, about the cage was wet where the beast's saliva, in its frenzy, its lust for killing, had dampened the clawed dust.
"Back," called Thurnus, coming to the sleen and putting a rope on its neck, dragging it away from the cage. "Gentle! Gentle, Fierce One!" coaxed Thurnus. He thrust his head near the large, brown snout, cooing and clicking, his hands in the rope on its throat. He whispered in its ear. The beast became pacified. Thurnus took a great piece of meat and threw it to the animal, which began to devour it…
I had locked myself in the slave cage. When I had flung down the vertically sliding gate behind me, two notched projections, bolts, welded to the flat bar at the gate's bottom had slipped into iron-enclosed spring catches, heavy locks, one on the bottom left, one on the bottle right, the gate being thus secured. I could not open these locks. They responded to a key, slung on the string about the neck of Thurnus. It is necessary to engage the locks not only because the animal follows so closely and the gate must be swiftly lowered, but because if the locks are not engaged, it will thrust its snout beneath the bottom of the gate, between the bottom of the gate and the floor of the cage, and, throwing its head up, fling up the gate, and have access to the cage's occupant. The girl's choices are simple. Either she locks herself in the cage, imprisoning herself helplessly at the pleasure of the cage owner, or the animal destroys her… The cage was in a sleen training pit, surrounded by a low, wooden wall and floored with sand. Within the walls were several individuals, my sisters in bondage… Within the ring, too, were some eight sleen, tied on short tethers to stakes, at the sides; and a rack of meats, and poles, and ropes and whips, used in the training of the animals. Outside the low walls, several individuals observed the proceedings… — Slave Girl of Gor, pages 181-183.
Uses of Trained Sleen
There are many uses for sleen, but primarily they are used in times of war, to herd slaves, other beasts, such as the tabuk, and captives, to serve as sentries or allowed loose to prowl in the night guarding a camp or city streets, and to hunt persons or animals, such as tabuk and runaway slaves, for example. Rarely will a sleen be used by a member of the caste of asssassins.
"Sleen are used for a multitude of purposes on Gor, but most commonly they are used for herding, tracking, guarding and patrolling. The verr and the bosk are the most common animals herded; tabuk and slave girls are the most common animals tracked; the uses to which the sleen is put in guarding and patrolling are innumerable; it is used to secure borders, to prowl walls and protect camps; it may run loose in the streets after curfews; it may lurk in the halls of a great house after dark; it may deter thieves from entering locked shops; it may stand sentry upon wharves and in warehouses; there are many such uses to which the sinuous beasts may be put; an interesting use which might be mentioned is prisoner control; a tiny circle is drawn and the prisoner must kneel, or assume some prescribed position, within it; then, should the prisoner attempt to rise to his feet, leave the circle, or break the position in the slightest, the beasts tears him to pieces. Aside from these common uses, sleen are put to other uses, too. In Thentis, for example, sleen are used to smell out contraband, in the form of the unauthorized egress of the beans for black wine from the Thentian territories. They are sometimes, too, used by assassins, though the caste of assassins itself, by their caste codes, precludes their usage; the member of the caste of assassins must make his own kill; it is in their codes. Some sleen are used as bodyguards; others are trained to kill in the arena; others perform in exhibitions and carnivals. There are many uses to which such animals are put." — Slave Girl of Gor, page 186-187.
"It was a precisely trained beast, but no training is perfect. It is a balancing of instincts and conditioning. It is never perfect. The beast, at the nearness and intensity of my scent, was becoming uncontrollable. The critical attacking distance for a sleen in the wild is about twenty feet. This distance, in a herd sleen, of course, is much smaller. I could see its excitement mount. The fur about its neck rippled and bristled. Then I saw it gather its four hind legs beneath it… The beast was well trained. It knew well how to herd a slave girl. It had a sense of the distance, and of my limitations; its speed and endurance which, I suspect, were superior to my own. It had herded other girls. It kept me at my limits, not permitting me to think, but only to run, frenziedly, madly, a driven, herded slave girl, seeking her cage." — Slave Girl of Gor, page 184.
"If I were found on the plains near the camps or the bosk herds I knew I would be scented out and slain by the domesticated, nocturnal herd sleen, used as shepherds and sentinels by the Wagon Peoples, released from their cages with the falling of darkness." — Nomads of Gor, page 9.
"These animals, trained prairie sleen, move rapidly and silently, attacking upon no other provocation than trespass on what they have decided is their territory. They respond only to the voice of their master, and when he is killed or dies, his animals are slain and eaten." — Nomads of Gor, page 9.
"With these he hurriedly conferred and then I saw him lift his arm and red war lanterns were moved on ropes to the top of poles, and to my amazement, aisles seemed to open in the densely packed bosk before the men, herdsmen and herd sleen moving the animals back to clear long grassy passages between their lumbering shaggy hulks." — Nomads of Gor, page 176.
"As we passed among the wagons I leaped back as a tawny prairie sleen hurled itself against the bars of a sleen cage, reaching out for me with its six-clawed paw. There were four other prairie sleen in the cage, a small cage, and they were curling and moving about one another, restlessly, like angry snakes. They would be released with the fan of darkness to rum the periphery of the herds, acting, as I have mentioned, as shepherds and sentinels. They are also used if a slave escapes, for the sleen is an efficient, tireless, savage, almost infallible hunter, capable of pursuing a scent, days old, for hundreds of pasangs until, perhaps a month later, it finds its victim and tears it to pieces." — Nomads of Gor, page 28.
Dancing Sleen?
One of the rarer uses of sleen is in the form of entertainment. It seems that sleen can be taught to "dance" among other such entertaining feats.
"We had been treated to exhibitions of juggling, fire swallowing, and acrobats. There had been a magician, who particularly pleased Kamchak, and a man who, whip in hand, guided a dancing sleen through its paces." — Nomads of Gor, page 90.
Training Devices
With training such dangerous beasts, comes the need to utilize special equipment and devices in this endeavor.
"They left the training pit. On my hands and knees, miserable, in the hot sand, the rope on my neck, I looked about the training pit, at the rack of whips and ropes, the sleen tethers, the cages, the wooden barrier about the training area…" — Slave Girl of Gor, page 189.
Slave Cage
In training the sleen, slaves are used to help hone the herding skills. Cages are provided as a means for the slaves of escaping the fast-run motivation of the sharp sleen fangs.
"I had locked myself in the slave cage. When I had flung down the vertically sliding gate behind me, two notched projections, bolts, welded to the flat bar at the gate's bottom had slipped into iron-enclosed spring catches, heavy locks, one on the bottom left, one on the bottle right, the gate being thus secured. I could not open these locks. They responded to a key… The cage is tiny, but stout. I could kneel in it, or crouch, or sit, with my legs drawn up. I could not extend my body, nor stand upright. The roof of the cage was about the height of a man's belt. It is so constructed that it can be linked with other cages, or tiered. Though there is a wooden floor to the cage, the wood is placed over bars. The entire cage, thus, is barred. The bars, and their fastenings, were heavy. The cage in which I had locked myself would hold not only a girl; it would also have easily and efficiently held a strong man. It was, accordingly, an all-purpose slave cage…" — Slave Girl of Gor, pages 182-183.
Sleen Cage
In order to accomodate the short but elongated sleen, cages for these beasts were generally about four feet (4') in height, six feet (6') wide and twelve feet (12') in length. The flooring was made of wooden planks spaced apart for drainage, and straw was often strewn on the flooring. The roof was also planked, though flush with each other to prevent escape. Tarps would be thrown over the cages at night.
"I had dropped through the kennel door and, some feet below, struck the straw-strewn floor of the kennel. The kennel was a cage, a sleen cage, tipped on its side, fully barred, sunk mostly into the ground. The cage in its original attitude, when used for sleen, would have been some four feet in height, six feet in width and twelve feet in length. Tipped on its side, to better accommodate humans, it was some six feet in height and four by twelve feet in breadth and length. In this attitude, it was entered from the top. Within there was a wooden, runged ladder, for climbing out of it. It was sunk some four and a half feet in the ground. Wooden planks, covered with straw, lay over the bars on the bottom. These planks were separated by some two inches apiece, to facilitate drainage. The cage was roofed, too, with planks; these planks were set flush with one, another; they were fastened over the top of the bars, including some, sawed, over the barred door. At night a tarpaulin was thrown over the cage roof. Standing in the cage one could look out, one's shoulders being approximately at ground level." — Slave Girl of Gor, page 195.
Sleen Collar
Made of heavy leather and often embossed with steel, designed to hold a sleen well. Sometimes, as a form of punishment, slaves were forced to wear a sleen collar.
"Bring a cage," said Thurnus. "And a sleen collar," he said… Thurnus's hands were on Melina's upper arms, now bared, her robes pulled down from her shoulders. He looked at her arms. Then he looked at her face. The cage was brought, a small, sturdy cage, tiny and tight, and a sleen collar… Thurnus lifted the sleen collar before her. With her hand she held it from her… Thurnus then looped the sturdy, leather, metal-embossed sleen collar about her throat. With an awl, brought by a man, he punched two holes, vertically, in the leather strap, and thrust the twin buckle-claws through the holes; he then took the long, loose end of the strap, for the sleen has a large neck, thrust it through the four strap loops, thick and broad, and then, with a knife, cut off the portion of the strap which protruded beyond the last strap loop. Melina, her shoulders bared, stood before him, wearing a sleen collar. It had, sewn in its side, a heavy ring, to which a sleen leash might be attached. — Slave Girl of Gor, paged 236-237.
Sleen Knife
Sleen knives are mentioned but without description.
"He drew out a sleen knife." — Slave Girl of Gor, page 188.
Sleen Whip
A heavier whip used for the herding of sleen, either in practical use or training.
Thurnus tapped on the bars of the cage with a sleen whip. "Come out, little slave," he said… The butt of the sleen whip struck me heavily, driven downward, between the shoulder blades, felling me. — Slave Girl of Gor, page 187.
"Karjuk stepped on the runners of his sled, and cracked his whip over the head of his snow sleen." — Slave Girl of Gor, page 320.
Special Note
Because of the differences in publishing the books, depending upon whether published in the U.S. or Europe, depending upon whether a first publishing or a Masquerade Books release, page numbers will often vary. All of my quotes are from original, first-printing U.S. publications (see The Books page for a listing of publishers and dates) with the exception of the following books:
- Tarnsman of Gor (2nd Printing, Balantine)
- Outlaw of Gor (11th Printing, Balantine)
- Priest-Kings of Gor (2nd Printing, Balantine)
- Assassin of Gor (10th Printing, Balantine)
- Raiders of Gor (15th Printing, Balantine)
- Captive of Gor (3rd Printing, Balantine)
Disclaimer
These pages are not written for any specific home, but rather as informational pages for those not able to get ahold of the books and read them yourself. Opinions and commentaries are strictly my own personal views, therefore, if you don't like what you are reading — then don't. The information in these pages is realistic to what is found within the books. Many sites have added information, assuming the existences of certain products and practices, such as willowbark and agrimony for healing, and travel to earth and back for the collection of goods. I've explored the books, the flora, the fauna, and the beasts, and have compiled from those mentioned, the probabilities of certain practices, and what vegetation mentioned in the books is suitable for healing purposes, as well as given practicalities to other sorts of roleplaying assumptions.