Dog watches

Dog watches: The half-watches of two hours each, from 4 to 6 and 6 to 8pm on board ship. Thus the daily watches are made uneven in number, seven instead of six in the twenty-four hours. Otherwise the same man would be on watch at the same time daily throughout a cruise. The term is over two hundred years old. Among suggestions for its origin are “dog-watch” and “docked watch.” suggested that it is a watch which is “cur-tailed.” Various others have been offered.