Kennel Notes.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1056, 26 May 1892, Page 20

Kennel Notes.

ENGLISH CRITICS. Kennelman writes as follows in the Australasian :—The Australian dog fancy has very scant attention from the English kennel papers, simply, I presume, because they know iiuie about us. Yet there is a certain criiicism which I will call “ private, ” that is used to influence Australians, and which, I fear, is too often over-rated by many of our breeders. What happened in the early stages of the fancy here I cannot say, but for the last five years I can speak with confidence, and must say I have been very much surprised to read some of the semi-private communications that have come under my notice. I 3ay semi-private because, although written as private letters, the

contents were evidently meant to be made public, and in most instances have been reproduced in our papers by those whom they were supposed to benefit. The said communications usually emanate from sellers of prize dogs at Homo, addressed to their Australian customers, and run somewhat as follows : —* This dog is by So-and So, has won such and anch prizes here, and can beat anything on your side.’ Now, so far as a few breads go—say, St Bernards—there may be some reason in the argument, because most of our leading prizes have been carried off by imported dogs, a knowledge of which at Home may give some key to our strength ; but when we come to other classes, like the fox terrier, where for the lust two or three years colonial-bred dogs have beaten the imported animals, how can our Home critics have any idea of stock they have never seen ? In such cases I think it at least presumptuous oil their part to say that any dog they may be sending out here can beat anything in Australia. I hear it is the intention of some of the leading fox terrier men to send Home portraits of several Aus-tralian-bred fox terriers for reproduction in tho English kennel papera. I trust they will do so, as my opinion is we shall soon hear less about dogs that can beat anything out here, &c. To my mind the best imported fox te-rier that has yet reached Australia was Richmond Jack, and unless something far better than what we have seen lately i 3 sent, his name is likely.to live long in the Australian terrier world. At the present time the championships of Victoria and New Zealand are held by a daughter and son of his, and there are others yet to come forward of no mean pretensions that claim him as grandfather. Judging from what has lately reached hsre Home breeders have lost sight of many valuable points in the fox terrier standard, and have been breeding for pace, a requisite of secondary consideration when compared to other properties, such as size, symmetry, pluck, &c. No wonder such old breeders as Mr Allison are continually complaining of the deterioration of present-day fox terriers, and that no less an authority than Mr Harding Cox beards the Fox Terrier Club at their own annual dinner with the accusation * that they are ruining the good old breed.’ But how is it ttiat such a state of things has come about when all the best men in the fancy are spending fortunes, and giving every attention to the breed 1 ‘We dare mi’ weel say’t, but we ken whs’s to blame.’ Certain breeders at Home have countenanced that curse of the fox terriers, rabbit coursing, and have been doing their utmost to make them little greyhounds in disguise ; others have placed too much value on what they term “ front,” and have consequently drifted into narrow-chested weeds. It is the fox terrier men at Home who are most sinning just now in the style of so-called “ semi-public criticism” of which I complain, and I would ask them, in fairness to our breeders, to at least suspend their judgment until they have a chance of seeing the dogs they bo cavalierly pass over as inferior to the animals they export.

Says the Australasian :—Mr R. Wark’s (Christchurch, N.Z.) collie bitches, Fleurette and Cora, visited Mr C. Lynott’s Laird of SbeLbonrne on the 27th and 30th ultimo respectively. Tlie Australian Poultry and Dog Gazette says :—"We have just seen a note from Mr Vicary, of Fox Terrier repute, whicn arrived by last mail to a Sydney fancier. The note was in reply to a letter from this fancier drawing the English judge’s attention to what was considered a slight weakness in some show point of a late imported fox terrier. Mr Vicary’s reply was to the effect that the perfect animal of any sort was not yet bred, also mentioning the fact that what might be consi lered a weakness with one judge, might be little thought of by another perhaps equal authority on the breed; adding, I hear you have ‘ only one judge in Australia.’ If so, you must be congratulated, for you all know what his tastes are (provided they don’t change), and know what points to breed for, whereas we in England have to suit the tastes of our various judges, and are obliged to breed and keep a big stud to suit all. Hitherto some parties considered it rather a drawback having such a limited number of qualified doggy men in the colonies. However, with the qualifications Mr Vicary writes of, viz. : ‘no changing of opinions,’ we feel inclined to take his view of the matter. From the same source we learn that a very ‘ hot’un ’ of this same breed, by name, ‘ Vert Gallant,’ has just left Mr Vicary’s kennels for New Zealand. The ‘ hot’un ’ referred to above is the dog imported by Mr Osborne, our wellknown Wellington fancier, and was described in the Mail a week or two ago.