THE KENNEL

Otago Daily Times, Issue 23669, 29 November 1938, Page 2

THE KENNEL

By Breeder

" Breeder " will be pleased If dog owners and others concerned will forward him notes of interest for his consideration with a view to their insertion in this column

The Misses Dark, formerly of Kakapuaka, .but now of Mosgiel, report that their fine bulldog bitch Alswell Arrnty is nursing a splendid litter of seven puppies—five dogs and two bitches. The pups are 10 weeks old anc. coming along in good style, there being not a weak-looking one amongst them, l wish the Misses Dark some good luck with this Utter after their run of bad luck last year. Alswell Amity is a very fine type of bitch, and was bred by Mrs Cooke, of Christchurch. The sire of the pups is Mrs Masons dog Bellevue Dark Jester, by ch Gane ex Bonny Beauty. > ' ~ The Southland Kennel Club will hold a ribbon parade on Saturday afternoon next. Mr W. Henderson, of Dunedin. has been appointed judge of all breeds. Mr AM. May,-of Wellington, reports that his winning parti-colour Pekingese bitch Min-Loo of Montressor, a full sister of ch Chuty-Wuh of Montressor, his whelped a beautiful litter of fiveone dog and four bitches—to Mr s C. iiRidgen's good stud dog ch Toydorti Pung-Kee. Two are beautiful particolours, two light orange, and one red. Mr May is particularly pleased with this litter, as he expects to found a kennel with the pick of, the bitches. This is the first litter sired in Wellington by Pung-Kee I understand a second .Wellington bitch will visit Pung-Kee this month. This young dog's stock is doing a lot of winning in both islands. Some fresh young stock will be on the show benches next year from the English bitch Toydom Pung-Vena.

Mrs H. Kennedy, of Prebbleton, Christchurch, has had her small red Pekingese bitch Si-Fan on a stud visit to Mrs Ridgen's Australian- stud dog Han Hal of Mirrabooka. By the way, Han Hal will be leaving the Montressor Kennels next month. In the current issue of the K.C.C. Kennel Gazette attention is directed to two rules of the Kennel Control Council of Victoria which should be of particular interest to New Zealand exhibitors. They are:—

Rule BOB.—lnterference with, and attraction of the attention of dogs whilst in the judging ring by any person outside the ring shall not be permitted. In the event of such an occurrence, the steward in charge of the judging ring shall be empowered, after having warned the offender, to suspend judging and order the removal from the exhibition of the person causing the interference or attraction. Rule 60C—Undue interference in any way with other dogs or their handlers whilst in the judging ring by any person inside the ring shall not be permitted. In the event of such an occurrence, the steward In charge of the judging ring shall be empowered to suspend judging and order the removal from the judging ring of the person causing the interference and/or the dog handled b.v such person.

The famous greyhound sire, Mick the Miller, was led on ,to the Wembley track in London recently, when hi* daughter, Greta's Rosary, won the English Greyhound St. Leger. Mick is now 12 years old, but that the public had not forgotten him was proved by the riotous round of applause which greeted him. It was very fitting in a year which has been remarkable in many ways that Greta's Rosary, a bitch, should follow in the footsteps of Burletta and Satan's Baby, two of the greatest bitches ever to capture this long-distance classic. Greta's Rosary is by Mick the Miller—Greta Ranee, and her dam was the only bitch ever to win the English Greyhound Derby. It is to be hoped that when her time comes to rear puppies shfi will produce some as fast and as good as herself and perpetuate this great blood line. STRIPPING TERRIERS A question that seems to worry su many owners of harsh-coated terriers is whether it is really necesary to " strip" their dogs in the autumn as well as in the spring; and, if so, how it can most easily and quickly be accomplished. All the wire-hairea breeds, Airedales, Sealyhams, Scottish and Irisn terriers, wire-haired fox terriers, and the like, are double-coated—they have harsh, wiry outercoats, and the undercoats are of different texture, soft, like wool. The outercoat, in autumn as in spring, begins to fall; it becomes dead, and will be brought out on the comb or at the slightest pull. Preventing Those Dog's Hairs But the natural process of coat-shed-ding takes a considerable time, during which the dog is all too liable to suffer from skin irritation and to scratch himself sore in consequence. For some months he will leave a trail of hairs all over the place, for brush and comb as you will it is impossible by this means alone to remove all the dead hair. To strip it entirely away, in one process, obviates these troubles, and also helps the new coat to grow rapidly and evenly In six weeks instead >f six months the dog should have a dense growth of new outercoat; and he won't have to go through a long transition stage when he feek uncomfortable and looks unkempt If the terrier's outercoat is long and loose an early autumn stripping will ensure the growth of a good thick coat before winter; so thick as to make the dog almost impervious to cold, and so harsh that rain can scarcely penetrate to the undercoat at all The Stripping "Tools" Many terrier breeders use a penknife for the purpose, taking up a few strands of the dead coat between thumb ; and blade, and then exerting a steady

pressure in the direction in which the hair grows. This removes it without causing the dog any discomfort; the only penance for him is standing still on a table for an hour or so. But a better method for the novice is with the use of a "stripping comb." There are many makes on the market. Such a comb guards against any risk of accident should the dog prove restless, and does effectively grip the unwanted hair.

With knife or stripping comb the outercoat should be removed from neck, back and flanks, and from the hindquarters down to the hocks. The underparts should be left as they are. Then the head, the tail and the feet should, for the sake of good looks, be trimmed up. For these parts it is perhaps best for the inexperienced to use only thumb and finger to pluck out the coat.

The principle of trimming the nead is to make it look as long and lean as possible, so long hair is taken away from the skull and the cheeks, and from the ears (which must be given a neat edge) while the whiskers on the foreface, and the beard, are left. The tail should be tapered off to a fine point; the feet cleared of all long hair, or tufts of hair, which may make them look bigger than they are. A little judicious thinning of the coat on the forelegs is permissible, too; it may make a crooked front look straighter than it is. This stripping may reveal the fact that the dog's skin is grubby and scurfy; it is often surprising just how dirty it has become in spite of regular grooming. Then a bath may well be given, provided the weather is not too cold or damp, and the dog is afterwards dried to the skin, and then has a brisk run to restore his circulation. For the wash, any good dog-shampoo may be used, of course. The water in which the coat is first soaked should be tepid; the clean water, for rinsing after lathering, should be a shade cooler.

Through lack of stripping in the past, or through constitutional causes, it

may be found that the dog has an impoverished undercoat, thin and poor, possibly with one or two more or less bald patches. Then the following lotion may be lightly rubbed in, twice a day —except on the part near the eyes:— Tr. Cantharides, 2 drachms; oil rosemary, 2 drachms; glycerine, 4 drachms: water to Boz. Mix.

This is a real tonic for the coat, Dut in addition the dog may be in need of a course of internal conditioning and a more generous ration of meat.