THE KENNEL.

Otago Witness, Issue 2302, 14 April 1898, Page 35

THE KENNEL.

{Tfanciers and breeders of dogs are cordially invited to contribute iteints to this column. *' Terror" will endeavour to make his depai-tment as interesting and up-to-date as possible, but in order to do this he must have the co-operation of his readers ; hence he trusts this invitation will t>p cheerfully responded to.l NOTES BY TERKOB. V " Ouida," the well known authoress, having in her book "Dogs" written violently vilifying the " Dog Show," and since its institution, the cruel treatment of the dog generally, has been taken to task by a writer in the Field of January 15" h, whose object, it will be seen from the following quotations from his article, is to shew that the tendency of the show U to bring about prejudicial petting and ■Damnering rather than cruelty. The writer says": — " Without taking the role of defender-In-chieE of the dog show, it must bo said that eince the fiisb was instituted nearly 40 yean ago, the life of the common dog has been much improved, whilst in many caseß his form has been altered to cause variety and to comply with the idiosyncrasies of fashion. ' The latter lias much to answer for, and on her account there has come about pretty well a revolution so far as dogs fa appearance and in their treatment are concerned. There are old men living who never heard, until recently, of £200 being paid fora dog, which is often done now-a-days (even £1-200 has been realised for a single specimen), although we are told that a few generations ago -£100 or more was occasionally given for one. - This latter was because he came o£ a noted sporting race, was good in the field with his master and his gun, or fleet of foot and delicate in his nose when on the trail of fox or hare. On the contrary, the exorbitant sums paid nowadays are for non-sporting dogs, such *« are kept for their beauty alone, for the prizes they ban win, or the money they may make in other w«,ys. The collie dog which ia skilled In his own special oocnpabioD, driving s,nd tending Bheep, is nob of much money value on that accounb, nor ia the Sfc. Bernard who Las sftved fihaJiffla of Mated trftvelie^ gr%' fee suo^n-

tains enhanced in value thereby. Appearance is the fashion under our new order of things. Elegance of form and certain so-called ' points ' — mostly exaggerations of Nature — increase the value of an animal until there seems to be co limit; feo the price which may be asked and paid for a dog. Only last week three sales of collies were noticed, in which £200 was given for a puppy, and over £100 each for two other dogs. Yefc the probabilities are that not in one instance would the animal be of any use as a sheepdog according to the common acceptance of the term. Is it too much to believe that continual breeding from strains of dogs which have been produced for appearance alone, their intellectual faculties not being taken into accuuufc, will in the long run be the means of completely altering the nature of the creature t* We fancy that we have already seen a banefal remit of breedicg-on such lines in the decadence of the modern mastiff, and In the change brought to bear in the character and appearance of the British bulldog. A good specimen of the former, one sound on his legs both fore and aft, is well nigh as difficult to find a* the dodo, whilst the ss.va.ge nature of the bulldog has almost entirely disappeared. A. fni eh siicU bulldog of the ' chumpion ' type is tar removed from the brave, bold, somewhat bullying creature he was when he became the na,tion'al dog " of the British people, and thus the abhorrence of our Frerch cousins, who to satisfy, their .animosity, imported specimens of the race, and after eating the biggest, bred the remainder in and in to- such an extent as to dwarf teem in size and turn them into 'fcoyß,' ultimately re-selling them to the British as a « new variety ' — the French bulldog. But by so doing thpy have not been mauh worse than some of oar own so-called ' fanciers,' who have produced a bulldog vshese teeth are mostly constructed to protrude or falLout; at any rate they do not answer any ether purpose bfaan that of gnawing r soft hone. Other exaggerations have been introduced in various parts of his anatomy, until his rate of progression is little more than a crawl. A couple of hundred pounds and more have been pai-d for specimens which could not ! keep pace with sen average pedestrian, whilst 'the be'-t dog in England,' which was killed in i one of the lien fights at Warwick during old Wombell's time, could have besn purchased for lees than a ten-pound note. Of courte in these enlightened daj-s we do not want our bulldogs to bait a bull or light with the 'king of the forest,' but it seams somewhat sad to dad our national dog, emblem of courage and indomitable pluck, to have become cvoluted info a parlour pet and & fawning, pampered creature whose disposition is pug-like and bland. Why in a. ' kennel journal ' this month an advertiser inquires for a bulldog ' as a child's pet,' and he will Lave no difficulty in Hading what he requires. "In the face of all tha?; has been none during tha past 30 years, ie seems strange that there are still peraens who decry hi? treatment &s * icand&l to civilisation. If there be error at nil it is in ihe contrary direction, and that the modern dog is treated too well." Speaking of the ptesent-day treatment of fcbe canine rsce. "OuicWtfayn : "Itbmk that, taken as a whole, the conduct of meu and women to I their dogs is very neglectful and disgraceful. Even ihoise^who are attached to them have little consideration of their feeling i, leave them to keepers or servantn,. and give fchetsa away, »3 though they were chattels of -wood and metal. Women in the world of society are especially sinners in tbis way. They think solely of the good loolis of s. "dopr, and if he lose these external charms he is nothing to them. . . . I do not believe in the much-vaunted humanity of the English race ; they are less brutal than the Americans, that is all I c%u conceda. . . Meu expect their dogs to be the crouching slaves of human tyranny, yet to be indomitable heroe3 of combat and defence. They tie, muzzle, beat, and bully the strength and force out of an animal, and then expect him, when they wish, to be full of vigour, attack, spirit, and defiance. Ie is idiotic." • . ' As to the system of breedieg for " points," the samu talented authoress expresses herself in equally strong terms :—": — " Dogs (like princes) are brpd 'in and in,' from the same stock, for the r.ake of securing uniformity, until their mind is dulled and the health is impoverished. Tha dog ia his free slate, and with his own natural be&uty of body and brain, i 8 just what he always was ; if certain canine breeds have become Jess clever end less affectionate (which I do not myself believe), any such deterioration is solely owing to the caprices, the brutalities, the oppression, and the stupid or avaricious meddling of the human race." • .• An English writer, reviewing " Ouida's" work, aays that she has for years past resided abroad, and in her book wrongly assumes that she may charge her English readers with the practices which she finds prevailing in foreign lands. • . - The Field's query " whether continued breeding from strains of dogs which have been produced for appearance only, their intellectual faculties not being taken into account, will not in the loDg run be the means of completely altering ths nature, of the creature ? " is one which readsrs will remember had been raised more than once in these columns, and I cannot help thinking that it is one deserving the serious attention of collie breeders in particular. Is it not about time that we heard from Mr Horrocks relative to his experiment with Captain, the working sheep dog ? ••* With regard to "Breeder's" suggestion that the question of " judging by points " would be better discussed by the Fanciers' Society than by a newspaper correspondence, I would say that I hops to see a few more letters on the subjecb. Notwithstanding the little "feeling" which has been displayed, I have found the correspondence both interesting and instructive, and no doubt it may be expected to continue so . for a short time longer. * . ' As bearing upon one question raised iv the correspondence above referred to — viz., that unless a collie, for instance, had a typical head it would not be allowed a place at an English show, I think the following comparison of two collie lights by Mr J. A. Locke, the judge at the last Crystal Palace show, should prove interesting. Speaking of one class of collie, he says : — ''These were a record entry, but were not a very grand lot on the whole as regards quality. I think it a mistake having roughs and smooths in the same class. There is no doubt that it is a near thing between Southport Perfection and Welleebourne .Conqueror, and there is-tnucli- difference of opinion as to the merits of- the two dogs. Southport Perfection has colHe character and expression to a far greater -degree -than Conqueror, and was in good coat and condition, and there is no doubt he is a wonderful dog at his age. Wellesbournc Conqueror, on the other hand, lacks collie character .and expression, more eepecially in head ; he does not carry a heavy coat, and what there is is "soft ; and he was shown too fat. To mo he always looks low on the leg, or perhaps it is that his head is too long for his height." " . ' Wellesbourne Conqueror lacks collie expresdon, especially in head, and yet " there is no doubt it was a near thing " between him and Soutbpoi-fc Perfection ! Surely Mr Locke nifty be taken as an advocate of point iutfjsiDX p

* . ' By the waj, as showing the manner o£ come advertisers." I notice. that the stud notice appearing in " Our Dogs " credits Wellesbourne Conqueror as follows: — "Conqueror is a large, racily-built, sable and white collie, with extra long, lean head, beautifully small ears," &c, &?. One may be ( pardoned for asking whether the preceding points printed in italics are thosa which constitute "a lack of collie character and expression" ? • . • Mr Hogo Ainscough, of Parbold, Southport, has made a v«luable addition to his kennels by purchasing thai high-class young sable and white collie dog, Balgreggie Hope. The exact price has not transpired, bub is &t least over £300, at which price Mr Wilkie was iuduaed to part with this valuable collie. Although just a puppy Balgreggie Hope has had a very successful career, and has won a gces.t cumber of prizes during the past few months, and, no doubt, under Mr Ainscough he will continue to give a good account of himself on the show bench.

• . • Speaking of the dog above referred to as j an exhibit at the last Liverpool Show, the j Stockkeopsr says :—": — " The open dog clasa was a | rnos'j remarkable one. Ormskirk Emerald, j Barwpll Masterpiece, Earbold Randolph, and j Balgreggie Hope are guch a qunrtefc that sei- j dom meet, and were really difficult to place. ! Probably the last-named was the bsrdest used, j and is is quite an open question if he is not the j best of the lot. The bitches were also a rare j good group, and the whole show, so far as the collies were concerned, was remarkable for the j quality of the youngsters present." Seeing j that Ormskirk Emerald was sold only a few | months ago at about £1500 it is evident fchafc j the other dogs alluded to — amongst them Bil- j greggie Hops, Mr Ainscough's purchase — are of i high standing in the collie world. i •.• "Fancier," ia the Southland News, I says: — "Mr Gaorge Double has purchased j from Mr F. Rogeu the rough-coated collie dog First Gun, by Newmarket Ruff (imp.) ex Zaalandi» (imp.) «uid the bitch Fiisfe Faith, by j Newmarket Ruff (imp.) ex Newmarket Faith j (imp.). Both these dogs are considerable winners on the show bench, and are a decided acquisition to Southland. — Mr Masters has disposed of one of the litter of fox-terder puppies from his bitch Neidpath Dorcas, by Dusky Boy, to Mr A. G. Macara, of the Bluff."