THE KENNEL.

Otago Witness, 5 December 1900, Page 51

THE KENNEL.

(Fanciers and breeders of dogs are cordially invited to con tubute itemb to this column. "Tenor ' will endeavour to niak his> department as interesting and up-to-date us possible, but i hence lie trusts this in\itation -n ill be cheerlullj respouued to.

KOTES BI XERBOK.

—In reproducing a photo of Mr Leonard Banks' s New Zealand-bred field spaniel Moonlight — already published in the Witness — and speaking of his pedigree and characteristics, "Wattlebark," of the Australasian,' says: Writing the above reminds me of the late controversy which occupied so much time and space by English breeders and the specialist press on this particular variety of spaniel; and from what has since transpired in the judging rings it is 'quite evident that the cry out against the faddists, who were modernising the field spaniel out of recognition, or rather usefulness, has had the desired effect, as we don't hear so much now about the lowest and longest clog alive. The craze for bone abnormal, long and heavy bodies, sho^rt legs, fortunately met its check here before vie field spaniels were transformed into ill-propor-tioned creatures to pity. That any sporting (or, in fact, any) day should be bred into shapeless, useless creatures has, no doubt, done much to widen the breach between shooting, hunting, and show men. Spaniels are essentially a sportsman's dog, and ,as such should be symmetrical, active, intelligent, sound-legged animals, consequently pleasing to the eye, besides being useful. The same authority then proceeds to say : The question may be asked, How is it we have so many varieties of spaniels compared with other breeds, particularly where such a diversity of type occurs? The answer to this is that spaniels are used chiefly for the gun, and are called upon to work under such varying circumstances, for instance, in close check covert, and in open fields, marshy and reedy places, etc., some on light game, others on heavy, and spaniels have to retrieve as well as find the sport in both water and on land, which divides them from the setters and pointers as gun dogs. For duck, geese, and swan shooting, in the Lower Murray tributaries and reedy flats, the heavy field or wiry, willing, little cocker would be clean out of the hunt with the active, hardy, Irish water Spaniel, yet one scarcely ever hears of this useful variety now ; and if this should meet the eye of the happy owner of a good specimen of the top-knotted spaniel I shall be glad to reproduce it for the benefit of any of our young readers who may not (and I am sure there are many) have ever clapped eyes on one.