THE KENNEL.

Otago Witness, Issue 2649, 21 December 1904, Page 57

THE KENNEL.

Br Tebkoe.

{Fanciers and breeders or dogs are cordially in-rited to con tribute items to thU-colunia. "Terror ' v ill endeavour to make his department as interesting and up-to date as possible, but in order to do this he must have the 00-oocration of his readers hence he trusts this invitation will be cheerfully responded to

— Fanciers will do well to look to the cleaning of kennels before the heat of midsvmmsr overtakes them. Limewash, soap, and plenty of hot water should be used fieoly. Kennels should -be removed to shady corners, and 1 -extra attention paid to the cleanliness of drinking vessels. An occasional swim is beneficial to uiosfc dogs,' and a hot bath now and again, plenty of good soap being used, will add) much to their comfort. Exercise is more necessary in hot summer weather than at any other time.

— As to food, give less animal food in hot weather than at other times, but i>rovide as much variety as poss'ble.

j — The following remarks upon the subject of "Club Judges " by Our Dogs, are interesting, on the- principle that to be forewarned is to be forearmed — to fanciers even in New Zealand, where as yet questions j such as those referred' to have not yot arisen fo>' solution. In an article dated , October 8 last the paper referred to says : I A few weeks ago we dealt in these columns ' with the question of club lists of judges, and. althrugh exigencies of space prevented our remarks from being" in any way exhaustive, we touched on a good many of the points which, in our opinion, render the abolition of the=c lists in most eases, if not in all, desirable in the best interests of both clogs and their owners. Last week our contemporary, the Field, in an editorial paragraph, reiterated many of our arguments, and leant the great weight which j tlie opinion of the premier sporting paper , of the country, indeed, we may say, of the world, must have, to support the opinion we have expressed. The recent case of the Sf. Bernard Club, quoted by the Field, shows to what absurd lengths this claim set up by some specialist clubs to dictate to show committees in the matter of the appointment of judges may be pushed. It , appeai^s that the St. Bernard Club was degiirous of holding its annual club show; ig

conjunction with the Kennel Club's show at th-3 Crystal Palace, and approached the committee with that view, who agreed to the suggestion, and were prepared to do everything in the way of classification, etc., to meet the views of the St. Bernard Club, . but when it came to the latter body claiming the right to appoint the judge, the ; Kennel Club Committee very naturally demurred, and pointed out that, whilst they ' were quite ready to receive suggestions on this point from any specialist club, the actual appointment of judges must be the prerogative of the holders of the show — themselves. Thereupon the St. Bernard Club withdrew its support, and transferred it to Birmingham, whose committee, apparently, are more complaisant. It is to bo noted that it was not a mere question of appointing one of the judges on the club's list, as the gentleman selected by the Kennel Club happens to be one of that select body, but a claim to the actual right of appointment of a particular individual. This claim was, of course, immediately, and without the slightest hesitation, repudiated by the Kennel Club, and it is greatly to be regretted that the committee of a show like Birmingham, with its splendid history and traditions, should be too weak-kneed to follow the example of independence set them. The very utmost that any olub can expect from a show committee is that their list should be considered, and a selection made from it ; to object to one of the judges voted into that position by themselves is simply childish. This is not the first time that specialist clubs have attempted to dictate to che Kennel Club in the matter of the appointment of at particular individual as judge. Only last year the Pomeranian Club withdrew its support from the Crystal Palace show or much the same grounds. This club has no list of judges, but all the same, a meeting was called, at which the members proceeded to "elect" a judge for the Crystal Palace show, and, having done so, a letter was written to the secretary of the Kennel Club informing him that a certain individual had been "elected" — not even a recommends- i tion, but just a notification that he had ] been elected, without saying "By your ' leave, or with your leave," as the saying is. In the meanwhile, another gentleman — a member of the committee of the Pome- ■ ranian Clvb — and one who had frequently , officiated at large and important shows, ! had been already appointed, and a reply : was sent to that effect 1 , pointing out also that as the appointment of judges rested entirely with the Show Committee, and not with specialist clubs, the Pomeranian Club had' exceeded its powers in "electing" a judge, since the most they could do was to recommend. As a result, the Pomeranian Club withdrew its support, and, as a further result, the Kennel Club had the largest entry of the breed in the history of its -.how, proving fairly conclusively that the exhibiting public is in favour of independence of action, and views with diSavour the attempts at coercion of some of these, specialist societies. It is difficult to see how this action of the Pomeranian Club can be reconciled with the apparently liberal policy of abolishing its list of judges,and we are afraid .that it looks very much as if the conversion of its members was more apparenb than real. We hope that if in the future the nd-list .system is to become universal, or even more general, that its spirit as well as its letter will be observed in the dealings between specialist clubs and show committees. There is another most reprehensible practice which it has transpired lately is by no means uncommonly "resorted to by some pepple who will leave no stone unturned to exalt the" reputation of the inmates of their kennels, and incidentally to gather fn the spoils of victory, that of the guarantor of certain classes or the donor of special prizes claiming the right (too often conceded' toy weak committees) of nominating the judge. The gentleman so nominated may be all that is most competent and honest, but the other competitors may be pardoned if they imagine otherwise, and think that he will probably take rather an undue interest in the success of his nominator. Every Show Committee- should be strong enough to make its own selection without reference to the wishes of any individual, even if by doing so they may lose a special or two, or a few entries, for in that way only can the public have any guarantee of the absolute fairness and impartiality of the proceedings in the ring. It is gratfyina; to learn from our esteemed contributor of" "Bulldog Barks "' that liberal views are gaining ground among the supporters of the "national" breed, and it is to be hoped that others will before long follow suit. A policy of selfishness and exclusiveness has never been a- paying one in the long run, and the more we consider the matter the more are we convinced that in this connection it is prejudicial to the interests alike of dogs and their owners, and even to those- of the specialist clubs themselves.

— Dear Terror, — Mjy old dog Captain died last week at the ripe age of 15 years. Captain vras, for a shepherd's dog, a muchtravelled one. Before I left Home he had accompanied me over the greater part of the lowlands of Scotland, the. North of England, and also travelled with me in the North of Ireland. The year after I brought him out here, as a result of a. correspondence in the Witness, I sent him up to Mr John Horrax, in Wellington, who in his turn sent him on to Forty-mile Bush, where he remained for a month or ' two. Later on I sent him up to a much-esteemed friend of mine in Canterbury, and here in Southland he has journeyed to and fro for nine years. Latterly he was stone- deaf, but wonderfully active for his age. Indeed, three years ago, when 12 years old. he was a most useful all-round working dog, and I certainly cannot remember ever seeing one more capable at this age. As you will remember, his merits and demerits were frequently discussed, and I have time and again been obliged to listen to men running him down who never saw him ; but now, when there can be no suggestion that I am saying so for pecuniary benefit, I would stake my reputation that no better born naturnl worker ever came into the colony. To show how very strong the working instinct was in him," he was just two months short of two years old wJien I got him, and had never even seen a sheep, yet three days later I could have held three wild Scotch Waekfaced wethers with him to please even the most critical of judges. You will excuse my paying this le.st tribute to my old and' faithful friend, whose passing hence brings to me a very genuine feeling of regret, which I venture to think will be understood by every lover %>t animals, but more especially^ by those who, like myself, have for their" whole lifetime been closely associated with the most faithful, as they are also the most sagacious, of God's creatures — the shepherd's collie. — i

am, etc.. James Lilico, Invercargill, December 16.

[Captain was so well knov;n and admired, and his owner's efforts to impovo the breed of working collies in the colony are so well recognised, that he may rest assured he has the sympathy of the fancy generally in his loss.— Tekeoh.J For some years past in iinglancl attempts have been made by those interested in bloodhounds to emancipate that splendid breed from the gilded slavery of the showbench. In most cases, this has been attempted by training the animals in "tracking," the" "game"' being a man sent on roadd and through fields an hour or more before the hounds are laid on. This system has met with more or less success, according to the method followed and theinherent ability of the animals employed. More recently, these hounds have been worked in packs, it being thought better to train them in bulk than as individual hounds, as being less burdensome to the trainers, and giving a larger number of animals practice in tracking. A club has also been formed to draw up a standard, giving preference rather to essentials than to mere show points. That such a noble breed of animals as bloodhounds should be kept kennelled, and only be recognised for exhibition purposes, is absurd and demoralising to the breed. Kecently I ("Wattlebark," Australasian) was enabled to witness some man-tracking done by a couple of beagles and a bloodhound, through the courtesy of Dr Scantlebury, of Cheltenham. The beagles had been trained from puppyhood by Dr Scantlebury, but the bloodhound, being a recent addition to the little pack, had not had that advantage. On c^eoccasion referred to a man was sent out on to the road, and through the bracken lands that are common in Cheltenham. After giving the "game half an hour's law. the pack had some articles of clothing belonging to the man brought uncler their notice. The gate was then opened, and the pack told to "find." Without much hesitation, the dogs were busily at work, going along a footpath, then crossing a road, and then striking through bracken. They were evidently on their game. Here the bloodhound from time to time acknowledged the scent by deep, sonorous, and melodious bays. The beagles ran silently, which, 1 understand, is noticeably their custom in man-tracking. After traversing a distance of something over a couple of miles, the pack returned by the path the man had come- back by. This incident, though slight, a? regards- demonstration of a bloodhound's abilities in man-tracking, is interesting in so far as it showed that if trainiwg is carried out from puppyhood, dogs gifted with keen scenting powers could be easily utilised by residents far from populous districts for tracking, and they would then be of value on the occasions, common enough in the bush, when children and others wander from home, and get lost. — Distemper is due to a microbe of the vegetable kingdom, which is termed a coccobaeillus, and resembles a dumbbell in form. The word "microbe" means small life (miex'os, small; bios, life), and microbe may belong to the animal.. or vegetable kingdom. The distemper microbe is very small, and is usually found in the blood of the dog suffering from the disease in its earliest . stages. It appears to manufacture a. poison or toxin that weakens the defensive cells of the body, and allows the ordinary or usual microbes found in the healthy Body or in the surroundings of the- dog to also prey on the system, and which usually account for the .troublesome complications of this dreaded disease, especially when the animal is subjected to bad hygienic conditions. The microbes of such malarial diseases as malignant jaundice, malaria, or tsetse fly disease, etc., belong to the animal kingdom. The microbes of distemper, typhus, etc., belong to the vegetable king-> dom. The smaller the microbe or any other parasitic organism, the severer the disease, and in many instances the greater the moFtality. Distemper in its pure form is an; eruptive disease, similar to measles in children, and, if treated early and with car-e, would cause less mortality ilian is now CSo case. As it is mostly overlooked in its earliest stage, the dog is allowed to run, about in inclement weather, or to eat filth, or he is subjected to baths" and chills, especially just before a show. Nothing !§ noticed until some of the usual symptoms appear, such as running ofthe eyes or nose and t&e husky cough, this latter frequently being' the first to attract atention. It is commonly thought that dog shows are a fruitful source of the dissemination of the disease, and though no doubt this is right, not every dog developing distemper alter a show owes his contamination to the snowyard. It is a common experience to find dogs showing symptoms of the disease ■' in a ve-ry mild form at the time they " are on the bench, or a day or two after the s-how, and thoughthey had not been noticed before, it should not be v aaid that they took the disease at the show. The fact is, the dog had already the microbe of th© disease within him before the show, and maybe the careless washingover night, the train-travelling, the excitement of the show weakens the system, and tho disease develops too soon to be contracted from the incriminated show. Wheathere are young puppies about, they should be carefully watched day by day for the least sign of indisposition, and when left much to the care of servants it is a wise precaution, no matter how troublesome, to subject them to a careful and minute examination as often as opportunity presents ; more especially when the owner has not seen them for a few days, or when wet, inclement weather is prevalent. When a dog does not appear to be well, off his appetite, or is mopey and dull, he should at once be isolated, kept quiet, and free from all risk of chill, and by so doing distemper may be detected earlier than would otherwise be the case, and many deaths averted.

— A Lonely Post. — Major Moodie, the commander of the Mounted Police in th* Hudson Bay region, who has returned to his post from Ottawa, with the title of Governor of Hudson Bay, has received final instructions from the Government concerning hk new duties. He will have full administrative control over the northern district, and will be given considerable latitud» in matters of local concern. In order to bein closer communication with the Ottawa authoiities, Major Moodie will organise at service of dog trains between Churchill andl Fullerton. He will establish new police nests in Foxland, RaSinaland, and other northern districts. Police headquarters will be located at Fullerton.