THE KENNEL.

Otago Witness, Issue 2674, 14 June 1905, Page 31

THE KENNEL.

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[FMoien an.l bleeders of deit« are cordially l«Tite* to con. trlbm" ittm. to ilili column. " Terror •• will ™*~™bf e u but'?. k!«<epartment »i i»tereitlne and up-to d»te v possible, but i« "rSer ■ u*o thii he must h»Ve the co-weratioa «f Inn rca*er« keaee he tru.t. thU limitation will be che.rfuUj rnp»nded to ]

— Mr Bett has sold his Wi3haw Jock collie pup, ex Blush bitch, to a. loca.l fancier at I understand, a highly satisfactory figure, and, it is reported, intends sending Blush again to the sam® stud dog. — I have just had the pleasure of viewing one. of the most promising buLl puppies I have eeen in Dunedin. The pup referred to (a, bitch) arrived in Dunedin from Wellington by s.s. Tarawera to the order of Mr Reynolds, of the firm <:f Park, Reynolds and Co. Mr Reynolds is no recruit in the bulldog fancy, having been associated with the breed and exhibiting for years, so evidently knew what he was about in securing this latest acquisition to Dunedin kennels. The pup has white with brindle marks on head, is well developed and defined; her head properties arc extra good, having abundance of wrinkle, splendid laybaek, well up-turned massive underjaw, the best of ears, well carried and of correct shape, a good head, strong neck and nlenty of dewlap. The body properties are also good: a good chest, short stout legs with plenty of bone, and altogether a sturdy, well-built pup— one that later on should be a worthy opponent on the show bench for some of our looal bitohe-s. The pup is three months old, and was bred by Mr H. E. Carey, of Wellington, and for blood has a combination of the best that England and Australia oan produce. The sire, Hawkhill Jack, already a winner ot three first prizes in New Zn aland, was born in England in 1901, and: imported to this country by Captain A. R. Young, Government Veterinarian. Hawkhill Jack was bred by Mr Chas. Murray, Esq., and is by Lame Lodge ex Wild Agnes. The dam of the pup is Kincora, a bitch, who holds a combination of blood of several noted bulldogs — viz., Blunderbuss, Pacific Countess, Prisoner, Prepare, etc.. reaching back beyond eh. Guido. — Smooth sheepdogs (English), bred to standard on same lines as the Scotch collie, eeem. to be at a discount in New South Wale 3. The objection to the collie as a sheepdog is usually the fact that he carries too much ooat to work wall in hot climates, but this cannot be urged againet the smooth sheepdog. Kelpies and German sheep dogs cannot beat the smooth English, which, have the advantage- of a laid down type and a standard, and are therefore better all-round dog® of acknowledged show merit. — Feathered and Kennel World.

— Call ' a girt a ohiek and alie smiles : call a woman a hen a,nd she howls. Call a young woman a witch, and she is pleased ; call an old woman a witch and she is indignant. Call a girl a kitten and sbe lather likeo it : call a woman a ea,t and ehe hates you. Women are queer. If you oall a man a gay dog it will flatter liim ; call him a pup, a hound, or a cur and he will try to alter the map of your face. He doesn't mind being call&d a bull or a bear, yet he will object, to being mentioned as a calf of a cub. Men are queer, too.

— Writing on tho subject of giving me>at lo puppies a Home koiinelman says : — "Some differeuce of opin on seems to exist as to the advisability of giving meat to puppies. We onoe look the trouble to ask the opinion of the adviser J5 the 'Answers to Correspondence' column of one of the flog papers on this matter, and the answer was to the effect that strong m?ats were not for babus, and than meat should be withheld from puppk-s. Can this be correct? If we think 'over the matter it does not take a very great stretch of imagination to see in our mind's eye the parent wild 1 deg bringing in some small animal or a portion of a large one to the whelps, anc) we can picture them, setting to and tearing at the flesh, snarling and squabbling tho while. We must assume, then, thai the first food of thei progeny of the wild dog- will be meat — possibly tho live." and intestines:, as animals generally consume these parts fhvt — and even the food ejected by the mother for their benefit will be the same. Consequently, it hardly seems likely that flesh can be co bad for puppies as many people would have us believe. Furthermore, as thei proof of the pudding is in the eating, puppies rlo not as a rule seem to thrive on the diet of bread and milk and starchy patert food which so often falls to their lot. In spite of the cpinion of the authority above mentioned, ws ventured to enter upon a series of experiments in feeding puppies, leaving the beaten track of patents and bread and milk, which we had hitherto followed. The results more than justified our opinion that t hei most natural food is the best food. We found that when fed on chopped tripe for the first few meals, and afterwards on liver and tripe on alternate days, supplemented with the usual food, the puppies were both stronger ana healthier. Worirs becamo unknown, and the ravages of these pests are no doubt largely due to injudicious feeding and consequent indigestion. Fle.->h, if given, should b& tender, and of the best quality, and either miiiced very fine at first or given in a lump for the puppies to suck and tear at. The objection to the latter way cf giving it is that it is apt to get covered 1 with dirt, particles of sawdust, etc. 11, is not advisable to givei it coarsely minced so that the puppies oan swallow it in lumps without biting it. We strongly advise everyone who has puppies to rear to feed them liberally on tripe or liver at least once- a day. ancl <hey will be surprised at the difference between whelps so fed and thopo from which moat ia withheld. On th© subject of milk for puppief, fanciers seem to hold exactly opposite opinions. Some recommend its use ; othere, no doubt basing their statement on the waitings of certain « Id authorities, consider that it fa%'ours worms. As worm© cannot obtain a lodgment in a healthy digestive "tract, their presence indicates that something in the dietary is unsuitable and tipsetting. Therefore; o's worms undoubtedly flouxieli in vonie milk-fed puppies, milk is apparently not entirely suitable food lor whelpa. On this superficial view of the matter, however, we must not entirely condemn it. Milk in small and reasonable quantities may be. as good as in large quantities it is 1 bad, and although we should not recommend that puppie? be reared on it almost exclusively, yet rs a change and »n addition it may no -doubt, be used with advantage. W© should always, for instance, substitute milk for water in prepared foods, if poissible, bufc we ."hould never give very sloppy bread and milk, or milk Lo drink. The wild dog would certainly not find that oow'3 milk was one of the items in hie menu, and for this reason, if for no other, a too great use of it is unlikely to suit some dogs. Eg<rs are visually considered unduly rich for dogs; but if our choice lay between th© two, we should prefer to give egigs rather than miik. A hen's egg daily is a splendid' conditioner ior a " dog when being prepared for show, and although undoubtedly bad for pampered house dog* which have little exorcise', they are excellent food for those in full and! regular work. The fondness of certain members of various genera of the oarnivora for eggs suggests that it may be advantageous to give them at times to members of the family canidas."