THE KENNEL.

Otago Witness, Issue 2771, 24 April 1907, Page 31

THE KENNEL.

Bi Tehhor.

Faooieri »n.I breeders of ilojn in cordial!/ inrited to con. tibuie items to UiU column. ■■ Terror ' Kill eudrnrour to tuak* bitdepariiuvut as intcremiuc and uji-to-datc aa posiihlc. hut in Order to do tfcf* be mw hare the cn-ouersiion dV Mn reaJeis truce he irust» tiiii ibmmuou will be cbrertiillr i -••n.onde.l 10

— The Dunedin Fanciers' Club have the schedules ready fqr publication, and wii), I believe, have them shortly in circulation, so that it will not bo i.oo early for dogowners intending to exhibit to apply tor a copy preparatory to making entries. Tho date of closing entries will be strictly adhered to, according to tho Kennel Club s rules, and for thai, reason, as well as for the convenience of the secretary, intending exhibitors should enter early. — Dear Terror, — In my note in last week's Kennel ro Mr R. Wark, of Christchurch, in speaking of this gentleman paying his own expenses in going to Hawke's Bay to act aa judge, I generalised somewhat ioo freely. Mr Wark certainly paid all his expenses while in Hawke's Bay (some £18), but accepted his train and steamer fare (about £3). This in, however, Mr Wark, it is quite apparent, has the true interest of the fancy at heart — and shows it in a practical manner. — Dunedin Fakcisb.

—In the course of a discussion upon the. question of whether "wall-eya" should be a disqualification in a dog, Mr Thomas Parker, F.R.C.V.S., of Northumberland, eavo : —

Dr Chas. Franks- aeks if this condition is a desirable feature in (he Dalmatian. If the spots on the body, etc., were china or bright grey in colour, then it may or may not be considered desirable, but that would seem to entirely dopend on "fancy." Were the spots any other colour than china, then I should say "not desirable. ' Mr Blackburn gives his opinion thus : "A wall-cyo is not only a disfigurement of the breed, but it i« almost a disqualification, seeing that when it occurs in a Dalmatian it invariably means defective eyesight." As to its being a disfigurement of tho breed, I offer no opinion here; but as to ii> invariably meaning defective eyesight in tho Dalmatian, I would ask Mr Blackburn, "Why?" Mr A. H. Hug-hes writes: — "I know for a positive fact that a horse with a •walleye will never go blind." If Mr Hughes will allow the words "because he has a wall-eye" to be added to his sentence, then I agreo with him. To put it another way : A horse with a wall-eye may go blind from some other cause haying nothing whatever to do with the iris — i.e., he may have wall-eyes and peifect sight at the same time. v ith his statement, regarding dogs I quite agree.

Mr B!ackburn states that .he has had veterinary advice on the subject, to the effect that a wall-eye in a horse is un-soundncr-s and defective eyesight, and on no account would ho paes it as sound. Rather than agttin break down statements, I would ask your readers to concentrate their attention to tho following remarks :

That part of the eye which under certain conditions is lespor.sible for the term "walleye" is known as tho iris. The iris is a 6trttcture made up of certjm kjnds of muscular fibivs and layers of cells, and forms a veritable diaphragm situated immcdiatelv in front of tho crystalline lens, and is pierced with a central opening known as the pupil. Tho front surface of the iris is flat, or very .slightly convex, and diversely coloured, not only according to epeeies, but also in individuals — e.g., in the horse it is nearly always a brownish, yellowtint, though sometimes it is nearly white or bright grey, when the animal is said to be "wall-eyed." In the ox the colour is generally brighter than that of the ho^se. In the goat the colour is generally blue; in the adult cat, green. In the dog, generally speaking, the colour is a more or less bright golden, yellow. Speaking broadly, one generally finds it in young animals of a bright blue colour. In the human subject, ac in animals, the pigment (colouring matter) of the irie is of various colours, but it is absent altogether in albinos, and occasionally the iris itself is wanting. The term "albino" is applied to a person in whom the skin. hair, and iris are light, and the pigmentum of the eyo is wanting. The iris, which is capable of allowing more or less light to pass into the eyo (depending, of course, on whether it is dilated or contracted, and thus affecting, for the time being, tho s,ize of its central opening or pupil), may be reasonably said to correspond with the diaphragm used in a photographicapparatus. If your readers, interested in this subject, will bear in mind that the rays of light penetrate the pupil or central opening of the iri~, and that the colour of the fioni. surface of the iris itself only affects its appearance, then they ought to bo in a position at once to discard from their minds the subject of eyesight and unsoundness.

— Theo. Marplcs says : —Dogs should never bo put in their kennels or allowed to go in when their coats are wet. The coat should be rubbed down and thoroughly dried before the dog ia allowed to go on his bench, especially for the night. The neglect of this precaution is often a fruitful source of rheumatism, rickets, and! many other ailments that dogfiesh is heir to.

Frequent grooming is a fine thing for promoting healthiness and suppleness of th» skin, as well as improving the coat. In the case of long-coated dogs, it is, of course, absolutely necessary, in order to prevent the coat from becoming matted. The greatest liability to th's staiP is, of course, when the dog is casting his coat, when extra care 3hould be taken in the dog being regularly and frequently combed and

brushed, and all tho old hair got out of his coat.

Among the breeds that need most attention to their toiler are collies and Pomeranians, whoso coats should always be combed and brushed tho "wrong way of the wool," as I may say. Old English sheep dogs and Irish water spaniels need watchful attention to their coats, or they will geL inextricable, which means that the mat 6 will ha\e to be cut off and a lot of time wasted before the ccat resumes its evenness.

Curly-ccatcd retrievers should not be combed or brushed. If the coat is old and ragged, the custom is to cut it off all o\er, which induces a smaller curl. When the coa» ha 3 grown the curls should be pressed down with tho hand ; th.s is especially beneficial when the coat is wet and whilst ii is drying.

—To many people the most interesting side of Lord Avebury's character is his great love for dumb creatures, and the manner in which he has worked to develop and discover their higher intelligence. Doji are, perhaps, his lordship's special pets, and he is credited wtth having on one occasion taught one of these animals to read. Some time ago Lord Avebury possessed an exceedingly sagacious French black poodle named "Van, and by using extraordinary patience and perseverance taught the dog to distinguish words written on cards, and express its wants by taking the right card in its mouth. After a time tlio -animal grew so expert at reading that although a number of cards were thrown together in a. heap it would easily pick out ono bearing the word "food" or "bone." for instance, when it yearned for something to cat or gnaw, or any other card which it wae told to find. Fond as his lordship is, however, of learning the capabilities of canino nets, he is even moro fond, perhaps, of studying the life :>f insects. At hi\s country house, High Elms, Down, Kent, ho has a veritable insect farm, where bcee, wasps, and ants are to be seen in great profusion. The last-named insects are kept in nests, of which his lordehip has about two score, under glass cases surrounded by water, in order to prevent the inmates from escaping, and by this means Lord Avebury i 6 able to watch their daily life. A detailed account of his observations in this direction is given in hi 6 book, "Ants, Bees, and Wasps."

— A German contemporary learns from a Parisian friend that a well-bred dog was seen some Mttie time ago in Ihe Place de l'Etoile, Paris, to which had been cleverly strapped a liliputian umbrella, which formed a very effective protection against the falling rain This is the latest fashion, and suo"ocds the "mode" of a complete motor outfit for dogs. Will the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals welcome this innovation ?

— The smallest full-grown dog in tho world., weighing ordy 230z, a perfect midget is owned by Deputy-sheriff Hamilton Kayner, of El Paso, Texas, U.S.A., which stands with all four feet in the palm of its proud owner's hand with ease. Sheriff Rayne-r's dog is of th© Chihuahua, breed, co named since it is a native- of Chihuahua, which border Texas. It is called 1 "Chiquito," which means, in Spanish, "small." It is 16 months old, and was imported from Mexico when a pup not larger than a mouse. These Chihuahua dogs are highly prized as pet«, but are now extremely iare on account of tourists who visit the interesting Mexican border frequently carrying off our of these queer specimens of dogdom, thus continually diminishing tho supply. A genuine Chihuahua dog seldom weighs more than 31b. —An Amusing Letter to the Editor of the Bristol Times. — Sir, — Please kindly inform me if I can get compensation. In breaking a large wmdow in order fo remove jewellery, etc., I ettt ms'self badly, and have to pay a doctor, nurse, and chemist. I see by the papers that tho owner of a dog received £2 10s compensation. The dog etole from behjnd a counter a piece of bread saturated with rat poison, and died. Surely I risked my life just as much as the dog did ! — Yours affce.ionato'y- iii Li. Sikes. Burglar-in-Chief to the Royal Household. —An Irritable Dog.— "Wanted, savage dog ; good home." We are informed that on© of the answers to the above advertise■nent ran as follows :—*• Sir,— ln -reply to your advert, for a Savage dog I have got one you can have he is very savage indeed for he has taken out the scatings of 3 Polecemans Troupers Killed hundreds of Rats Dozens of Cats or anything else that come in his way. We have . to feed him through the bars of his Cage with a Toasting Fork yau had better bring a polece van and about a dozen men armed with sticks and pokers not answerable after Leaving me for any damage Answers to the Name of Jack the- ripper."

THE JUDGE. — Show time approaching, the following from Our Dogs gceme appropriate:—-

"To thica own self be true, And it must follow, as the night the day, Thou canst not then be false to any man."

—Hamlet. On the platform I Etand, with my pencil in hand, A king, so to speak, of the ring. While owners around, at my sign of command,

Their dogs for dec'sion do bring , By the feel of a coat, by the turn of a tail, Or the shape of a head— joy or grudge I cause to the man who may win or may fail,

As post I fulfil of % judge! And 'tis not, moreover, the canine alone

That I've to sum up at a sh«w, For huirans as we!!, unto aitfulne.ss prone,

I've often to deal with also The " duffer " that asks me beforehand to

dine, The fellow that flatters me, "fudge"! The novice who offers a bottle of win©

Have funny ideas of a judge! The pretty young lady, too, showing her pet,

Accustomed to magnetise man. Will find that, despite her charms, I ne'er

forget Which end of the lef»sh I've to scan. Gallant though I may be, no favour to her Shall ever my status besmudge; Ko, nothing can my equanimity stir When 1 pm presiding as judge. Whatever folk say, I adjudicate aye On "points" ft the time that I see; An animal's wins on a former show day, Or losses, weigh little with me. When my rniud is made up tbeie is naught,

forsooth. Can cause it fo waver or budge. And all of my verdicts are based on the truth Of the knowledge I have us a mdccl

With my pencil in hand, on the platfoim I stand, A kiLg, as I sing, of the ring, "While owners around or in front of me stand, Who all with grcnt hopefulness ding; By the shape of a leg, or the turn of a tail, As through the day's duty I trudge, I make men to bless me, or at rue to rail, While I am engaged p.b a judge! — C. J. H. Cassels.