THE KENNEL.

Otago Witness, Issue 2785, 31 July 1907, Page 35

THE KENNEL.

Sr Ttuoi.

Paaeler* «»* br<(4era •( d*g< arc cordially ißvlled v e«». rlfcnte iMni U tbU cotuma. " Ttrr«r " will eadearour to maV* »ii««t«rta«f»» MinterotlafaDd up-to-dat* ai postible, bat is •rder i»d» ihl» bt matt bar* th* ca-OBeratioa el hl> readcn, heae* h« truiu (kii invitalten -will ke cheerfullj responded ». — Two, ohallenge certificates, five specials, eight firsts, elevfin seconds, and four thirds were the awards secured by thirteen dogs sent over from Tasmania to the Victorian Kennel Club Show. —Mr W. A. Smith (of Napier) hae imported the fox terrier bitch Doublefaoe from Mr Francis Redmond (of England). This aptly-named bitch is beautifully bred, being by Double Cap from Deception. On the voyage she had five puppies by a son of Oxo of Doncaster and Maid of Honour. Another fancier in New Zealand has a bitoh coming out in whelp to Dusky Cracker, a noted wirehair fox terrier. These new strains of blood should be of distinct advantage to the breed in. Maoriland. —Mr W. L. Rao writes from England: "A seven days' dog show has just been concluded at Paris, and a friend who was present epeaka highly of the quality in many classes. The imported judges included Messrs Marples, Gresham, Harrison, Phillips, and Sindle, and their decisions were well received. The gun-dogs and hcunds were the feature of the show, and, though differing in type to English prizewinners, were very attractive to sportsmen, owing to their thorough workmanlike appearance. Toy dogs were greatly in evidence, and sell readily at high prices. There are several English dealers in Paris, and they do an enormous business jn 3coond-rate show specimens of such breeds as Pomeranians, Yorkshires, and toy varieties generally. This was the thirtyseventh annual ihow, and generally voted to be the beat yet held by the society/ —In answer to "Whippet," I quote Vero Sbaw as follows: "The few insignificant differences in formation which exist between the whippet and greyhound are co slight that the description of the larger dog may be accepted as applying to the smaller one. The whippet is not exactly co be accepted as a companionable variety, ac he is chiefly used in the North of England for racing- purposes, and is not infrequently enappieh in temper. The weights, too, vary from 401b to 101b, and it is therefore impossible to attach a scale. It may be added that the breeds arrive at maturity at about two years old." — Those fragile members of the canine race 'known as Italian greyhounds ehould be as nearly as possible exact replicas of the ordinary greyhound, although, of course, upon very much reduced lines. They are not easy animals to rear, their diminutive proportions rendering them extremely delicate and susceptible to chills and other ailments, to which they speedily succumb. When such peta are kept they should be carefully preserved in glass-fronted boxes, or else in basket kennels, well supplied with warm wrappings, and the greatest care should be taken to avoid their being subjected to draughts or damp. The chief {joints of difference in shape between the Italian and the ordinary greyhound are the following:— Points: The skull of the little dog is often, too round, or " appleheaded-" in shape; the eyes are fuller, | tho bone lighter in' proportion to tho respective sizes of the two varieties ; whilst the feot are usually long. The colour of the Italian is almost invariably a red or fawn. The weight of an adult dog or bitcU ig »t the most 71b, and. it ought i

not to be more than 51b; it is impossible to offer any idea as to what the average weight of puppies should be. In selecting the latter, however, the question of size is the most important desideratum, but a flat head and straight, good legs should be sought for. — Captain C. J. Wilkie, in " Notes for Novices," contributed to Our Dogs, advises the putting out of puppiea rather than rearing them on stale ground at home. He says: — "For the purpose of experiment, I divided a litter of six healthy ten-week-old whelps. One was put out at a. cottage in another district, two were placed at a farm but a few hundred yards from my ker-rels, and three were kept in the kei.nels, given a large warm kennel good run. The latter three were given the best of food in plenty of varfety and every care, together with great freedom. They ate well, but goon began to look very ' wormy.' ' Ruby ' cleared out a lot of worms, but they continued to sicken. Later areca nut brought away tapeworms from all three. Finally two died, and the third, after much care and a course of tonic pilk, developed into an undersized, but healthy looking dog. The two at the farm had to rough it from the first. The people at the farm did not understand puppies in the least The pups were housed in a calf house, sleeping on a bit of hay "thrown on a bride floor. They got food when they could— some days a lot all in one meal, often hardly anything at all but a little whey and "what they might chance to pick up in the fields. . They never had a> day's sickness nor a dose of medicine of any kind. One grew rather too large, and the other was taken straight to the show ring from the farm, and won! At the same time another litter of four was also divided. The smallest was placed with a blacksmith who had never kept a dog. Another wae placed at a cottage where for, years I have walked pups and bitches. The remaining two were kept at home and treated exactly as the three in the previous example. These" two were never ill nor off their food, but still did not grow. Areca nut Tidded Jhem of tapeworm, and they finally grew into very sturdy doge, but . small. The parents, -by the way, were both full sized. The whelp put out at the old walk had to be twice treated for worms before six months old, but grew bigger than the home pair. The little one with the blacksmith flourished exceedingly, was never dosed in any way, and matured) into the biggest and bestshaped dog of the ' litter. Whether it is that when the whelp sickens from any otHer oause the worm flourishes, or that the stale ground encourages the multiplication of worms, or neither of these deductions is correct, it matters not, for the fact remains it is better to put the puppies out." N.Z. FOX TERRIER CLUB. A committee meeting of the New Zealand Fox Terrier Club was held on Wednesday, July 17. There were present — Messrs Sidney Hall (chairman), J. Philpot. A Minogue, and the secretary. Word was received from the Hawke's Bay Kennel Club that owing to not being able to secure the services of an Australian fox terrier specialist they had engaged Mr Johnston, of Palmereton North. Under the circumstances, Mr Johnston was approved of. Mr H. B. Massey, of Auckland, was elected a life member. The annual Produce Stakes for 1908 was allotted to Auckland, for all bitches that have whelped after July 31, 1907. A request for trophies was received from the Wellington Kennel Club. It was resolved that the secretary inform that body that all the trophies have been allotted for this year, and that early application is always necessary. It was agreed that all unpaid members receive notice of subscriptions being unpaid before balance sheet is ieeued. v.