THE KENNEL.

Otago Witness, Issue 3030, 10 April 1912, Page 35

THE KENNEL.

By Terrob. Fanciers and broeders of dogs are cordially incited to contribute to this column. " Terror " will endeavour to make this department as interesting and up-to-date as possible, but in order to do this he must have the co-operation of his readers, hence he trusts this invitation will be cheerfully responded to. Early exercise an<l plenty of it is ono I of the first essentials for show dogs while the season lasts. Whilst the show lasts dogs should bo taken from the bench daily (several times if possible) and the last thing at. nights, for otherwise were they cleanly in their habits they must suffer intensely, and more than one dog has readied homo with severe inflammation of the bladder in consequence of being neglected in this respect. —• Preparation for show involves being made accustomed to the chain and encouraged to romp while under it, so that its associations will ho pleasant, and as soon as it is in the hand of his owner or caretaker he will be full of excitement and delightful anticipation. If he is at the same time taught to be still at command he is suro to be elert in the show ling, and stand before the judge with head up, eyes bright and shining with eagerness, fail properly carried, and feet and legs straight ana well under him; in fact, lie will appear with all his lines well drawn, and be sure to win over his equal which shows up sulky, spiritless, and crouching. judges who judge not the dog so m.Kih as the owner; but the exhibitor should not allow this idea to fill his mind too much, for, all credit to judges in g.vjernl, the rule is to award according to ihe merits of the dog, and show committees exercise every care in selecting their judges. If a judge once fails in this respect he has little chance of re-election, and judges are well aware of this fact. An inexperienced judge (inexperienced in some breeds only perhaps) may, without dishonest intent, sometimes decide between two dogs which appear to him to be of equal merit by awarding the prize to the dog belonging to a well-known breeder, imagining, of course, that the owner is loading the dog; but this is a dangerous way of upholding his reputation, for it often happens that it is the amateur's dog which the experienced breeder is obligingly leading in the ring. Mr A. S. Betts. of Nelson, spoken of more fully in Poultry Notes, is a breeder of fox terriers of good quality. His stud dog, Birchley Belvoir, sired by Akarana Ability, ex Birchley Belle, is described as a game, hard-bitter terrier of the right type and character. He possesses a beautiful head, with the much-sought-after Belvoir tan markings. His legs, feet, and coat leaving nothing to be desired. Birchley Belvoir won the N.Z.F.T.C.'s 25-guinca. cup. 15-guinea shield, 12-guinea shield, Delegates' Cup, etc., and also about a score of firsts and specials. Ho also possesses Glenmore Disdain, bred by Howell, of Auckland, and from the pair has had four litters of puppies without a loss, and some of these have done well at shows. Another promising litter in these kennels is by B. Belvoir, ex eh. Newcastle Wakemup. I have seen two photos of different litters of young dogs, and they are so typical that I wish they were clear enough for reproduction in the illustrated pages. ON FOX TERRIERS. Mr Theo Marplos says: —"The fox torrier is probably the most popular of all the terrier varieties, and has more followers than any other variety. Each of the ter-rier-breeds have their complement of zealots, who swear by their own particular fancy, i and hold that breed up as a paragon of the terrier persuasion and the acme of perfection in all that goes to constitute a true terrier; that is to say. a game, goodlooking dog, cajiable of going (o earth and doing something when he gets there. In the evolution of this beautiful terrier it is difficult to punctuate the exact period at which he may be said to have emerged from Ins chrysalistie stale into the form we find him to-day. l-'ome enthusiasts maintain that the fox terrier in reality is the creation of the la>t 50 or 60 years. Doubtless that is true, so far as the pre-sent-day show fox terrier goes, but the. reconb show that fox terriers have existed as long as fox hunting. They were not always white or parti-coloured, but often black and tan, smooth and broken-haired. There can be no doubt whatever that the fox terrier in one form or another is a dog of great antiquity. Like most maim- j factured varieties, he is the product or combination of more or less homogeneous species of the canine race, with admixtures and outerosses from time to time to suit the requirements of different huntsmen and masters of fox hounds, including, no doubt, an infusion of bull terrier. Before the advent of dog shows the sole merit of the fox terrier lav in his capacity to bolt the fox. for which purpose terriers were, and are still, kept for convenience at farmhouses in the district of the hunt, as well as at the kennels. In those days colour and conformation counted for nothing. I/Jg shows have produced an entire reformation in tin- form and features of the d<>g. His devotees in tho early days of dog shows could see in the material bequeathed to them by posterity

!the making- of a beautiful terrier without j the sacrifice of his innate virtues, and tho ' dog's development on recognised lines for the first time began. This was somewhere 1 in the sixties, some little time before tho ; • formation of the Fox Terrier Club, which ■ | was founded in 1376. The original aim j i at the improvement of the existing fox ! j terrier in the matter of coat, of character, ! I of legs and feet and raciness, which has . been attended with such marked success, ! has not been achieved without its penal- ! ties. At one time during the process of evolution our terriers drifted from a I smaller race of dog to one of moro j elephantine proportions, from a too short- j legged dog to its extreme antithesis. Then an outcry was raised against big dogs, ! coupled by a fruitless attempt to limit the size by the fixing of a weight limit. Gradually a reduction in size took place, with the result that to-day fox terriers are probably more uniform in size than at any other period in their history, although there are some few winners who approach what common sense says must be a limit in both directions —viz., in regard to oversize as well as under-size. The best weight is between 171 b and 191 b. A hard and fast line cannot be drawn, because heavy- j boned and bodied dogs will weigh more and look less than a light-boned and leggy dog. Speaking generally, however, a dog much under or over the weights named is not desirable, nor should be encouraged.

THE IRTSII WOLF HOUND. The Irish wolf hound is frequently confounded with the deer hound. The standard of perfection of the breed reads thus: General Appearance.—The Irish wolf hound should not be quite so heavy or massive as the Great Dane, but more go than j the deer hound, which in general type he should otherwise resemble. Of great size and commanding appearance, very muscular, strongly though gracefully built; moveI ments easy and active. Head and neck carried high; the tail carried with an upward sweep, with a slight curve towards the extremity. The minimum height and weight of dogs should be 31in and 1201 b; bitches 18in and SOlb. Anything below this should bo debarred from competition. Great size, , including height at .shoulder and proportionate length of body, is the desideratum to be aimed at, and it is desired to firmly establish a race that shall average from 32in to 34in in dogs, showing tho requisite power, activity, courage, and symmetry. Head long, the frontal bones of the forehead very slightly raised, and very little indentation between the eyes. Skull not too broad; muzzle long and moderately pointed; ears small and greyhound like in carriage. Neok.—Rather long, very strong and muscular, well arched, without dewlap or loose skin about the throat. Chest very deep; breast wide Back. —Rather long than short; loins arched. Tail.—Long and slightly curved, of moderate thickness, and well covered with hair. Belly.—Well drawn up. Forequarters.—Shoulders muscular, giving breadth of chest, set sloping; elbows well under, neither turned inwards nor outwards; forearm muscular, and the whole leg strong and quite straight. Hindquarters.—-Muscular thighs. and second thighs long and strong, as in the greyhound, and hocks well let down and turning neither in nor out. Feet.—Moderately largo and round, neither turned inwards nor outwards. Toes well a.rched and closed. Nails very stroii" and curved. Hair.—Rough and hard on body, legs arid head, especially wiry and long over eyes and under jaw. Colours and Markings.—The recognised colours are grey, brindle, red, black, pure white, faun, or any colour that appears in the deer hound. Faults.—Too light or heaw in head, too Highly arched frontal bono; large ears and hanging flat to the face; short neck! full dewlap, too narrow or too broad a chestsunken or hollow or quite straight back; bent forelegs; over bent fetlocks; twisted teet; spreading toes; too curly a tail; weak hindquarters, and a general want of muscle; too short in body j