KENNEL NOTES

Southland Times, Issue 22491, 28 January 1935, Page 9

KENNEL NOTES

(By “Setter.") [Queries for answer- any Monday must be received by “Setter,” care the Times office, not later than the preceding Thursday.! Sealyham Terriers: Capt. W. Olphert of the- Harptree Kennels, Lower Hutt, recently forwarded a Sealyham dog puppy to Mr A. A. White of Melbourne, Australia. The pup Was by Strathclyde Bosun, ex Harptree Vagabond. Mr White who is one of the leading breeders of Sealyhams and Scottish Terriers in Australia, considers the pup to be a very good one. Cairn Terriers:

Mr S. Gilkison, Invercargill, has taken delivery of a Cairn dog puppy by Myramble Hamish ex Crackers of Glendare. The breeder was Mr. Robert Stout, of the Waverley Kennels.

Samoyed: This breed is not very well known in New Zealand, but is a particularly popular one .in England. . Mr R. R. Dunn of Hastings has a litter in his kennels at present. They are four dog and three bitch puppies from the brood bitch Arctic Zone. Method of Mating:

In commencing a kennel, the best brood bitches, bred from reliable strains, should be procured. The individual dogs and bitches for three or four generations should be known, not only by name, to the intending breeder. It is no good starting with second-rate stock, for you will never get anywhere with it. Of course the type of the “seconds” can be bred up to the type of the “firsts” but by the time this is done, the “firsts” have gone ahead too, and so you are not any further on. Use the best stud dog available, if of the same strain as the broods, in the hope that' his influence will help to breed more good bitches. If your broods are really good, then you will eventually breed a bitch of the quality of the “best stud dog” used. Thus by sparing no expense on the best sire in the first place, you will have the influence of his exceptional blood for at least two or three generations. “Setter” is not saying this from what he has read, but also from his own experiences. You may get a high-class specimen from the mating of two inferior dogs—but this specimen will rarely throw anything worth keeping, and you can never rely on what it does breed. The method of mating will be taken under the following headings:— 1. Daughter and sire; 2. Mother and son; 3. Brother and sister. By following these methods, the breeder should attain the highest standard. Daughter and Sire:

If you own a bitch that is of fairly poor quality, but sound in every respect, and is sired by one of the best of her breed, and is out of a good dam, then mate her to. her own sire. It is not sufficient to do this once, but keep at it again and again, until you have bred at least one superior daughter from her. This daughter may again be mated with her sire, the object being to procure improved and alike stock. Many people will advise that perfection in breeding may be reached by mating a stud dog, which is strong in the points the bitch fails in, with such a bitch. This is all wrong! If the bitch is faulty in one respect, do not use a dog too strong where the fault in the bitch lies, but use one which is only correct. If you do not follow this advice, but persist in the fallacy mentioned, you will get two faults into your strain, instead of one fault by following the second method. Mother and Son: Should the breeder own an exceptionally good bitch, he should mate her with an equally good stud dog df the same strain. Then use the best dog of this mating on his dam, i.e., the original bitch you commenced with. Keep mating this son with his mother until you produce the type of the mother. Perhaps you will not do this in the first mating, but eventually you will be successful. Patience in breeding is essential, and you must work on the idea that you will breed a better one than your present best. If the breeding is right, if the individuals of the same strain are used, then you will approach perfection in your stock. Brother and Sister:

If the breeder has mated a good dog with a good bitch, but of different strains, and quite unrelated, first class puppies are rarely bred. To produce stock to the standard of the sire and dam, the brothers and sisters should be mated together. This is the best way to obtain a “throw-back” to the original pair. Now the resulting litters must be sorted out into two types: (1) Those that take after the dog first used, and (2) those that take after the bitch first used. Mate lot (1) to dogs and bitches of the same strain and tjq>e of the original dog; mate lot (2) to those of the same strain and type of the original bitch. Thus the types are restored and. you will probably havethe foundation of a good kennel. When brothers and sisters are mated, the puppies are inclined to show the characteristics of their grand-parents.