348 THE AMERICAN BOOK OF THE DOG. 



on top of the piano. Nep hunted her through all the 

 rooms, and finally decided that she was in the parlor. He 

 ran sniffing and yelping, eagerly, from side to side of this 

 room, looking in and behind every chair. Finally he 

 took up her trail and followed it. He found the chair 

 from which she had stepped onto the piano. Leaping into 

 this, he stood up, with his feet on the back of it, and this 

 enabled him to see the little miss perched on the center of 

 the lid. His barking, though most excited and vigorous, was 

 well-nigh drowned in the shouts and screams of laughter 

 in which all the spectators, old and young, joined. 



Nep carries notes and packages up and down stairs and 

 anywhere about the house, thus saving his master and 

 mistress many a step. These charges he always delivers 

 to the person to whom he is sent, and it is useless for any- 

 one else to try to get them from him en route. When 

 the postman rings the bell, Nep goes down, gets the mail, 

 and delivers it safely to his mistress. 



What is he worth? What do you imagine it would 

 take to buy such a friend if you owned him ? He is worth 

 his weight in gold, but that wouldn't buy him. His owner 

 would as soon sell one of his own children as Nep. And 

 yet any well-bred Cocker may be taught all these things, if 

 only a reasonable amount of time, effort, patience, and 

 horse-sense be devoted to the task. 



In breeding, I do not try to have one dog correct faults 

 in the other, but try to have both as perfect as I can get 

 them. I do not object to in-and-in breeding, as it fixes the 

 type, and I have never yet seen any bad results from it, 

 such as deformities or loss of capacity to learn. 



After the bitch has been bred, I give her exercise until 

 she is ready to whelp. I always give her a quiet place 

 to whelp in, with plenty of room. The bitch always seems 

 to do better alone, but care must be taken, in cold weather, 

 that the puppies shall not get chilled. 



Cocker Spaniels are always docked. I do it when the 

 puppies are from one to two weeks old, before they can 

 move around much; then the wound heals quicker. The 



