50 BRITISH DOGS 



sight, but he can also use his nose with quite remarkable success 

 in tracking his master or while hunting in covert. 



When galloping in the open in full view of their quarry, these 

 hounds do not seem to wish to kill immediately ; their idea seems 

 rather to be of tiring the animal out. They gallop along, with 

 heads up, without trying to lessen the distance ; then, when the 

 right time comes, they dash in and seize hold just at the back 

 of the neck. Should two dogs be after the same animal, one 

 will always wait for the other to catch hold at the same time 

 on the other side; this surely is a relic of their old boar-hunting 

 ancestors. 



Without doubt Great Danes would prove wonderfully successful 

 if trained for hunting big game. Their courage, great turn of 

 speed, and strength, combined with wonderful intelligence and the 

 ease with which they learn what is required of them, would 

 prove invaluable to any one who had the opportunity of training 

 them properly. 



At the present time the breed is in a very flourishing condition. 

 The Great Dane Club has over fifty members, with R. Lead- 

 better, Esq., as President, H. L. Horsfall, Esq., as Vice-President, 

 and R. Hood Wright, Esq., as Hon. Secretary. The entries at 

 shows where a good classification is given are generally very satis- 

 factory, and plenty of first-class home-bred Great Danes are exhibited 

 each year, in spite of the many vicissitudes through which the breed 

 has passed. First, there was the Kennel Club rule against cropping 

 this induced many fanciers to give up the breed; while later 

 came the quarantine regulations that now practically prevent fresh 

 blood from being obtained from abroad. 



It is worthy of note that none of the successful show Great 

 Danes of to-day can trace their pedigrees back to the many excellent 

 dogs that were imported several years ago. In fact, one cannot 

 help thinking that in those days judges went more for size than 

 for type, and that gradually the beautiful outline and general 

 alertness that a Great Dane should possess were lost. The writer 

 has often been told that at one time any Great Dane, cow-hocked 

 or bent in front, would win, providing he was of huge size. Now 

 cripples are very few and far between, though it is much to be 

 feared that size has been sacrificed to a great extent, and every 

 effort should be made to regain this point, providing, of course, 

 type can be maintained as well. It is useless to try to breed a 

 show Great Dane from anything except very high-class parents. 

 It seems that in other breeds a bitch, providing she is well bred 

 and is judiciously mated, may breed champions. This is not so 

 with Great Danes, save in a very few exceptional cases. In fact, 

 unless the dam herself were good in show points, it would not be 

 worth troubling to breed from her that is, if any very high-class 



