BROOD BITCH 



the first place, her robustness of constitution, freedom from 

 hereditary disease, present state of health and age, are all 

 matters which have to be seriously considered, and when 

 these are all satisfactory, her owner will have to exercise 

 care in providing her with a mate whose blood will ''nick" 

 with heVs. This is not always an easy matter, as it is well 

 known to breeders that some families never cross well with 

 each other, and it is far more important that the blood of 

 the dog should suit the bitch, than that he should possess 

 certain good points which she does not. Of course, 

 assuming that the breeding of the dog is satisfactory, it is 

 highly desirable that his perfections should be regarded 

 from the' point of view of their being likely to correct the 

 faults she may possess ; but it should always be remembered 

 that an animal may not be a true representative of the 

 family he belongs to, and if so, it is quite probable that 

 certain characteristics of his strain, which he does not dis- 

 play himself, may appear in his offspring, and hence the 

 importance of ascertaining what the parents and other 

 relations of the dog are like before deciding to breed from 

 him. 



Assuming that the brood bitch is safe in pup, it is 

 necessary to treat her carefully for the latter half of the 

 nine weeks' period of gestation. At no part of it, however, 

 ought she to have her energies overtaxed by too much 

 hard work, but during the last few weeks she requires 

 special attention. For instance, she ought not to be 

 allowed to jump on and off a high bench, and therefore 

 her bed should be made on the floor, care being taken to 

 place some boards, nailed to a piece of quartering, under- 

 neath the straw if the pavement is of any cold material, 

 such as concrete, brick, or asphalt. It is desirable also 

 that she should be placed in the kennel in w'hich it is 

 intended that she shall have her pups, some time before 

 the event is anticipated, as some animals take a long time 

 in settling down in new quarters. The breeding kennel 

 should be fairly roomy, w^ell lighted, and isolated, so that 



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