74 PET RABBITS, CAVIES, AND MICE. 



seen some Abyssinians with what we shall call ricketty 

 rosettes, curling in and out like the coat of some thick, 

 wavy-coated Pomeranian dogs. The twists in the coat 

 may be called rosettes, but it is a libel on the term to 

 use it in such a connection. 



ENGLISH OR SMOOTH HAIRED. 



These come next in order, and it will be found that 

 blacks and reds are perhaps the most numerous, but 

 there are also creams, chocolates, tortoiseshells, tortoise- 

 shell and whites, agoutis (golden and grey), brindles, 

 Dutch-marked, and we have seen some Himalayan 

 marked, but they were very moderate specimens. 



SELF-COLOURED CAVIES. 

 BLACKS. 



There are black cavies and black cavies. This way 

 of putting it often seems a little to smack of Irishism, 

 but it is correct for all that. What is meant by the 

 expression in this instance is that there is a black which 

 is black, and a so-called black which in reality is of a 

 rusty dingy tinge of colour anything but a real black. 

 It may well be said of the black short-haired cavy that 

 points of extreme importance are size and shape. 

 Picture a good fat bacon hog for body shape, and a 

 short head. A long, rat-shaped head is not indicative 

 of a good smooth cavy. The coat should be short, 

 free from all white hairs, and the colour should run 

 well down to the roots of the hair. A nice short sharp 

 coat is a great desideratum, and the colour should be 

 dense and the coat glossy. The ears should be as black 

 as the coat, and the belly and feet ditto. Many black 

 cavies fail sadly underneath in the matter of density 

 and purity of colour, but when they are got to perfection 

 they are simply grand in richness and depth of black. 

 We remember handling one the property of our 

 esteemed friend the popular cage bird judge, Mr. J. H. 

 Payne, not so very long since. This cavy had won 

 many prizes, was grand in shape, and splendid in 



