CHAPTER II 



KENNELLING 



No man has a right to keep a dog unless he is 

 also prepared to find for him proper accommoda- 

 tion to screen him from the inclemency of the 

 weather, and to feed and tend him in a suitable 

 manner. I am no advocate of excessive fondling, 

 and in my opinion the owner's bedroom is the last 

 place in which a large dog should be allowed to 

 sleep ; such a practice is transgressing all the laws 

 of hygiene, and it is certain that a dog may be 

 completely spoilt by injudicious petting. Still, there 

 is a happy medium between one's bedroom and the 

 barrel arrangement that is often considered suffi- 

 cient. The average adult dog does not stand in 

 need of coddling, and I would not suggest providing 

 a place for him heated with hot -water pipes or 

 a stove ; but at the same time he deserves to have 

 a reasonably warm habitation in the winter, and 

 freedom to move about outside. An ingenious man 

 with a little knowledge of carpentering could him- 

 self make a lean-to kennel which would be perfectly 

 warm and comfortable and sufficient for any but 

 the most pampered animal. Stout wood should be 

 used for the purpose, and it is infinitely better if 

 lined on the inside with thick cowhair felt and then 



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