24 BREEDING 



be reduced by one-half. The same mixture should 

 be continued thrice daily for a week. Meanwhile the 

 puppies themselves will require attention. Mix six- 

 teen drops of laudanum with four teaspoonsful of 

 lime-water and give to each one teaspoonful. Repeat 

 this in half an hour and continue hourly until the little 

 ones cease crying. After about four hours give them 

 a little cow's milk and lime-water, half and half, 

 slightly warmed. They may be returned to the dam 

 in twelve hours if the blue litmus -paper test gives 

 no evidence of continued acidity. 



Occasion may arise in which no foster-mother is 

 available, and artificial feeding has to be resorted 

 to. This is not to be undertaken lightly, owing to 

 the great trouble involved. A big cat is capable 

 of rearing a puppy for a week or two, and of course 

 an ordinary feeding-bottle may be employed. In 

 this case the rubber teat should be perforated with 

 a needle in a number of places, and a small piece 

 of sponge placed inside it. The cow's milk used 

 does not require dilution, as it is not so strong as 

 that of the mother, but of course it must be slightly 

 warmed. An ingenious kennelman once made an 

 artificial foster which proved in every way satisfac- 

 tory, and was the means of rearing two sturdy 

 Bloodhound puppies with a minimum of trouble. A 

 box lined with flannel was placed in front of the 

 fire, and, inserted through two holes in one side, 

 were the necks of feeding-bottles slightly tilted at 

 the end so that the milk would run down. These 

 were placed on a hot -water bottle and covered with 

 flannel. It was amusing to see how each puppy 

 kept to his particular bottle and refused to suckle 

 from the other. 



