CHAPTER XXI 



THE RETRIEVER 



FOR general all-round purposes, the Retriever is 

 one of the most popular dogs in country places. 

 Only forty years ago, when he first began to have 

 a vogue, he was little else than a small Newfound- 

 land, and it took some time to reduce the breed to 

 workable dimensions. Now, however, we must con- 

 sider him fairly uniform in size, the most desirable 

 measurement being about 24 inches at the shoulder. 

 He is a strong, symmetrically-built animal, well- 

 balanced in every particular, and it is scarcely neces- 

 sary to say that he should move well. The skull is 

 flat on the top and moderately broad, and muzzle 

 long and strong, without any lippiness. The ear 

 is small, V-shaped, and rounded, carried flat to the 

 cheek. The eyes should be dark and of moderate size, 

 the neck muscular, fairly long, set on to sloping 

 shoulders. Although the bone of the forelegs should 

 not be so heavy as those of a Foxhound, it should 

 be perfectly straight ; the feet fairly large and round, 

 with hard pads. The ribs are flat, but deep, the 

 back broad and strong. The thighs and second 

 thighs should, of course, carry plenty of muscle, and 

 the stifles should be fairly well bent. The coat of 



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