FOXES FOXHOUNDS & FOX-HUNTING 



youngsters can roam about as they please. Their 

 flesh can be given them on the ground, and if 

 they have dry, draught-proof sheds to sleep in, 

 they gradually accustom themselves to the kennel 

 discipline. By adopting such measures, the 

 young hounds are prevented from fretting, and 

 thus laying themselves open to distemper and 

 other complaints. Any which show signs of 

 distemper can be at once isolated, and the germs 

 of the disease are not disseminated amongst the 

 older hounds in the kennels, as would be the case 

 if the young entry came in contact with them. 

 It seems that environment may have a good deal 

 to do with the spread of distemper, and that it 

 is possible where old hounds have access to yards 

 or paddocks which have previously been tenanted 

 by puppies with distemper, contamination from 

 the tainted ground may result in the absorbing 

 of the infection, and thus brood bitches may pass 

 it on to their whelps in embryo. Whatever the 

 real truth of the matter may be, it is safe to say 

 that the cleaner and sweeter the yards and pad- 

 docks can be kept, the healthier will the hounds 

 be. This applies strongly to ground on which 

 bitches with young whelps are situated. Genera- 

 tions of hounds bred and kennelled on the same 

 ground, are bound to cause the latter to become 

 foul in time, no matter how careful the super- 

 vision, therefore a period of dressing and cul- 

 tivation should be applied to paddocks at in- 

 tervals, in order to refresh them, and reduce the 

 liability to infection. 



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