198 BREEDING. 



indeed will often bring it on. After the second week, bitctes 

 will always be delighted to leave their puppies for an hour or 

 two at a time, and will exercise themselves if allowed to 

 escape from them. The best food for a suckling bitch is strong 

 broth, with a ftiir proportion of bread and flesh, or bread and 

 milk, according to previous habits. 



DESTRUCTION OR CHOICE OF WHELPS AT BIRTH. 



Sometimes it is desirable to destroy all the whelps as soon as 

 possible after birth, but this ought very seldom to be done, as 

 in all cases it is better to keep one or two sucking for a short 

 time, to prevent milk fever, and from motives of humanity also. 

 If, however, it is decided to destroy all at once, take them 

 away as fast as they are born, leaving only one with the 

 mother to engage her attention, and when all are born, remove 

 the last before she has become used to it, by which plan 

 less cruelty is practised than if she is permitted to attach herself 

 to her offspring. Low diet and a dose or two of mild aperient 

 medicine, with moderate exercise, will be required to guard 

 against fever, but at best it is a bad business, and can only 

 bo justified under extraordinary circumstances. 



