Deformities] 57 [Deformities 



occur in fox terrier puppies, an operation is not 

 of any use ; but with time, it may be months, 

 perhaps a year, the condition often improves. 

 Matters are helped by giving the puppy affected 

 something to stare at, as, for instance, placing his 

 food for a time behind some railings, so that he 

 can see it, but cannot get at it. Anything, in 

 fact, that attracts attention, and causes the puppy 

 to stare. A stuffed cat behind the railings does 

 for a change, a lump of raw meat or a bone. Hare 

 lip can be cured by operation, but in consequence 

 of the position, it is difficult to keep the edges of 

 divided lip together after sewing them, as the 

 puppy will rub his nose on the ground if he has 

 a chance, besides constantly licking at the stitches. 

 The operation should not be undertaken before 

 the puppy is three months old, and then just before 

 operation a good square meal of meat should be 

 given ; this will take some time to digest, and 

 will satisfy the puppy for a long while ; at any rate, 

 nothing more should be given for twenty-four 

 hours, by which time the healing has made good 

 progress, and for some days after the operation 

 the puppy should be fed from the fingers, piece 

 by piece, certainly no dish should be given for 

 him to rub his nose in. 



As to the operation, the edges of the split lip 

 should be freely scarified, and also be loosened 

 from the gum by cutting through the mucus 

 membrane, then the two edges of the lip should 

 be brought firmly together with pin sutures, and 

 a few layers of collodion painted over the external 

 part, and dusted over sparingly with powdered 



