British Dogs at Work 



What must one look for, then, in an ideal 

 brood bitch? Primarily I should satisfy 

 myself that her pedigree contained the 

 factors upon which I wished to work. Then 

 she must be of sound constitution, with 

 plenty of bone and substance, and withal 

 roomy. If you have an eye for a dog or 

 an animal of any sort you will quickly 

 be able to decide upon the class of bitch 

 for which you are looking. There is some- 

 thing about her that fills the eye, but 

 which is not easy to set down upon paper. 

 Do not breed from immature matrons or 

 from those that are fallen into the sere and 

 yellow leaf. A bitch should be at her best 

 from sixteen months to four years, but you 

 may reasonably hope to go on using her 

 until she is nearly seven. I have bred from 

 them at an older period than that, but as a 

 rule the puppies will be fewer and smaller. 

 If you have any urgent reason for breeding 

 from an old bitch, then you must use a 

 young and vigorous dog. 



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