Exhibition Dogs 53 



Go over the dog carefully and get rid of any old coat that may be still 

 on him. An Irish water-spaniel, for instance, carries a lot of dead, faded 

 coat, and this should be removed by combing and with the fingers. It is 

 not intended in any way to advocate the plucking of a bad-coated dog and 

 the imposing of a naturally woolly-coated dog by getting him in right shape 

 just once a year. Some bring into the ring a dog so manifestly barbered 

 as to not deceive a blind man, though the judges too frequently fail to see 

 the plain marks of the clipper and singeing. It is, however, perfectly 

 legitimate to remove the old coat in early preparation, as an assistance to 

 nature. In the case of terriers which have a rough coat, and yet should 

 not be shown shaggy, the coat may be at its full, but would not naturally be 

 cast for some weeks. To take that already loose coat off two months before 

 a show is perfectly legitimate. If it is not done, the dog will not get rid of it 

 for several weeks, and the new coat will be too short at the time of the show. 

 In the East, if we have a wire-haired terrier shedding in November, he may 

 be allowed to do it naturally, aided only by the daily grooming with the 

 brush. Thus he will be ready for the spring shows of February and last 

 till April, when, unless he is a very good-coated dog, he will go off and call 

 for a good deal of attention. 



A collie is a dog that very little can be done for, as his coat cannot be 

 forced to any appreciable extent. In the East he is too long at low-water- 

 mark in coat, and if he is casting his coat might as well be given up for a 

 show that is not in the near future. That is one great difficulty connected 

 with the showing of long-coated dogs. With smooth terriers, pointers, and 

 Great Danes this difficulty does not exist, and it is simply a question of put- 

 ting them into bodily condition. 



The matter of the first preparation of the coat having been attended 

 to, it is a good plan to give the candidate an aperient. It will do no harm 

 if this takes the shape of a vermifuge, serving the double purpose of 

 clearing the system together with getting rid of internal parasites, which are 

 a fruitful source of annoyance in conditioning dogs. After that comes the 

 daily work of grooming, giving plenty of brisk exercise and feeding well. 

 The exercise will give a good appetite, and it is more advisable to respond 

 to this by a more liberal allowance of meat than to give more food in the 

 dish. Dogs that are supposed to work or to be fit to race have to be shown 

 with good, hard muscle, hence we have more faith in the playful half- 

 hour of sharp running when liberated from the shut-up kennel than in the 



