Puppies. 213 



and from the very first a dry bone to gnaw at and to 

 play with invariably does them good, and at five months old, 

 or even a little earlier, are an absolute necessity in assist- 

 ing to loosen the puppy teeth and so preparing the way 

 for the ordinary canines. Scraps of all kinds are the best 

 food for the pups when approaching maturity ; before that 

 time bread and milk and scraps from the house are to be 

 recommended, but the milk must be new and well boiled. 

 Many persons are in favour of giving an occasional basin 

 of butter-milk, which in any case can do no harm, and 

 certainly clears the bowels. The puppy biscuits and 

 specially prepared meal manufactured by Spratt's Patent 

 are excellent in their way, and I have found them 

 extremely useful, convenient, and strengthening for young 

 dogs. 



If there is a tendency in the ears of the puppies not 

 to lay down or drop properly, nature may be assisted by 

 continually taking the youngster on the knee, and with the 

 fingers working the ears into a proper position. It is also 

 customary to fix- them down with strong adhesive plaster, 

 and enterprising tradesmen advertise what they call " ear 

 pads," which are said to suit their purpose admirably. It 

 seems that this sort of thing is allowed, but a custom, by no 

 means unusual now, and quite common during the earlier 

 epoch of dog showing, of cutting or breaking the cartilage 

 of the ear, is considered to be fraudulent. Surely here we 

 have a distinction without much difference. 



All puppies much undershot — that is, where the under 

 teeth project in front of the upper ones — should be de- 

 stroyed. If the malformation is not great, during the time 

 the teeth are growing, continual pushing them back by 

 the gums may be of avail in making them become level. 



