The Greyhound 93 



both heart, lungs and muscular system must be 

 maintained in the highest standard of vigour. If 

 exercise is insufficient or irregularly given the 

 muscles become soft, the heart becomes weak, and 

 its power to respond to increased exertion fails; 

 being a hollow muscular organ, there is a tendency 

 for its fibres to degenerate when thrown into a state 

 of comparative ease. When the muscles covering 

 the skeleton are manipulated they should convey 

 the sensation of being as hard as boards, and the 

 outlines of the individual muscles be plainly discer- 

 nible; and the more vigorous the exercise, provided 

 such is carried out with regularity, the better the 

 muscular development. In training a Greyhound 

 horseback exercise is unquestionably the best of all, 

 and should be given daily with gradually-increasing 

 severity ; from five to fifteen miles per day will con- 

 stitute a reasonable amount of exercise, but a good 

 deal will depend upon the amount of flesh to be 

 reduced. To get a Greyhound well winded requires 

 much the same care as the preparation of a hunter. 

 In both, condition constitutes the most valuable 

 asset, requiring time and patience combined with 

 skill to obtain it. Some owners feed their Grey- 

 hounds only once a day, others twice; but there is 

 one golden rule to follow, and that is, never to run 

 dogs on a full stomach, and another one — to avoid 

 feeding Greyhounds on bulky food. Lean, raw beef, 



