THE STUD DOG. 523 



before the introduction takes place. A night's rest and a feed are very likely to assist nature's 

 course, a bitch served immediately after a tiring journey being far more likely to miss conception 

 than one who has rested and become a little accustomed to the place and those around her. 

 Many bitches are very troublesome and restive when with the dog, and throw themselves about 

 in a most violent manner ; others are savage and morose, and if not carefully looked after are 

 likely to fly at him and perhaps do some serious injury. In such cases the bitch must be held 

 by the collar, but care should be taken that she does not get half suffocated by too tight a 

 grasp being placed on it. The possibility of a fight taking place, or of the dog requiring some 

 assistance, especially in the case of young bitches, make it undesirable that the pair should be left 

 alone together for any length of time, much less after connection is terminated. 



After union it is some time before the animals can be separated : twenty minutes is about the 

 average, though, of course, this period is often exceeded or decreased in duration. After that the 

 breeder must wait patiently for Nature to take its course, when the bitch should be kenneled by 

 herself on straw, and kept as quiet as possible. It is desirable that a second visit should, if 

 possible, be paid after an interval of thirty-six or forty-eight hours. The majority of the owners 

 of stud dogs gladly consent to this arrangement, as it lessens the chances of the bitch proving 

 barren, and also saves them trouble, and their dog from getting a bad name as a stock-getter. 



A sire should be looked upon with suspicion if his services are in too great request, and the 

 number of his receptions unlimited, as it is only reasonable to expect sickly offspring from a dog 

 whose stud experiences are practically unrestricted. A very old dog, unless mated to a young 

 and vigorous bitch, is more than likely to fail to beget stock at all : and if he succeeds in doing 

 so, the puppies are very frequently of bad constitution and delicate in their earlier days. It 

 is often the case that the services of a successful show dog are most eagerly sought after by 

 breeders, and the merits of his fatlier entirely overlooked ; and this is certainly a fact which 

 must puzzle all practical men when they reflect upon it. A sire of good pedigree, who can 

 produce stock of superior quality to himself, is better worth patronising at a low fee than his 

 successful son who has yet to prove himself the success at the stud which he is on the bench 

 or in the field ; especially as in the latter instance the sum charged for his services is sure 

 to be a considerable one. Many of our champion dogs have turned out complete failures 

 from a breeder's point of view ; whilst their plainer-looking fathers or brothers have begotten 

 offspring of a far better stamp, though with only half the chances of success. A golden rule in 

 dog-breeding is, for the owner to satisfy himself that his bitch really does visit the dog he has 

 selected for her. In many instances we know tricks to have been played upon owners who 

 have sent their bitches to dogs at a distance ; and we have ourselves been applied to for the 

 services of a dog, standing at a low fee, by an owner of a stud dog, for a bitch sent up to 

 the latter. Unfortunately, in ignorance of the fact, we granted his request, and only afterwards 

 discovered what had occurred, and that the bitch, the name of whose owner we never ascer- 

 tained, had been sent up to this gentleman's dog, and was not one of his own. The difference 

 between the fees of the two dogs was three guineas; and as it was, impossible for us to prove 

 that the owner was not informed of what took place, we were unable to take steps in the 

 matter, and our acquaintance still walks the streets an honest man. If the distance is too 

 far to accompany the bitch or send one's man, it is a very good plan to get a friend in the 

 neighbourhood of the stud dog's kennel to accompany her when she visits him, especially in 

 dealing with strangers. Of course, in the case of owners whose characters are above suspicion 

 these precautions are unnecessary ; but it will always be a satisfaction to the proprietor of a 

 stud dog to know that the bitch's visit has been witnessed by her owner or his nominee, 



