THE FEEDING. 159 



Some dogs are liable to become over weight and go be- 

 yond their classes when they are being put in condition if 

 they are not carefully watched, while on the other hand 

 some require to be pulled down a bit. If they are of the 

 fairly hardy variety, as a rule far better more exercise 

 than dietetic restrictions, but if they are delicate toys, 

 and especially Yorkshires, the remedy lies in the feeding- 

 pan. 



But before considering the special requirements of over- 

 weight dogs something can properly be said of the feeding 

 of Yorkshires in general and other toys which do not ex- 

 hibit this fault. 



In dealing with Yorkshires one must consider above all 

 the condition of blood and skin and growth of the hair. 



Now in discussing food and feeding many writers have 

 theorized that rice being fat -producing is not suitable for 

 this breed and should not be given, or if given the quan- 

 tity should be very small indeed. But theories and re- 

 sults of practice are sometimes at variance, and so it proves 

 in this instance, for it is a fixed and absolute fact that the 

 staple food for toys and especially Yorkshires is rice. 

 And one reason for its special suitability lies in the very 

 argument which these theorists use for condemning it, 

 namely, that it is fat-producing. Besides this effect, how- 

 ever, it is cooling, good for the skin and, as a result, for 

 the coat. 



There are many physicians who believe that the food 

 has a decided influence on the growth of the hair and that 

 the starches are the most active of all. Not impossibly 

 this theory is correct, and certainly experience with dogs 

 would seem to substantiate it, for with him who is ad- 

 mitted to be the best " hair grower " of the dog world rice 

 is the food of all relied upon. 



But while the question, Will food promote growth of the 



