ON THE BENCH. 191 



before their retirement they were absolutely unfit for 

 breeding purposes, because of constitutional impairment 

 — the inevitable concomitant of this fatal conditioning 

 process. 



Doubtless there are breeds of dogs which suffer less 

 from it than others ; some may even escape injury and 

 remain on the bench for many years, but for large breeds 

 there is no immunity — sooner or later the penalty must 

 be enforced. No one well informed will attempt to under- 

 estimate the value of prize-winning records. The public 

 generally recognize the fact that if a breeder has dogs 

 which he honestly believes can win at shows he will not 

 hesitate to exhibit them ; therefore, would-be purchasers 

 rightly seek the kennels of the most successful exhibitors, 

 and the latter try to retain their prestige, but in doing so 

 often ruin their dogs. 



The moral of this is : Remove a dog from the bench, 

 " for good and all," on appearance of the first signs which 

 seem to indicate that his constitution is being undermined. 

 Show the largest only at fairly long intervals — never for 

 several consecutive weeks — and retire them permanently 

 within two years. 



There remain to be considered a few requirements 

 which should be invariably met by show managements. 

 And the first to suggest itself is, that the movable benches 

 be thoroughly disinfected after every show. This is 

 absolutely the most effective means of prevention of con- 

 tagion, and those in authority who fail to provide it, mildly 

 speaking, are deserving the contempt of every lover of the 

 dog. 



To make ample provisions against fire is another impor- 

 tant requirement. There have been but few instances, 

 and possibly no more than one, where fires have broken 

 out in dog shows and destroyed life, but the horrors of 



