220 KENNEL SECRETS. 



for about a week, after which it gradually softens, as it 

 were, and becomes much less resistant to the touch ; and 

 usually it has entirely disappeared before the end of the 

 second week. 



With such obvious signs it will doubtless seem to the 

 inexperienced that where due care is used it must be well- 

 nigh impossible for a bitch to pass through a "season " 

 without her condition being discovered, yet were these 

 alone relied upon such mishaps might occur provided the 

 swelling was only slight, for the discharge might be scanty, 

 in which instance detection would not be so very easy, or 

 it might be moderately profuse and still not appear on ex- 

 amination because of having been shortly before washed 

 away by the excretions from the kidneys. But unless a 

 bitch is kept closely confined to her kennel and alone, the 

 change in her demeanor, also the attraction she offers for 

 dogs, must clearly indicate when this period is on. 



It usually extends over about three weeks, but only 

 during a small part of it will the approach of the dog be 

 permitted ; and the duration of this all-important period, 

 while generally from four to seven days, sometimes longer, 

 may in occasional cases be much shorter. And this fact 

 the novice in breeding will do well to keep in mind. 



In this period, during which only is mating possible, 

 the swelling is no longer hard but has softened greatly 

 and is rapidly subsiding, or it may have disappeared 

 entirely. The discharge is now but slightly tinged with 

 blood or is quite colorless, and there is a decided disposi- 

 tion exhibited to court the society of others of her kind, 

 in the presence of which very often her tail is lifted and 

 carried to one side. 



The practical conclusions to be drawn from this are, 

 that the several stages of season vary not only in the dif- 

 ferent breeds but in members of the same breed, and 



