356 DOGS : THEIR MANAGEMENT. 



of her master, who must not forget her propensity io 

 rove. 



When the discharge ceases, and the local swelling sub- 

 sides, the necessity for vigilance is at an end. The ani- 

 mal has then returned to chastity, and will be as obedi- 

 ent as before her passions were inflamed. During the 

 nine weeks of gestation, she demands no special care. 

 She thrives best if left to take her chance, and does bet- 

 ter in proportion as she is not pampered. Her food 

 should be wholesome, and her exercise rather increased 

 than diminished. She should not be made fat, neither 

 ought she to be suddenly reduced. 



The safest course is to take no notice of the particular 

 condition of the animal, but to let her ordinary treat- 

 ment be continued without any change. The bitch will 

 return to her usual manners and appearance, nor will 

 there be for some time anything to denote her having 

 conceived. In the middle of the fourth week, however, 

 the presence of the young within the abdomen may, by 

 skilful manipulation, be detected. I know of no one who 

 has before made the observation, but I am confident as 

 to the correctness of the statement; since I have fre- 

 quently been enabled to inform parties that their dogs 

 were in pup, when the circumstance was not suspected. 

 In many instances, I have been able to ascertain before 

 the expiration of the first month the number of young 

 that would be born ; but of course these matters are not 

 always to be told with equal certainty. They can, how- 

 ever, be generally ascertained with tolerable accuracy ; 



