r 54 Dog Shows and Doggy People 



that not one of these breeders and exhibitors of the St. Bernard is 

 now an exhibitor at any show. 



In St. Bernards the earliest specimens would be considered dwarfs 

 in comparison to present-day show animals. The high prices paid 

 by Americans at one time for large and fine animals encouraged the 

 breeding for size, until type and physical beauty have been sacrificed 

 for size and bone, to the detriment of the breed. The Smooth dogs 

 owned by Miss Hales and Miss Aglionby were about 27 or 28 in. 

 at shoulder. The average weight of a bitch was 130 lb., and a dog 

 150 lb., and they were as active as terriers. 



" The change from these earlier imported dogs to the huge 

 specimens on the show bench of to-day is indeed great. Even the 

 heads of such past celebrities as Thor, Bayard, and Save would look 

 snipy in comparison to the heads of present-day champions. 



" When the St. Bernard was first introduced, the dew-claws, white 

 collar and blaze were considered necessary, and Mr. J. F. Smith's 

 noted Champion Save suffered the loss of ten points when being 

 judged because lacking dew-claws. Menthon, brought from the 

 Alps by Mr. Macdona, was marked like a Black-and-tan Gordon 

 Setter. I possessed her granddaughter, marked with the same 

 colours. Such a colour now would be total disqualification, whilst 

 dew-claws and white markings are considered of no moment. 



" Whether or no the unwieldy size of the present St. Bernard, the 

 expense of rearing such huge creatures, and the large amount of room 

 required for proper housing has made the once premier dog an 

 undesirable possession, the breed seems to be under a passing cloud, 

 and the stately St. Bernard, whose place of exhibition was always 

 surrounded by an admiring crowd, is waning in public favour. 



" If thirty years bring changes in a breed, it has brought more 

 startling changes in dogs and dog shows. 



" A once primitive pastime has become a vast, organised business, 

 demanding time, thought, and money. An animal that was once 

 valued at three-halfpence can now be sold for a thousand pounds. 



" The bull-dog, that was formerly the companion of a type of Bill 

 Sykes, is in the front rank of canine beauties. 



" The dogs of the shepherd and drover are the petted inmates of 

 palaces. The Old English Mastiff has given place to the Russian 

 Wolf-hound ; the Black-and-tan English Terrier to the French Poodle ; 

 the hardy Terrier to the long-haired monstrosity and so on. 

 Journals and newspapers devoted to dogs are as eagerly read as the 

 daily newspaper, and dogs and dog showing are now part of the 



