THE TOY BULL-TERRIER. 



465 



be liable. Under proper treatment he is 

 no more delicate than any other toy dog, 

 and his engaging manners and cleanliness 

 of habit ought to place him among the most 

 favoured of lady's pets and lapdogs. It is 

 to be hoped that the efforts now being made 

 by the Black-and-tan Terrier Club will be 

 beneficial to the increased popularity of this 

 diminutive breed. 



For the technical description and scale 

 of points the reader is referred to the chapter 

 on the larger variety of Black-and-tan 

 Terrier (see p. 327). 



THE TOY BULL-TERRIER. 



BY THE LADY EVELYN EWART. 



HISTORICALLY, Toy Bull-terriers hold their 

 own with any breed of dogs. 

 They are the miniature repre- 

 sentatives of Bull - terriers, 

 doubtless so called from their 

 bull - fighting talents. This 

 breed of dogs conjures up 

 memories of the Georgian 

 epoch in England, and bull- 

 baiting, bear-baiting, dog- 

 fights, rat-pits, cock-fights, 

 and the prize-ring rise from 

 their century-old oblivion 

 when we contemplate these 

 game little dogs. 



Of late years Toy Bull- 

 terriers have fallen in popu- 

 larity as pets, and it is chiefly 

 in the East End of London or 

 in the mining districts of 

 the Midlands of England that specimens of 

 the breed are to be found. Their plucky 

 qualities appear to appeal to a certain rough 

 kind of man, and these same qualities seem 

 to make them unpopular as house pets. 

 This is a pity, as their lilliputian self- 

 assertion is most amusing. As pets they 

 are most affectionate, excellent as watch- 

 dogs, clever at acquiring tricks, and always 

 cheerful and companionable. They have 

 good noses and will hunt diligently ; but wet 

 weather or thick undergrowth will deter 

 them, and they are too small to do serious 

 harm to the best stocked game preserve. 



59 



LADY DECIE'S TOY BULL 



QUEEN OF ZAMBESI. 



Ph;tograpli ly Russell. 



Favourable circumstances may enable them 

 to kill a young rabbit, but such an event is 

 rare. Persons who have owned this breed 

 generally agree that it is characterised by 

 much individuality. The wonderful excite- 

 ment which some little chetif ladies' pet 

 will display at the sight of a rat-trap or 

 on approaching a stack that harbours rats 

 and mice is most remarkable. One little 

 dog which belonged to the writer would fly 

 at cattle, and once got kicked by a cow for 

 his pains. Equally he would fight any big 

 dog, and the only chance of distracting him 

 from his warlike purposes was for his mistress 

 to run when a fight was impending. Fear 

 of being lost made him follow his owner and 

 abandon his enemy. After many narrow 

 escapes he met his fate in the jaws of a large 

 black retriever which he had 

 attacked in his own kennel. 



In art one fancies one sees 

 a likeness to these dogs in Mor- 

 land's " Stable Amusements," 

 and in more modern days in 

 Mr. Briton-Riviere's " Giants 

 at Play," now to be seen in 

 the Tate Gallery. It is rather 

 doubtful whether dogs of a 

 coarser make than Toy Bull- 

 terriers were not the models 

 in both these cases ; still, 

 there is a certain resem- 

 blance, and in Morland's case 

 this is interesting as a link 

 with the past. 



The most valuable Toy 

 Bull-terriers are small and 

 very light in weight, and these small 

 dogs usually have " apple heads." Pony 

 Queen, the former property of Sir Ray- 

 mond Tyrwhitt Wilson, weighed under 3 

 lb., but the breed remains " toy " up to 

 15 lb. When you get a dog with a long 

 wedge-shaped head, the latter in competi- 

 tion with small " apple-headed " dogs always 

 takes the prize, and a slightly contradictory 

 state of affairs arises from the fact that the 

 small dog with an imperfectly shaped head 

 will sell for more money than a dog with a 

 perfectly shaped head which is larger. 

 In drawing up a show schedule of classes 



