80 Forty Years Beagling 



and you might wash once a fortnight for the first 

 month or six weeks, but not after. Only a most 

 abundant bed of oat straw should be given, and the 

 comb and hair-brush plied every day. As the time 

 draws near, the bitch may show some symptoms of 

 restlessness. She is looking for a comfortable 

 berth to lie down in. In this you must assist her, 

 and if the place she seems to choose meets all the 

 requirements of the case, it won't do to gainsay 

 her. 



"In about a month's time you may begin to look 

 for some signs that the visit was a success. It is 

 difficult to explain what these signs are to a novice. 

 But, say five weeks have passed and there is not 

 much show, you may cause this to appear by put- 

 ting your hand under the dog's body, and lifting 

 this gently upwards, because there is always a 

 certain amount of drooping. Secondly, the teats 

 begin to swell very gradually, especially in the 

 primipar, or first-litter bitch. Indeed a primipar 

 may have a very little flow of milk for a day or two 

 after the pups are born. This need not cause 

 anxiety, the milk will come in abundance in good 

 time. Thirdly, there is a difference in the bitch, 

 mentally considered. She becomes more affec- 

 tionate, more sedate, more motherly, though now 

 and then the exuberance of youth bursts all bounds, 



