268 



THE BOOK OF THE CAT, 



to have both breeds in their houses i.e. the 

 dark, coffee-coloured ones with yellow or 

 golden-coloured eyes, and the cream-coloured 

 with blue or silver eyes. The idea is that the 

 yellow-eyed cats will bring gold and the blue- 

 eyed silver, hence if you have both breeds 

 there will always be plenty in the house.' 



" I advocate that all kittens should be 

 reared by healthy English foster-mothers, and 

 am convinced that if breeders would adopt 

 this plan we should in time succeed in establish- 

 ing a far stronger breed of cats. As matters 

 now stand, the kittens inherit 

 and develop any ailment or 

 weakness to which their 

 mothers may be subject, so 

 that from the very commence- 

 ment of their existence they 

 have but little chance of be- 

 coming strong and healthy 

 enough to withstand our cli- 

 mate of many moods. 



" Plenty of sun and air they 

 require, but damp and draughts 

 are fatal. All young kittens 

 should be encouraged to take 

 exercise ; empty cotton reels 

 cause hours of amusement, 

 also a rabbit's foot tied on 

 to string or otherwise ; corks 

 of any description must be 

 avoided. Large bones should 

 be given when the kittens are two months old 

 they assist the growth of teeth ; small ones, 

 such as of game, chicken, or fish, are danger- 

 ous. The best and safest of all is a bullock's 

 foot boiled down and pulled apart ; these bones 

 will occupy kittens for a considerable time. 



" Worms cause an enormous mortality 

 amongst Siamese, and are, I feel convinced, at 

 the root of nearly every ailment from which cats 

 or kittens suffer ; therefore, however reluctant 

 one may feel as to giving medicine to young- 

 sters of tender age, it is better to do this 

 than to run the risk of these odious parasites 

 establishing themselves, for they are most 

 difficult to dislodge permanently. I have used 

 Saunder's worm powders with considerable 



LADY MARCUS BERESFORD S 



" CAMBODIA." 

 (Photo : E. Laniior, Baling.) 



success. Of course, the dose for kittens must 

 be administered in minute quantity- just a 

 small pinch given in warm olive oil early in 

 the morning after an all-night fast. In giving 

 the powder to adults I always enclose it in 

 capsules. In cases of weakness or exhaustion 

 a few drops of brandy or whisky in a tea- 

 spoonful of warm milk works wonders. It is 

 often necessary to give some sort of tonic after 

 medicine of this description. 



" Siamese kittens should be well fed ; not 

 much at a time, but little and often lean 

 scraped beef or mutton, veget- 

 ables, stale bread and gravy, 

 boiled fish, rabbit, raw eggs, 

 milk (previously boiled); in fact, 

 anything light and nourishing. 

 The remains of a meal should 

 never be left on the floor. 

 These kittens' digestions are 

 not strong, and their intestines 

 are most delicately formed. 



' The colour of the eyes of 

 Siamese kittens should be well 

 determined at eight weeks. 

 They are most interesting and 

 playful at this age ; a tunnel 

 made of newspapers will afford 

 endless amusement, and after 

 a long and energetic game oi 

 play they will sleep for hours. 

 It is not desirable to lift 

 or handle them more than can be avoided 

 whilst they are very young. In cases of 

 bad colds or coughs, a simple but usually 

 effective remedy is a mixture of three penny- 

 worth of oil of almonds and three pennyworth 

 of syrup of violets, mixed by a chemist a 

 quarter of a teaspoonful thrice daily (it is abso- 

 lutely necessary to shake the bottle thoroughly 

 before administering the medicine). For an 

 adult an eggspoonful three times daily may 

 be given. Cod-liver oil is always safe (also 

 the best olive oil), and helps to build up the 

 constitution. As a tonic I know of nothing to 

 equal half-grain (coated) quinine pills, given 

 early each morning for a few days now and 

 again. In cases of bronchitis, Carvill's Air 



