378 DOMESTIC ANIMALS 
Feeding. — It is a common practice to feed dogs too much 
and too frequently, making them fat and lazy. For a grown 
dog having but little exercise, one meal a day is generally 
better than two or three. Moreover, such a dog should have 
very little, if any, meat as it is not good for him and it spoils his 
taste for other food. A good diet consists of coarse bread and 
bread crusts, vegetables, oatmeal, and bones without much 
meat on them. Potatoes should not be included as they are 
difficult for the dog to digest. Most of the ordinary scraps 
from the table are very satisfactory. Dog biscuit is good and 
is sometimes used on account of its convenience. A gnawing 
bone keeps his teeth in good condition and gives him much 
comfort and pleasure. 
Fleas. — Of all troubles to which a dog is subject probably 
none gives him more intense annoyance than fleas. They keep 
him scratching and biting himself with very little relief, and 
are the great burden of his life. They infest carpets, bedding, 
sand, and other places and the dog may get them from those 
sources or from other dogs. To kill them, lather the dog 
with good soap, as castile or ivory, leave it on for two or 
three minutes, then rinse in clean water or let the dog take a 
swim. 
QUESTIONS AND PROJECTS 
1. Oral or Written Composition. — Though boys and girls are generally 
familiar with cats and dogs from their childhood, it requires the best 
efforts even of grown-ups to give a clear description or account of some 
particular phase of the subject, such as is outlined for each of the follow- 
ing projects. The effort should be to make the composition thoroughly 
interesting to the people who are to hear it or to read it. 
2. Cat language.—'The cat has many interesting ways of giving 
expression to her feelings. (a) How does she ask for something to eat? 
(b) How does she cry when she is hurt? (c) How does she call other 
cats? (d) What feeling does she express by purring? By spitting? 
