CHAPTER III. 



Selecting a Puppy. — Pedigrees and their value ; rearing ; 

 kenneling ; feeding ; diseases of puppyhood ; prevention 

 of gunshyness. 



FOR the first few weeks of a setter or pointer 

 puppy's life it is an odd and most inter- 

 esting little animal. Its nose is short and 

 blocky, its head a dome, its face a mass of 

 wrinkles, out of which its watery blue eyes 

 blink lazily ; its body is fat, round and too heavy 

 for its stubby legs and clumsy feet, and it 

 stumbles and noses about with a curiosity and 

 helplessness that are most appealing. 



The apparently profound discourses and the 

 detailed instructions for selecting, unfailingly, 

 the best puppy in a litter are absurd, and based 

 solely on a lack of wisdom. Selecting a puppy 

 from a litter when eight or ten weeks old is a 

 matter of guesswork. The apparently brightest 

 puppy may develp into a dullard ; the weakest 

 physically may become the largest. At this 

 time pedigree is the only guide to probabilities, 

 and with the number of good dogs and reputable 

 breeders now in the country, it is not advisable 

 to spend either time or money on a setter or 



