THE DOG 



69 



Dec()Rati;ii \vr 



Besides the prizes in medals, 

 money, or works of art, tlie title 

 of "champion" can be obtained, 

 though of course such distinc- 

 tion is awarded only to stars of 

 the first magnitude. The late 

 Queen Victoria gave a cross to 

 a dog (not exhibited), and that 

 decoration was no other than 

 the famous Victoria Cross. It 

 was given in 1 879, after the war 

 in Afghanistan. The dog (his 

 name was Bob) made the cam- 

 jJaign with the second regi- 

 ment, the Royal Berkshire, and was wounded. 

 His portrait appears in the celebrated picture of 

 "The Fight of the Last Eleven at Maiwand." 

 A dog named Jack also received the Victoria 

 Cross for saving several lives at the 

 battle of the Alma. Jerry, another 

 dog of the Crimean War, received a 

 medal and a dinner from the city of 

 Dublin. 



The transportation of dogs to all 

 bench shows should be made in 

 baskets, securely fastened, or, better 

 still, in light, well-ventilated cases, in 

 which water can be supplied to the 

 animal without the necessity of open- 

 ing the case or basket. A dog can 

 travel two or three days without extra 

 food, but he must have fresh water supplied 

 to him at various stations. Though a dog should 

 never be fastened in his traveling case or bas- 

 ket, lest he should strangle himself with rope 

 or strap, it is best to put on a collar 

 and chain when he reaches his des 

 tination among strangers. In 

 general, railway rules and regu- 

 lations for the transportation of 

 dogs leave much to be desired ; 

 the charges are very high, and are 

 often based on ridiculous reasons. 



In Germany a particular sort of 

 competition has been established, 

 in which bassets hunt foxes and 

 badgers along subterranean pas- 

 sages. These competitions, much 



folkiwed, especially in southern 

 German)', coi'respond some- 

 what to the runs of fox lei'riers 

 organized in France, — in the 

 Bois de Boulogne, for inst;mce, 

 — wliich ah\'a\-s excite great 

 intei'cst. In Belgium some peo 

 ])le amuse ihemseKes, lliough 

 more or less in secret, b\' send- 

 ing lox terriers against rats 

 which are shut u]j in cages and 

 are killed in a moment b\' one 

 bite (jf the dog. Tlie lii[d of 

 shepherd dogs, who are made 

 to chase before them a given number of sheep 

 on a given space or road, is of a more peace- 

 ful character, but not less interesting and amus- 

 ing. Now and then in connection with shows 



III C 



>ss 



.\MI'IOX's 



Traveling 



TjiAViaaxG Cage 



there are races of harnessed dogs, sometimes 

 a jji'ocession of the prize winners, and at still 

 other times a parade of packs of hounds, with 

 their huntsmen in scarlet coats making a noisy 

 i5P-^n_ hullabaloo with their horns ; occasion- 



ally there are dog races conducted 

 by children ; all of which is amusing 

 for the exhibitors and for the 

 public. Of late the continent of 

 Eiu'ope no longer takes jiart in 

 the English bench shows, and vice 

 versa, owing to the rigorous C|uaran- 

 tine enforced against foreign d(>gs 

 ■- at English ports, which renders 

 importation impossible for sports- 

 - men who desire merely to exhibit 

 Basket their animals. 



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