io6 COURSING 



met Penelope II. in the final she was thoroughly fit, and her 

 display was one of the grandest ever seen. 



The adage that we have quoted as applied to work is of 

 still greater force when the all-importaht question of food is to 

 be considered ; and here, again, observation and study of the 

 individual must constantly occupy the trainer's mind. It used 

 to be considered a sine qu& non that the only way to prepare a 

 dog was to stuff him with unlimited mutton, on the principle 

 adopted by domestic servants, I suppose, who fancy that they 

 will drop down dead or faint over their menial tasks if they 

 fail to consume a sufficient poundage of 'butcher's meat.' We 

 are quite opposed to this idea, and feel convinced that nothing 

 upsets a dog's stomach and renders him stale and useless more 

 than a continued use of toasted mutton, without a variety of 

 other food. A greyhound will stand his road-work and gallops 

 for several months, and flourish thereon ; but stuff him with a 

 surfeit of animal food for one month only, and the chances are 

 he will utterly lose his form. It is very easy to ascertain 

 when a dog has had too much animal food — on examination 

 the faeces will be found to be black ; if, on the contrary, there 

 has not been a sufficient quantity, the motions will be almost 

 colourless ; when they are the colour of ochre the proportion is 

 correct. 



When a dog has been trained and run for a stake, and is 

 wanted again in, say, three weeks' time, it is a good plan to ' let 

 him down,' i.e. his exercise should be gentle and only sufficient 

 to keep him healthy and active, and his food should consist 

 of old meal, brown bread, vegetables, trotter jelly, and broth 

 of sheep's heads. No more solid animal food should be given 

 till within ten days of his running again. As soon as he 

 returns from the first meeting he should have a dose of Epsom 

 salts or German liquorice powder, to be followed by a tonic 

 ball. It is wonderful how this treatment and the cessation of 

 solid animal food will freshen the stomach, and prepare the 

 dog for another ordeal. The resumption of solid mutton for 

 a week previously to running will be found ample ; even if he 



