Exhibition Dogs 55 



to feed each one separately. There is a great difference in dogs, some feed- 

 ing nicely in company, others refusing to eat unless alone, while there are 

 some that will only " eat jealous " — that is, they will keep on eating to deprive 

 another dog near-by — not one that will fight, however, but one just hungry 

 and plucky enough to show anxiety to get his turn at the dish. A dog that 

 runs from one dish to another driving the others away, must be excluded 

 from company and fed by himself. While there is no objection to feeding 

 well-behaved dogs together, the better plan is to feed individually, so as to 

 note appetites. As a final accelerant, if it is advisable to put an extra polish 

 on the dog, there is less harm in the following than in the pure Fowler's 

 solution of arsenic. Take equal quantities of decoction of yellow-bark and 

 compound tincture of bark, giving from half a teaspoon to two teaspoon- 

 fuls, according to size of dog, in a little water twice a day, and into this drop 

 from four to eight drops of Fowler's solution of arsenic. Administer this 

 regularly for three weeks prior to the show, and the benefit of the treatment 

 will be manifest in the appearance of the coat. 



Having, let us hope, got your dog or dogs feeling "like fighting cocks," 

 the week preceding the show, it becomes a question as to washing prior to 

 shipping. If the journey is short, and the dog has merely a one-night trip 

 to the show, washing, if done at all, should be done some three, or at least 

 two, days before shipping. I say, if done at all, as it is not essential for 

 some dogs, if they have been properly groomed and cared for, and in some 

 breeds it is detrimental to the coat, especially those which are required to 

 be wiry-coated. All such dogs are but moderate in length of coat, and the 

 brush and hand-glove should have been used enough to have a clean coat 

 with a good polish on it. But when we come to breeds that are soft in coat 

 or call for a coat showing length and bulk, such as the collie, a good wash is 

 advisable and makes a vast difference in the quantity look of the coat. Use 

 the very best soap, plenty of water no warmer than is absolutely necessary, 

 rinse most thoroughly, and dry by first taking off all water possible by 

 squeezing and with the sponge, then dry with towels. Use warm ones as 

 the coat begins to dry, but finally use your hands, drawing them the way 

 of the coat in short-coated dogs, and in collies and borzois, whose coat is a 

 standing-out one, do it both ways, with the coat and the reverse, until there 

 is not the slightest feeling of dampness. This hand-rubbing is a great 

 polisher, and if the washing has been unavoidably delayed, it may be im- 

 proved upon by rubbing on the hands an infinitesimal quantity of fine oil. 



