276 REARING. 



puppies than she has good teats, that is, teats with milk in them, 

 the weak ones are starved, unless the strong ones are kept away 

 in order to allow them access, so as to fill themselves in their turn. 

 To manage this, a covered basket, lined with wool if the weather 

 is at all cold, should be provided ; and in this one-third or one-half 

 of the puppies should be kept, close to the mother, to prevent 

 either from being uneasy, but the lid fastened down, or she will 

 take them out in her mouth. Every two or three hours a fresh 

 lot should be exchanged for those in the basket, first letting them 

 fill themselves, when they will go to sleep and remain contented 

 for the time fixed above, thus allowing each lot in its turn to fill 

 itself regularly. At the end of ten days, by introducing a little 

 sweetened cow's milk on the end of the finger into their mouths, 

 and dipping their hoses in a saucer containing it, they learn to lap ; 

 and after this there will be little difficulty in rearing even a dozen ; 

 but they will not, however carefully they may be fed in aid of the 1 

 mother, be as large as if only a small number were left on her, 

 and therefore greyhound breeders limit their litters to five, six, or 

 at most seven ; destroying the remainder, or rearing them with a 

 foster-nurse. 



CHOICE OF WHELPS. 



To choose the whelps in the nest which are to be kept, most 

 people select on different principles, each having some peculiar 

 crotchet to guide himself. Some take the heaviest, some the 

 last born ; others the longest of the litter ; while others again are 

 entirely guided by colour. In toy-dogs, and those whose appearance 

 is an important element, colour ought to be allowed all the weight 

 it deserves, and among certain toy-dogs the value is often affected 

 a hundred per cent, by a slight variation in the markings. So also 



