_Gathered from various authorities by H. G. Bohn._
A few words may not be out of place here on the feeding and management
of dogs. For all else which concerns Canine Science the reader cannot
do better than consult, among modern works, "Youatt on the Dog,"
"Blaine's Canine Pathology," the article "Dog" in the Encyclopaedia
Britannica or Penny Cyclopaedia, "Hutchinson on Dog-Breaking,"
"Radcliffe on Fox-Hunting," "Mayhew on the Dog," or, "Colonel Hamilton
Smith on Dogs," forming two of the vols. of Jardine's Naturalists'
Library.
The natural food of the dog is flesh, and it is found that those in a
wild state prefer it to every other kind of nutriment, but as raw meat
engenders ferocity, it should not be given too freely, especially to
house-dogs and such as are not actively exercised. The dog can subsist
on many kinds of food, and it is a curious fact, that when fed
entirely on flesh he will sometimes get lean; because, as has been
well observed, it is not on what animals eat that they thrive, but on
what they digest. The diet of sporting dogs in full work should, it is
said by some, consist of at least two-thirds of flesh, with a
judicious mixture of farinaceous vegetables; but there is great
diversity of opinion on this subject, and in France they are fed
almost exclusively on soaked bread. Dogs, it is generally said, should
have free access to fresh water, and the pans be cleaned out daily;
but some feeders, we are told, and it seems strange, limit the supply
of water, and substitute moistened food. A piece of rock brimstone
kept in the pan will be found useful.
Although the dog is naturally a voracious animal, he can endure hunger
for a very great length of time, and be brought by habit to subsist on
a very scanty meal. In the Memoirs of the Academy of Sciences it is
stated, that a bitch which was forgotten in a country-house, where she
had access to no other nourishment, lived forty days on the wool of an
old mattress which she had torn to pieces and digested.
An extraordinary instance of a similar kind occurred with a terrier
bitch, named Gipsy. One day, when following her master through a
grass-park near Gilmerton, it happened that she started a hare. During
the pursuit her master suddenly lost sight of her, and in a few days
she was considered either killed or lost. Six weeks afterwards a
person happening to look down an old coal-pit, was surprised to hear a
dog howling. He lost no time in returning to the village, and having
procured a hand-basket, let it down by a rope into the shaft; the dog
immediately leapt into it, and on being brought to the surface, proved
to be Gipsy, worn to perfect skin and bone. How she had existed in
this subterranean abode, and what she had found to support her there,
it is impossible to tell.
Stag-hounds, fox-hounds, harriers, and beagles, are generally fed on
oatmeal,--some add well-boiled flesh to it once in two days,--and the
older the meal is the better. Store sufficient for twelve or eighteen
months' consumption ought, therefore, always to be kept by those who
have a pack; and before used should be well dried, and broken into
grits, but not too fine. It is best kept in bins in a granary, well
trodden down. Some persons are in the habit of using barleymeal
unprepared, but this is thought by many to be less nutritious. Others
are of opinion that oatmeal and barleymeal in equal proportions form a
preferable food. In either case the meal should be made into porridge,
with the addition of a little milk, and occasionally the kitchen
offal, such as remnants of butchers' meat, broth, and soups, the
raspings and refuse of bakers' shops, or hard, coarse, sea-biscuit
(sold as dog-biscuit), well soaked and boiled with bullocks' liver or
horseflesh.
Well-boiled greens--or mangel-wurzel boiled to a jelly--are an
excellent addition to the food of all dogs, and may be given twice
a-week; but they ought to be discontinued during the shooting-season
with pointers, setters, cockers, and greyhounds; and also during the
hunting season with foxhounds, harriers, and beagles, as they are apt
to render the bowels too open for hard work.
Flesh for dogs should be first thoroughly boiled and then taken out
before the oatmeal is added to the broth, and left to cool. Indeed,
some feeders think that the food of a dog should always be perfectly
cold. At any rate, care must be taken not to serve it out "too hot,"
although, in general, dogs are sagacious enough not to scald
themselves, as we see in Landseer's exquisite little picture on the
opposite page.
Dogs which are hard worked are by some said to be the better for
having two meals a-day--a very light one of mixed food in the morning
before going out, and a full meal, principally of flesh, on their
return in the evening; but, as a general rule, one good meal a day,
towards the evening, is sufficient, and they may be left to pick up
what they can: indeed the dealers never give more than one meal a-day.
Bones to pick may be allowed them occasionally, but hard bones in
excess are likely to wear and damage the teeth. Nothing is better than
paunch, tripe, or good wholesome horse or cow-flesh, boiled, and the
liquor mixed well with oatmeal porridge; the quantity of each about
equal. If horse or cow-flesh is not to be had, graves, in moderate
quantity and well scalded, are a tolerable, though not very desirable,
substitute. They are generally broken small, mixed with about one-half
the quantity of oatmeal, then thoroughly soaked in boiling water, and
well stirred; or, a better way still is to boil them together like
porridge.
Dogs, like men, require a change of food, and it has been strongly
asserted that barleymeal and oatmeal, without change, predisposes to
cutaneous disease, and even produces it; therefore, a judicious
feeder, like a good cook, will contrive to vary his bill of fare.
Porridge and milk, dog-biscuit, farinaceous food, the scraps of the
kitchen, the offal of bullocks or sheep, which should be well boiled,
make an excellent variety;--but we would by no means recommend too
frequent a repetition of the latter food. Potatoes are also good, and
although not so nutritious, or easy of digestion, as oatmeal, are less
heating.
Care should be taken never to present more to a dog than he will eat
with a good appetite; and when oatmeal and barleymeal are given mixed,
the former should first be boiled for twenty minutes, and then the
latter added, and boiled only for about eight or ten minutes. This
meal should, however, never be given in the hunting season, as it is
too heating, and occasions the dogs to be perpetually drinking. Their
food ought, as a general rule, to be given to them pretty thick, as
thin porridge does not stay the stomach so well. The feeding-troughs
for hounds should be sufficiently wide at the bottom and carefully
cleaned out and scalded with hot water every second day.
During the hunting season hounds should have sulphur mixed up with
their mess once a-week, in the proportion of 3 drachms to each. At the
end of the season the same quantity of sulphur should be given, with
the addition of 11/2 drachms of antimony. After a hard day's work a meal
of horse-flesh may be given them, as fresh-killed as possible, or
bullocks' paunches or sheeps' trotters, all of which should be well
boiled.
_Greyhounds_ should be fed principally on animal food, such as sheeps'
trotters or neats' feet, boiled or stewed down and mixed with bread,
and given moderately in the morning and afternoon, (the dog never
being allowed on any occasion to eat a great quantity at once,) or on
other hand meat, as it will enlarge and strengthen the muscular fibre
without increasing the cellular tissue and adipose substance, which
has an invariable tendency to affect their breathing. The butchers'
meat should be of the best quality, and not over-fat, as greasy
substances of all kinds are apt to render the body gross and the skin
diseased. After they have been coursed they should be well brushed, a
little oil being used in the operation.
The kennels of greyhounds should be kept comfortably warm and dry, be
frequently replenished with dry and clean straw, and properly
ventilated. Indeed, nothing is more essential to the health and
efficiency of all dogs than pure air and cleanliness. Their beds
should, if possible, be placed on a wooden bench, or at least on some
dry position. On attention to cleanliness depends, in some degree, the
dog's exquisite sense of smelling; for, if accustomed to strong or
disagreeable effluvia, he will be but ill-adapted to trace the fall of
a deer, or scent of a fox. Indeed, even animal food too freely given
is said to have a prejudicial effect upon the nose of a sporting dog.
A dog employed in watching premises should not be needlessly exposed
to the damp or cutting night winds; but placed in as dry and sheltered
a situation as possible. If kept in the dwelling-house he should have
a place appropriated to his night's rest; this may be an open box, or
a basket, with a piece of carpet or blanket, or clean straw at the
bottom: if either of the former it should be often beaten, to free it
from fleas or nits, which soon infest it, and frequently washed and
dried.
Damp is exceedingly injurious to dogs, and is very likely to produce
diseased lungs, rheumatism, and lameness in the shoulder and limbs.
To the preceding instructions, for which the compiler is chiefly
indebted to the works of Capt. Thomas Brown, Youatt, and Blaine, and
to the practical information obtained from Mr. Herring of the New
Road, and Mr. William George, an extensive dog-fancier at Kensall New
Town, may be appropriately subjoined a lively chapter from the recent
work of Mr. Francis Butler, a leading American authority on the
subject.
* * * * *
"It is more important to understand the management of a dog, than to
be possessed of a thousand nominal remedies for the cure of his
various ailments; inasmuch as the antidote is at all times preferable
to the cure.
"I shall first throw out a few hints on the Management of Pets. Whilst
many are sacrificed for lack of necessary attendance, there are
thousands who perish prematurely from overdoses of kindness. Delicate
breeds of dogs certainly require great care and attention in rearing;
but overstrained tenderness is often more dangerous than culpable
neglect. The dear little creature that is allowed to lay under the
stove, is stuffed with delicacies two or three times a-day, and is
never allowed to breathe the fresh air, except under a cloudless sky,
is more subject to colds, fits, rheumatism, sore eyes and ears, worms,
&c., than the worthless mongrel which was raised on the street,
neglected and despised. The tenderly-nursed pet is affected by every
change of atmosphere, and subjected to a variety of diseases unknown
to the dog that has been hardened from his birth. I ask you, then,
neither to stuff nor starve; neither to chill nor burn.
"A house-pet should always have a sleeping-place allotted to him, warm
and comfortable, not near the fire, nor in the damp. Anything round is
best for an animal to lay in; such as a tastefully ornamented box. In
cold weather it should not be larger than to contain him comfortably.
It is best for the following reasons: he may keep himself perfectly
warm, and his bed may be made exactly to fit him; it also takes up
less available space than any other shape. He should never be fed to
the full; neither excited to eat when he appears disinclined. Lack of
appetite, so common to pampered favourites, is generally the result of
an overloaded stomach and disordered digestion. This is easily cured
by medicine, but more safely and simply without it. Fast him for
twenty-four hours; after which, keep him on half his ordinary
allowance. If this agrees with him, and he keeps in fair condition,
continue the regimen.
"Nursing in the lap is injurious; not in itself, but the animal is
thereby subjected to constant chills, in emerging from a snoozy
warmth to a cold carpet or chilly bed. A dog accustomed to the lap is
always shivering after it, and renders himself quite troublesome by
his importunate addresses. A moderate share of nursing is well enough,
but should be indulged in only as an occasional treat. Great care
should be taken in the washing of delicate dogs. When this operation
is performed, they should be rubbed perfectly dry; after which they
should be covered, and remain so till the shivering has completely
subsided.[T] The water should be only blood-warm; it is far better
than hot, and not so likely to give the animal cold. Injudicious
washing and bad drying are productive of running sore eyes, more
especially visible in white poodles, where the hair is long and
woolly, retaining the moisture.
"Once a fortnight is often enough to wash any dog but a white one.
Washing has very little effect in the destruction of vermin. Fleas can
live some time under water; which I have often thought only makes them
bite the harder and stick the closer, when reanimated from their
temporary torpidity. If 'Butler's Mange Liniment and Flea
Exterminator' cannot be obtained, the animal may be well sodden with
soft soap and washed about ten minutes after. This cannot be done with
safety, except in warm weather. In cold weather, the comb may be used
immediately after the application of the soap, as the fleas will then
be too stupid to effect their escape. 'Butler's Liniment' destroys all
vermin instantaneously, without risk of injuring the animal; and the
quadruped may be rinsed one minute after. No flea will remain alive;
the skin will be thoroughly cleansed, and the coat beautified. Dogs
should never be allowed to suffer the torment imposed on them by these
detestable vermin. If the owners could only realise the importance of
ridding them of these ever-noisome pests, there would be far less of
snappishness, mange, fits, &c. I have seen animals literally worried
to death by fleas, perfectly exhausted from incessant irritation, at
last worn to a skeleton, and gradually extinguished by a creeping
consumption. Besides, who (for his own personal comfort), would not
rid his immediate vicinity of a worthless mob of blood-suckers
awaiting the first favourable opportunity of regaling themselves on
human blood? If your dog lie on straw, burn it once a week, as fleas
harbour and propagate in the tubes of the straw. If the bed be carpet,
or anything similar, let it be often cleansed or changed. Vermin
revel in filth, and their extirpation depends mainly on cleanliness.
"By attending to the general health of a dog, much disease may be
avoided; indeed, this is far more essential than prescriptions for a
cure. It is very easy to carry off a slight indisposition by gentle
purgatives and a reformed diet: whilst confirmed disease is often
difficult to combat, as few of the canine race can have the advantages
which are ofttimes essential to their restoration. The eyes, the nose,
the gums, the hair, the breath, should be carefully noted. The eyes
may be red or pale, sunken or protruded; the nose may be hot, or dry,
or matted with dirt; the gums may be pale, &c. It will require but
little experience to discover a disorganisation, which may be easily
detected by him who has noticed the healthful appearance of the
different parts and their variation under indisposition.
"If you are in the habit of keeping your dog on the chain, let him at
least run a few minutes every day. If he be kept indoors, he should
also be allowed a little daily exercise outside. Change of air[U] and
diet will sometimes renovate when all remedies fail: a change from
city to country, from greasy meat to fresh milk, from a confined yard
to the green fields, will generally recruit him without the aid of
medicine. Nature (to whom physicians are so deeply indebted for so
many wonderful restorations), often effects a cure unaided, which
might have defied the efforts of Apothecaries' Hall.
"In summer, particularly, be careful to provide a supply of fresh
water and a cool shelter from the sun. Never take your dog out during
the intense heat of the day; this is very apt to produce fits, often
resulting in sudden death. Early in the morning is preferable for
summer exercise.
"The kennel should be located in a shady spot during the summer; in
winter it should be sheltered from the wind, and so placed as to
enable the dog to enjoy the sunshine at will. Above all things, never
chain a dog where he cannot screen himself from the sun's rays. He
must have the option of sunshine or shade. He should not be allowed to
drink water that has been standing in the sun, or is otherwise
damaged. If you should chance to forget to feed him for forty-eight
hours, he would not run as much risk of injury, as during three hours
of thirst in hot weather. There should be a piece of joist under each
end of the dog-house, to keep it off the ground, in order to avoid
dampness. In summer an excavation, two or three feet in depth, should
be made under it, and left open at both ends, that the animal may have
a cool retreat during the heat. Those who do not object to a trifling
expense, may have the house posted on a large paving-stone, with an
excavation under it, as before recommended. All burrowing animals seek
the earth in hot weather. Everything on the surface is heated; their
own instinct dictates the most reasonable method of sheltering
themselves from the heat, at the same time absorbing the cool
exhalations from the ground. In southern climates, especially, this
method is all important. In this manner I have kept dogs from the
polar regions, in comparative comfort, whilst many native-born and
neglected have been scalded into fits, paralysis, rabies, or
hydrophobia.
"In the hot season, with young dogs, raw meat should be avoided,
except it be quite fresh, and then they should not be over-fed,
especially if debarred of abundant exercise, and excluded from their
own natural medicine, grass. A dog will often thrive better on raw
meat than on any other food, and will grow larger; but he should be
fed with discretion, and his health attended to, should his diet
visibly disagree with him.[V] He will grow fatter and be more healthy
on moderate meals than if overgorged. The better plan is to ascertain
his average consumption, and then allow him a little less. Keep his
digestion in good order, and disease will rarely trouble him. His coat
and ribs will generally indicate whether he be sufficiently cared for,
whether he be sick or sound in his digestive organs; feed him always
in the same place, and at the same hour: once a day is sufficient, if
he be over six months old. By being fed only once a day he is less
choice, and will consume what he might refuse, if his appetite were
dulled by a previous meal.
"Should you require your dog to be watchful at night, feed him in the
morning; if you would have him quiet at night, feed him late, and
don't leave him bones to gnaw. Dogs are pretty quiet, during the
digestive process, when left to themselves, and should not have much
exercise after a heavy meal. They should only be lightly fed before
training-lessons, or on sporting days; on the latter occasions a
little refreshment may be administered as occasion may require. Those
kept in-doors should be allowed to run a little after meals, when they
generally require an evacuation.
"If a dog be regularly exercised he will seldom even soil around his
kennel, and a healthy house pet is rarely troublesome, except after
eating. If a dog be uncleanly in the house, he should decidedly be
broken of it, although it would be useless to correct him unless he
has a fair opportunity of avoiding it. He should be invariably taken
to the spot, be sufficiently twigged there, and unceremoniously
scolded into the yard. The punishment will be far more justly
administered if the animal be let out at regular intervals; this being
done he will not attempt to infringe the law, except in cases of dire
necessity.
"I am satisfied as a general rule, that a well-amalgamated mixture of
animal and vegetable is the most healthful diet for dogs of all ages,
breeds, and conditions. Dogs living in the house should on no account
be fed on raw meat, as it gives them a very offensive smell, and is in
other respects very unsuitable."
[Illustration]