Of black-and-tan toy terriers there is not much to be said

Of black-and-tan toy terriers there is not much to be said

Of black-and-tan toy terriers there is not much to be said

Of black-and-tan toy terriers there is not much to be said, for the simple reason that they are at present quite out of fashion. A vague idea still, I believe, prevails that the bare and leathery, not to say mangy, appearance some of the former little creatures present about their appleheads and big ears, is a sign of good breeding; indeed, I have often been seriously invited to consider the high claims of a spidery, ill-shaped atom so affected to distinction on the score of aristocratic descent.

Griffons Bruxellois are quaintness personified

Griffons Bruxellois are quaintness personified

Griffons Bruxellois are quaintness personified

Griffons Bruxellois are quaintness personified, and their funny little characters, full of dignity and self-sufficiency, are indicated by their no less funny little exteriors. The characteristics of a good Griffon are smallness, hardness of coat, deep, rich red colour, huge black eyes, à fleur de tête, the shortest possible black-ended nose, as flat as may be with the face (this appearance generally aided by the breeder, who presses the baby cartilage upwards at every opportunity), and fine and sound legs and feet. The tail is docked, but the ears may not now be interfered with a righteous rule. An undershot "monkey face" is the desideratum, and though sometimes shy breeders, these little dogs are well worth having, and make the best of house pets.

Japanese spaniels are quite one of the derniers cris of fashion

Japanese spaniels are quite one of the derniers cris of fashion

Japanese spaniels are quite one of the derniers cris of fashion

Japanese spaniels are quite one of the derniers cris of fashion. With them I include Pekingese, as although the latter are hardier dogs altogether, and easier to manage, they are also Eastern, so making things even. Japs are pretty little dogs, of average intelligence and affection, if not quite equal in these respects to the first two breeds discussed. Up to the present "distemper" has been their chief scourge, and keeping them in numbers seems to be an invariable invitation for a visit from some pest, to the contagion of all which they seem peculiarly susceptible. Griffon breeders say that if a Griffon feels ill it dies, and this is in some measure applicable to Japs also. There is no reason why it should be so, for in their native country they are hardy enough, and the cause is traceable to inbreeding, occasioned by the difficulties put in the way of their importation both by the Japanese authorities and our own, and resorted to with the idea of keeping them small; the delicacy caused by the hardships of the voyage, which they stood very badly; to the pioneers of the race over here, and the rush for small sires, often too much used, and over shown. If breeders would buy young, unrelated puppies, feed them on meat, bring them up healthily, and so found fresh strains, this delicacy could surely be overcome with comparative ease. In appearance, Japs are extremely fascinating. Their colours are black and white, red and white, and yellow or lemon and white the latter two combinations being the rarest; their coloured ears, like butterfly wings, the short-faced head between forming the body, their heavily fringed feet, and their plumed tail making up a charming and piquant tout ensemble. They are frequently confounded with Pekingese, which are whole coloured, red or yellow, with black markings, and whose ears are not set on at the same angle. A Pekingese pup is perhaps the very prettiest puppy going, before it reaches the lanky stage, which breeders of all toys, except perhaps pugs and Schips, know means the utter indifference, even scorn, of the uninitiated public. The prices of Japs rule fairly high, and a good puppy cannot be obtained, unless by special luck, for less than £10 10s.; a larger female pup for a trifle less perhaps but such, if good in points, are quickly snapped up for brood bitches. Japs have the same toy weight limit as Poms 8 lbs. and the over toy weight dogs are far hardier and easier to breed than the midgets.

Japanese Spaniels. The five rules of Japanese spaniel beauty, according to the Delhi Morning Post, are these: (1) The butterfly head; (2) the sacred V; (3) the bump of knowledge; (4) vulture feet; (5) the chrysanthemum tail. To attain the "butterfly head" and the "sacred V," a Jap must own a broad skull with a white V-shape up it (the body of the butterfly), the small, black, V-shaped ears forming the butterfly's wings. The "bump of knowledge" is a small, round, black spot between the ears. The hair on the "vulture feet" feathers to a point in front, but must not widen the slender foot, and to the eye of faith the beautiful, silky, plumed tail, tightly curled over the back, presents the semblance of the national flower, the chrysanthemum.

Next to toy Poms I will mention toy Schipperkes

Next to toy Poms I will mention toy Schipperkes

Next to toy Poms I will mention toy Schipperkes

Next to toy Poms I will mention toy Schipperkes, because, though they are not as yet so fashionable, and probably never will be, they resemble Poms in many ways. As house dogs they are eminently desirable, wonderfully clean and well-mannered, and like the Pom in cleverness and fidelity to one person, while they are much hardier and easier to rear and keep in good condition. They are not at all nervous dogs; but wildly full of life and greedy for exercise; their incessant activity vying with that of the merry little Spitz. They are decidedly "barky" and exceedingly inquisitive, good travellers, and dogs which settle themselves down anywhere, and are content so long as they are with the favourite "human" they specially possess. Schipperkes are extremely heavy dogs for their size, and quite a wee one will weigh four times as much as a Pom which hardly looks smaller. Both breeds require a meat diet and plenty of good food, which they work off by their active ways; but the bulk of the Schip's meals should be larger. As a rule, Schips are very good-tempered dogs, and, like Poms, sharp followers at heel. They are, however, pugnacious little things, and have only the grand forbearance of bigger dogs to thank for the prevention of many a tragedy due to uppish self-assertion. Black is their colour, and taillessness their most intimate quality; some, we are told, are born tailless, most are not! Brown and fawn Schips are common enough in Belgium, the home of the race; and we have now not infrequently classes for them over here; while whites, which are really fawns, exist, occurring in litters now and then from a throwing back to some distant ancestor, and are really pretty dogs, though I confess the piquancy and charm of the blacks, with their sharply-pricked, thin ears, their rounded-off flank, hard, shiny coats, and dense masses of mane and culotte, the Schip's distinctive points, are to me lost in an "off-coloured" dog. Their faults, as toys, are soft, silky coats, toyish or apple or badly-shaped heads (that universal stumbling block), "Pommy," quality of coat (there is no blemish on a Schip's escutcheon greater than a putative cross with a Pom), white hairs or markings, ears which are rounded at the tip instead of pointed, too big, or badly carried, short faces, unlevel jaws, spread feet, crooked or distorted legs, and long backs. The whole appearance of the dog should be very smart and cobby, intensely alert, and altogether clean and well put together, qualities difficult to describe, but which "sautent aux yeux."

Poms are capital little companions

Poms are capital little companions

Poms are capital little companions

Poms are capital little companions, faithful, exceedingly sharp and intelligent, and generally devoted to one person; they are good with children if brought up with them; but they are fussy and excitable little things, bark a great deal, and have nerves. I do not consider the character some people give them of snappishness at all justified by facts; but here and there a sharp-tempered Pom may be found. Their quality of disdain towards strangers is one which ought to be considered a virtue in all pet dogs. They are not of the easiest dogs to train to the house, especially when kept in numbers, and are not always reliable in this way, mainly on account of their quick, nervous disposition; but for cleverness, affection, and beauty, they have few, if any, equals among toy dogs, and they are never likely to lose their popularity; a really good toy Pom is always immensely admired and courted wherever it is taken. Puppies are not now so easily saleable at high prices as was formerly the case, as so many people took them up that they have become plentiful: and it is not worth while to breed second-raters; but a good Pom will still sell.

SCHIPPERKE. "Fandango," owned by Dr. Freeman.

But really valuable when so secured

But really valuable when so secured

But really valuable when so secured

The Pom, then, is a little dog, hard to get good, but really valuable when so secured. A good toy Pom means one as small as possible, certainly under 8 lbs., and preferably under 6 lbs., not long-legged and weedy, but short-backed and compact; with tiny erect ears, a fine-pointed muzzle, small dark eyes, tail or plume, as it should be called well over the exact median line of the back; small, fine, and delicate legs and feet, covered with short hair; and last, but far from least, a profuse coat standing out well all over the body, and amplified about the neck with the characteristic frill, and at the backs of the hind legs with the crinière. Bright brown and chocolate are very much more common than they were a year or two ago, when either was scarce and much desired, but blacks are always favourites. Black-pointed sables (wolf-coloured Poms) seldom have good stiff coats, and, like the beautiful orange sables, are apt to be flat-coated, thus are not so popular; while parti-coloured dogs depend for attraction upon their quality otherwise. Blues, which, unless large, generally have hairless ears, are very charming, and carry excellent coats, but are comparatively seldom seen. The usual faults of toy Poms are "apple-headedness" a term which explains itself scarcity of coat, coarseness in head or leg, tails badly carried, big ears, or protuberant eyes, legginess and weediness, or curliness. A wave in the coat spoils some from a show point of view, and though washing with borax and water, and combing out with a comb dipped in a weak solution of gelatine, will temporarily remedy the defect, it spoils the desirable bushy look of a Pom to a great extent.

The choice of Breeds

The choice of Breeds

The choice of Breeds

The choice of a breed to take up is generally dictated by personal preference, and fashion has a large spoke in the wheel. Just at present, the fashionable breeds among toys are certainly Pomeranians, or Spitz toys commonly known as "Poms," Japanese spaniels, Pekingese or Chinese spaniels sometimes called Chinese pugs, toy bulldogs, and Griffons Bruxellois. Of the choice of a breed for profit I have spoken before, and will now consider the question from the point of view of a lonely dame seeking a pet, or pets, and having no preconceived prejudices.

The choice of Breeds

The choice of Breeds

The choice of Breeds

The choice of a breed to take up is generally dictated by personal preference, and fashion has a large spoke in the wheel. Just at present, the fashionable breeds among toys are certainly Pomeranians, or Spitz toys commonly known as "Poms," Japanese spaniels, Pekingese or Chinese spaniels sometimes called Chinese pugs, toy bulldogs, and Griffons Bruxellois. Of the choice of a breed for profit I have spoken before, and will now consider the question from the point of view of a lonely dame seeking a pet, or pets, and having no preconceived prejudices.

With the shows arranged by the Ladies Kennel Association

With the shows arranged by the Ladies Kennel Association

With the shows arranged by the Ladies Kennel Association

The principal shows where toy dogs are catered for are the Kennel Club Show, in October; the Toy Dog Shows and Cruft's, generally held in February, at the Agricultural Hall; with the shows arranged by the Ladies' Kennel Association, the best of which, from a toy owner's point of view, usually takes place in the summer, and with the provincial fixtures, such as Birmingham, Manchester, and Bristol, and numerous licence shows in all parts of the country, at all of which there is generally a fair classification for toys. All shows may be found advertised in the Illustrated Kennel News and other dog papers.

Speaking to a judge in the ring

Speaking to a judge in the ring

Speaking to a judge in the ring

Speaking to a judge in the ring, and while acting, is a great breach of etiquette, unless some question is asked by him, which should be replied to audibly; but most judges are quite willing to give reasons for their decision, or a candid opinion, if asked to do so when the judging is over. It is, of course, needless to warn gentlewomen against any show of feeling at being overlooked, etc.; but the fact that lamentable exhibitions of disappointment do occasionally take place is one not to be denied, while, of course, strict justice is occasionally lacking. Still, taking things for all in all, a very little experience will enable the novice to take her proper place in the show world, where she will be sure to meet with much kindness and unselfish help such, at least, is my experience; while exhibiting adds a zest to dog owning unobtainable by any other means.