Selection of Dogs

Unlike the horse it is un­fortunately almost impossible to tell the age of a dog after from six to eight months old. When the dog arrives on approval the first thing to do is examine his mouth. An animal with discolored, cankered, or decayed teeth should at once be re­jected, as these signs are indicative of ill-health or extreme old age. A healthy dog should have teeth white and clean, even up to eight or nine years old. An experienced person can distinguish at a glance the difference between puppy and adult teeth.

A favorite minor fraud in those breeds in which diminutive size is a coveted feature is to palm off a few-weeks-old puppy as a half or full-grown dog, and although such a crude deception would not for one instant mislead the expert it no doubt occasionally victimizes the novice. There is one sure guide on which the latter can always rely. An adult dog when he has acquired his full mouth has forty-two teeth; a puppy has only twenty-eight teeth in his milk set; so that by counting the teeth the difficulty vanishes.   

Some breeds get very gray about the muzzle after three years of age, and this and other slight indications are all that can be relied on to give us a hint that the animal is not the age he is represented to be.

The skin of the dog should be well searched to see that it is clean, i.e. free from lice. As it is almost impossible to get rid of these pests once they are thoroughly established it is inadvisable to buy a dog so infected. Round and on the ears, chest, etc., are the most important places to look. Fleas are comparatively harmless.

The feet of all dogs, but particularly sporting breeds, should be carefully examined, and if the animal is not thoroughly well haired between the toes it should be rejected. Further details are given on this point in the last chapter under "Sore feet." If a dog can pass these tests, is a good feeder, and in other respects meets his intending purchaser's requirements, we may presume that he will turn out a satisfactory animal.

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