The Marlboro democrat. [volume] (Bennettsville, S.C.) 1882-1908, 1889-12-20
DOCS PRoNE no MADNEss.8 q
Whether Certain Breeds are More
Liable Than Others. f3Na5IS

SsN,Sshs.N1NAA
Harrison Weir. the English artist
and Illustrator, renowned as astudont
Of natural history, writes 10 III $As 8
don Standard on tho subject OF hydro.
phobia rs follows: "a short time since
letters appeared in tile Standard re!at--
ing to the muzzling of dogs, SC. one
from q vegetarian stated that if dogs
were only fed on vegetable there would
be no madness. I was 100 busy at the
time to reply to this assertion, but now
do SO. lad q collie dog that, to my
knowledge, was never fed OH other food
than biscuits in the winter and oatmeal
and vegetables in the summer, yet, for
I'LL this, the dog went madAnor was It
bitten, as no wound could be discovered
on it. Again, how will the vegetarian
reconcile his theory with tho fact Of the
deer i'll Richmond Park going mad2
| Surely these mover tasted meat.
"Agaiil, | cannot think for one mo-
mont that those who keep entirely use
less dogs ought to object to the other
portion of the community endeayoring
us much as possible to protect them
selves from a diretul, painful, horrible
death. What IL man keeps for lis
pleasure ought not to bo to tho detri-
ment Of others. I know OF nothing SO
wearying to the suffering, tired and
slceplcss as the continued barking Of
The dog; but add to this the also con-
tinual fear Of madness, and it is too
much to ask that such dogs should be
prevented from doing bodily harm
either 10 the human or brute creationf
"But this is not the reason Of my
writing, though it leads to it. For
many years l havo thought it would be
we'll If tho breed of every dog showing
particular and sudden ~fcrocity or mad
ness could be reported, anu thus it
might be observed whether any one
breed was moro prone TO this outburst
than another. For a very long time I
havo e%ndeayored as much as | could to
iind out whether there existed any diff
ference in this respect; and, as far as I
can ascertain, in all truthfulncss 1 am
bound to say that ! believe there are
moro r%etrieyers on the list than any
other brecd-eight or nine to one. l
have never heard Of q mastiff SO failing.
Very few fox terriers, two or three
pointers, two spaniels, no %greyhounds,
nor d~achsnunds, nor poodles, but the
number Of retrievers have been extra
ordinary and continuous. Only q short
timc since, in conversation with a
friend who kept q retriever Z said 81
would not keep one il L were paid
600 a year. why, said he, you
would find he is the most delightful
dog SC. [ saw my friend recently
when lie told me the dog had suddenly
bitten several children and had to be
destroyed, and he then mentioned other
cases. When / last wrote on this ques-
ton | cHlled attention to the retriever,
and | received Il number Of letters, all
cases within the writers knowl-
of the peculiar unreliability Of the
breed. may add, although I am very
fond OF dogs, nothing would induce me
to have Or keep q black retriever.
What I wish 70 ask through Your
columns is this, that in some way or
&; report should be fur,.tailed,
by the police or others, making I
km0WiiSin cases Of madness or at in.
quests the breed or breeds OF suclgdogs
ffSrt the$purposes Of science and for
Goting&JWhother it IS really undesir-
ablo that such and such breeds should
be kept at all. I am told that the
Pomeranian Is oil uncertain dog and
in some countries is not allowed, but Of
| am not acQuainteda But I think
II is time that some method should be
adopted to learn the statistics OF mad
in the breeds or dogs, so that
some measures should be taken to
prevent tho fearful consequences Of
llydrophobia beyond that Of simply
mu2zling.
The Eleotric World.