Evening star., 1902-03-15
Faneiers Breeding the Toy
Black, and White Poms.
Fl rs I'm A M U FF
TWO ANDA HALF POUNDS Is THE
RECORD WEIGHT.
But They Talk Of a Sixteen Ounce
in the Near Fu-
~k@ ture.
for The Evening Star.

Written for The Evening Star.
Canine extremes, met the other day when
a rich young woman. leading great Dane.
as big as a Shetland pony, encountered
dear and fashionable girl friend, who wore
in her muf and displayed with joy an i'm
ported toy Pommeranian dog of full growth
weighing exactly two and a half pounds.
Though the muff was not over size the
owners hands and the wee dog were not
crowded therein for space. Up to date this
is apparently the tinest morsel of develop
ed dog flesh that has ever come to the
country, and. as the proud possessor i'm
ported the little Pom for breeding purposes,
there is no doubt that if all goes we'll we
shall have an adequate supply of muff and
pocket dogs with which to satisfy the
growing demand for the same
Toy dogs we know even now in numbers,
but they have up to this time been apple
headed vacant-eyed. rat-like, hairless little
beasties from Mexico. For a long while
breeders have realized the existence of a
market for tiny fluffy dogs with plumy
tails and gay coats. and In England
well-directed effort has been made to pro-
duce an animal of ultra fashionable char
acter dog that could be dropped in
the pocket of a rag CLAN or worn costly up
among the frills of Louis QulnZ sleeve
or tucked into a muff and made happy in
dog for which duchesses and countesses and
princesses stood ready to pay almost any
price. This set the amateur and profes-
sional breeders off on scientific lines, and
the results have been enough to take the
mere observers breath away. Already IN
England there is talk of miniature dog
club with an annual show and the smart
est breeders talk confidently OF the one
pound dog of the future.
Dogs Worn as Ornaments.
The two-and-a- -half-pound Poms in spot
less white coats, blue-eyed and black-nosed
are at the present the limit, and on the
Riviera they are known and worn as sleeve
dogs. Some exceedingly small Poms are
admitted into the blue-biooded circle, where
CANNES worth their weight in gold are
literally worn as ornaments, and those wo-
men who do not affect the pocket dog pride
themselves on the ownership OF something
strange and rareiof the small dog species.
Five years ago the Belgian Griffon sat In
silken laps and licked lily hands and slept
the sleep of the expensive in satin baskets.
hung with old point lace. For hve years
his unique ugliness, his rarity and his high
price maintained his social position. but
the dog market ~ almost oyerstocked with
Griffons and thex can now depend only on
a few Of the Honestly fond and faithful
feminine admirers for the partial mainte-
nance Of their. once lofty position.
Two Tiny Bits.
Griffons. have been largely superseded by
two new. and very captivating breeds OF
dog, fine specimens Of which are at pres
ent as rare and as coveted as black pearls.
These are the Yolpino and the Chen Ecu
reuil. sometimes, called the Spanish Butter
fly. good Valpino Is no bigger than an
ordinary toy Pom, and he Is In reality
German spitZ crossed on an Italian Lupno.
The result Is a rarely dainty bit of dog
flesh. His coat is glorious ruddy orange,
increasing with his growth in silken rich
ness, and in the full flower OF his beauty
he develops a white waist coat that the
most gilded 1rcryable would have envied
him. Toes and tail are marked with white,
ana the latter. which closely resembles a
grace. The face and eyes of a well bred
Volpino are far more intelligent and en-
gagingly pretty than those of the average
witless toy dog, and his thickly furred.
well-shaped ears are dropped or lifted with
coqueftish expression.
The Chen Ecureuil. or squirrel dog as
he is sometimes entitled. in honor of his
true squirrel tail, or the Spanish Butterfly,
he Is more gracefully called, because or
his ears, that shaped like a butteriy's
wings, is Spanish grandee. descended
from long line of pure, Iberian ancestors
His coloring is a rich chocolate, relieved
with golden tan tints. and his disposition
cuddling. sweet-tempered to a fault and
modest to the point of dffidence, is one
Of his most powerful recommendations to
fashiona BILE and feminine favor