ose which a few years afterwards won prizes. At the first they
were more popular in the North of England than in any other part of
Great Britain. It was at Kirkby Lonsdale that Dr. James's Spotted
Dick was bred, and an early exploiter of the breed who made his dogs
famous was Mr. Newby Wilson, of Lakeside, Windermere. He was indebted
to Mr. Hugo Droesse, of London, for the foundation of his stud,
inasmuch as it was from Mr. Droesse that he purchased Ch. Acrobat
and Ch. Berolina. At a later date the famed Coming Still and Prince
IV. were secured from the same kennel, the latter dog being the
progenitor of most of the best liver-spotted specimens that have
attained notoriety as prize-winners down to the present day.
In appearance the Dalmatian should be very similar to a Pointer except
in head and marking. Still, though not so long in muzzle nor so
pendulous in lip as a Pointer, there should be no coarseness or common
look about the skull, a fault which is much too prevalent. Then,
again, some judges do not attach sufficient importance to the eyelids,
or rather sears, which should invariably be edged round with black
or brown. Those which are flesh-coloured in this particular should
be discarded, however good they may be in other respects. The density
and pureness of colour, in both blacks and browns, is of great
importance, but should not be permitted to outweigh the evenness of
the distribution of spots on the body; no black patches, or even
mingling of the spots, should meet with favour, any more than a
ring-tail or a clumsy-looking, heavy-shouldered dog should command
attention.
The darker-spotted variety usually prevails in a cross between the
two colours, the offspring very seldom having the liver-coloured
markings. The uninitiated may be informed that Dalmatian puppies are
always born pure white. The clearer and whiter they are the better
they are likely to be. There should not be the shadow of a mark or
spot on them. When about a fortnight old, however, they generally
develop a dark ridge on the belly, and the spots will then begin to
show themselves; first about the neck and ears, and afterwards along
the back, until at about the sixteenth day the markings are distinct
over the body, excepting only the tail, which frequently remains white
for a few weeks longer.
The standard of points as laid down by the leading club is
sufficiently explicit to be easily understood, and is as follows:--
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