Training For The Pit : Historical Conditioning.

Extract Taken From : The Sporting Bull Terrier​

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Full Edition Availble Soon​

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TRAINING FOR THE PIT ​

There are several systems for training the pit dog for self-defense or prospective battles. We consider the one employed by Mr. L. Bowser and which was published in his "Modern Methods," to be equal if not superior, to any of the others, and with a few eliminations we give it herewith:

This work is for four weeks or twenty-eight days, which is long enough to condition any dog for any battle. In fact, no dog can stand longer training and do well. Experience has proven that with a longer training a dog will become discouraged and train off. If these directions are followed strictly, a dog can, as far as his condition is concerned, fight for four hours at top speed.

I will give each day's work separately. Minor changes may be made by the trainer to suit local conditions, such as bad weather, etc. I give this order for the benefit of professionals as well as for amateurs, for I have had for opponents the best conditioners the country affords, and have yet to meet the man who has shown a dog in as good condition as mine. I train a dog's bite as well as his wind and strength If he can't beat his opponent to a hold, and bite it when he gets it, he is not worth a bet Any dog that I train is quick to a hold and has the jaw-power to punish.

[font=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]First Day.

[/font]It is to be supposed that your dog is over weight, and is fat and soft. His feet are soft and his toe-nails long. The first thing to do is to clip the toe-nails off, but not so close as to cause bleeding. This will prevent him from tearing them off in his work Then give him a good bath in lukewarm water, and rub him dry. Use one ounce of creolin to every three gallons of water for his bath. His quarters should be warm and well ventilated, but absolutely free from draughts. His bed should be of good, clean straw, and this should be frequently changed.

Now weigh your dog and you are ready for your first morning's road work. Take your dog out on the chain and lead him about four miles. Never lead a dog behind a horse or buggy, as this fills him up with dust and prevents him from emptying out or urinating when he desires On returning, give him a good hand rub, always rubbing with the play of the muscles Then put your dog in his quarters until three o'clock in the afternoon. At that time take him out for a short walk, long enough for him to empty out Then hitch him to the training machine (described elsewhere) for a run of three minutes Then take him for a slow walk until he gets thoroughly cooled off. Then take him to your training quarters and rub him well with a Turkish towel, following this with a good hand rub as in the morning. Then wash his feet, first with clean water, and then with a wash made of white oak bark steeped in water. This will toughen his feet. Then allow your dog all the boiled water he will drink. Twenty minutes

18 19 THE SPORTING BULL TERRIER

later feed him his daily meal This should consist of about one pound of thoroughly boiled lean beef chopped fine and made into a mush with corn meal. This should be sufficient for a day's feed for a forty-five pound dog

I usually take three pounds of first-class lean beef and boil until soft, leaving about two quarts of the broth on it I then sprinkle in enough corn meal to make a thick mush, stirring the mixture until the corn meal is well cooked. Cool this and you have sufficient for three days' feed

A dog should not be fed more than once a day? Digestion takes place much more slowly in a dog than in most other animals, the food remaining in the stomach for twelve hours and requiring ten hours longer for intestinal digestion

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Second Day.
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[/font]At about 7.00 a m take your dog out on the road for at least a four-mile walk, allowing him to empty out and urinate as much as he desires. When you get back, let him work on the coonskin and spring-pole (described elsewhere) for five minutes. Be sure you time the work with a watch No guess work You must know exactly how long he works, so that you can see how he improves on a certain amount of work Then you are to gradually increase his work as he becomes stronger in wind and limb. When you are done working him on the coonskin, cool him off by walking him slowly. Then take him to his quarters, give him his hand rub, and wash his feet in the white oak bark solution Then give him all the boiled water he will drink, and put him in his quarters until 3:00 p. m.

Right here I wish to say that you should always give your dog, when thoroughly cooled off, all the boiled water he wants to drink all the way through his training. It does not fatten as does unboiled water, and will assist you in preventing your dog from becoming feverish I have seen dogs nearly crazy from a desire for water after fighting for only twenty or thirty minutes. In fact, I have seen good game dogs that when fighting in that condition would rather scratch at a bucket of water than at their opponents.

At 3:00 p.m., after his usual walk to empty out and urinate, hitch your dog to the training machine and run him, say three to five minutes. Then take him for a walk to cool off, and go to the scales Give him the usual hand rub, and wash his feet in the white oak bark solution Then put him in his quarters, first allowing him plenty of boiled water to drink, and feed him twenty minutes afterwards


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