ides that his
powerful beak and sharp claws or talons were dangerous. I also once
had a pair of flying squirrels but they also only appear at night and
were consequently uninteresting in the daytime. We must always study
the natural habits of our pets and try to give them coops and food as
much like nature as possible. My flying squirrels were given soft feed
in place of the usual hard-shelled nuts. Consequently their teeth grew
so long that they were a positive deformity. We finally liberated them
but before they could get to a place of safety one of them was caught
and killed by a chicken. The poor little creature was so fat from
overfeeding and lack of exercise that he had all but lost the power of
using his legs.

Coops for pets may be as elaborate as our pocketbook will allow. The
important things to remember are to construct a coop so that it may be
cleaned easily, and to provide plenty of ventilation. It must also be
dry. Fresh air is as important for animals as for people. The larger
we can make a coop, the better it will be. Be careful not to overfeed
pets. Regular and frequent meals of just what they will eat up clean
is better than an occasional big meal. Rabbits require very little
water. Usually they will obtain enough moisture from the green food
they eat. It is a mistake, however, to think that water will kill
rabbits. Change the straw in the nest boxes frequently. When they make
fur nests do not disturb them.

For squirrels and other small animals, the coop may be made entirely
of wire except the baseboard, which should be a piece of seasoned
wood. Be sure that there are no sharp wire points or projecting nails
in a coop to injure the animals.

The whole secret of taming wild creatures is patience. We must try to
show them that we are their friends. The most direct way to an
animal's heart is through his stomach, which is another way of saying
that the owner should personally feed his own pets if he wishes them
to know him.

There is really no reason why a country boy or girl should have any
caged pets at all. In the city it is different. Perhaps the best pet
for the unnatural conditions of city life is a canary. The real spirit
to develop a love for the little creatures that inhabit our woods and
fields is to feel that they are our friends rather than that they are
prisoners. By all means cultivate the acquaintance of your "small
country neighbours."

THE DOG

Every boy should own a dog. He i