A SCHOOL IN THE WOODS.—Drawn by A. Hoohstein.
[RABBITS AS PETS.]
As a matter of course all boys and girls love pets, and the number they own is probably only limited by the space which their parents are willing they should devote to such purposes.
But very many boys are too liable, after they have had their pets a few days, and the novelty has worn off, to neglect them, and the little prisoners suffer more from want of care than, when they were first brought to their new home, they did from too much attention.
If your parents have decided that you can keep pets, do not get too many, for fear that they will need more of your time than you will be willing to give; and then be careful that you care for them properly, first learning what they need.
Since rabbits are more easily cared for than almost any other kind of animals, and can be procured more easily and cheaply, repaying their owner for his care by producing a large number of young ones, it may be a favor to many to tell just how these pets can best be kept.
In England, where a great many men keep rabbits, and raise young ones in order to produce as many and as peculiar kinds as possible, one is able to buy all the fancy varieties, each of which is known by the manner in which the ears are carried. One kind is known as the "oar lop ears," another as the "horn lop," and the most expensive as the "real or perfect lop," where the ears hang straight down each side of the face. Then in these fancy varieties of rabbits the chin must be formed in a certain way, and the back must arch so that it is carried at least two inches higher than the head.
In that country very high prices are paid for what is called a perfectly formed animal; but since the habits are the same whether the ears hang down properly, or the back is sloped instead of arched, a pair of common white pink-eyed rabbits will afford quite as much pleasure as an expensive pair which do not look nearly as pretty, except to those who make a study of the animal.