two legs. (But this is the way I wish you to tackle your doggie friends. Dash at any position, even if it is fleeting.
Sambo's body is somewhat contracted, and so is his neck. Roughly, he represents a triangular shape, as shown. The big muscles have fair play; the thin flank of the hind-leg and the shoulder-bone of the fore-leg are very noticeable. Also the shadows behind the upper part of the front leg and back leg force the rounded shape of the ribs.
Next comes beautiful Bracken (so named because of her glorious golden-brown and red coat). Her back is curved and her fore-legs coiled; on these rest her muzzle, now, alas! growing grey. The position suggests a perfect curve—out of which trails the long tail and left leg. Aim first at sketching the large coil of the big body, then the flat angle of the hind-leg, and the fullness of the trunk. The extended leg pushes up the position of the left shoulder-blade; also we can see the inner line of the neck. Between these two shapes trace the curve of the neck itself and the triangular shape of the head, and the soft flat line of the chest against the ground.
We should now examine the curious curve of the hind-leg and the way in which the muscles and sinews draw back, also the shape of the bone as it touches on the ground, and the great paw as it comes forward and lies limply at rest.
How different is Bracken's car from Ben's—long, soft, pendulous! And the brow is more benevolent and more deeply indented between the soft brown eyes.
A word of warning about muscular creatures at rest. When muscles are lax and sinews free from strain we are inclined (in our drawings) to forget them altogether, and a finely built dog sleeping will look, if we are not careful, far too limp and flabby a creature. We must always remember the muscles; note and draw them carefully, they will keep our drawings up to pitch.
Dogs leaping and jumping, dogs running—the jog-trot of the terrier, and the easy gallop of the deerhound—here are interesting subjects for your pencil and brush.
