Cites L. Raymond-Mallock to Our Dogs, 'Kennel Pupils', Our Dogs 82 (13th Feb. 1931), p. 405.
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‘Sir,- I think Mrs. Raymond Mallock expects rather too much of her kennelmaid. After all, an ordinary training in kennel work does not include veterinary experience. A girl trained under a veterinary surgeon might know something of the points Mrs. Raymond Mallock mentions, but she will certainly have learned what not to do, and if her efforts were unsuccessful, and a vet. had to be called in after she had done her worst, he would be a very peevish vet., because his difficulties would have been greatly increased.

Honestly, I do not think the ordinary kennelmaid should be allowed to inquire into the position of unborn pups, or to deal with such drugs as pituitrin. I admit I have myself done all these jobs, but that was long ago, when my mother bred Griffons, there were no cars, we had no telephones, and our vet. lived 15 miles away; but I should never dream of doing it now if a vet. was available. If he was not, and it had to be done, I should not dream of asking any kennelmaid to do it, but should do it myself. Still I know well how many absolutely incapable kennelmaids there are, and I think the reason is partly this: Those who train them are presumably out to make money. I can imagine no other reason for doing it. Possibly they realise at once that a girl will never make good at their job, but it’s not human nature to tell her so when she is paying £2 or £3 a week. When she has done this for a year it is difficult to refuse her a reference.

There is another side. Some girls just won’t believe they are no use. I have two, both of whom had paid for expensive training. The first nearly drove me mad. Unless she was really scolded every third day she did not clean her kennels properly, and I had to ascertain that she had not overlooked one or two altogether. She would cheerfully let dogs out of their paddock accidentally and then go off, leaving them loose, and saying she supposed they would go up to the house. She had a good training for a much more lucrative profession, and I tried to persuade her that she was unsuited to kennel work, but she obviously did not believe me, and she went off to another place, but not with a reference from me. Another I had was even more useless. You could not trust her to fill up water-dishes at a given hour, but had to ask her each time if she had done it. She never had. Her first performance was to pick up a small puppy, quite unnecessarily, and let it fall with an awful bang on its head. She had not the least idea of her work, and set about it (in April) wearing fur-backed gloves. I told her that she really was not as she had represented – a fully trained kennelmaid – and she said that was “a great blow to her self-esteem.” I tried to persuade her as kindly as possible, that she was quite unfitted for the job, and would never do any good at it, but she was so anxious to stay that I consented to try for a few weeks if I could teach her anything. When I had two days running to send her back to clean for a second time a kennel that even she admitted smelt abominable, she just left, hoping, apparently, that her sudden departure would inconvenience me. As a matter of fact, it was far less trouble and anxiety without her. I don’t know if she took another job or not, but I doubt anyone else putting up with her for the ten days I did. Still, she was quite satisfied with her own performance. These are the obvious misfits, but if you can get a country girl, used to animals, willing and good-tempered, whom you can trust to clean kennels properly, take the dogs out walking, and feed them when you are not there, you are not doing too badly. Those who know a lot more than this come under the category of kennel managers, and can command high wages, and are difficult to obtain. I don’t expect many of them are as good at their jobs as they might be, but, after all, I don’t think I know any kennel owners whom I would care to put in charge of my dogs. – Yours, etc.,

Hester Higgens.’

Cited by A Sorely Tried Kennelmaid to Our Dogs, 'Kennel Pupils', Our Dogs 82 (20th Feb. 1931), p. 491.
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‘Sir,- I have read with mixed feelings your correspondents’ letters on kennel pupils. I’m sure if any intending pupils have read them, they must be somewhat bewildered by the varied advice and statements.

My advice to them, after my own experience as a kennelmaid and hearing those of a good many other girls, is to eschew kennel work entirely. In my opinion their chances of ever getting a living wage and being happy at it are extremely small.

Being very interested and keen on the work I have given it a good trial, but have been forced to the conclusion that, even given a decent position, there is nothing in it for an educated girl. There seems to be no chance of advancement, no matter how hard one works or how much one learns.

Two of your correspondents state that when a girl is proficient to take entire charge of and manage a kennel, she can command high wages. Can they substantiate their statement? Personally, I very much doubt if there are even a dozen kennelmaids earning £2 a week and all found – I don’t know of one; even that is not, I think, a munificent salary, when one has to dress nicely and save for holidats, old age, etc. Which brings me to a fact I have only recently learnt – namely, when one reaches the age of about forty the chances of a job are very slim. Yet many of us will still have to be earning our own living then.

I have been in five of the foremost kennels. I have always worked hard and conscientiously, but only in one place was I treated with consideration and made to feel happy. One of my employers housed her workers in (there is no other term for it) a hovel which had no sanitation whatever. At two other places it was of the most primitive type, and at all three places the bedding was horrible and the food insufficient and of the poorest quality. These three owners, when they engaged me, misrepresented the facts.

Most kennel owners, it seems to me, are too ready to say a girl is a fool just because she does things in a different way from them. They forget, I think, that the majority of them (the kennel owners) are more or less self-taught, and have therefore evolved methods of working and pet cures of their own. My five employers did practically everything in a different way from one another, and, no matter how adaptable one happens to be, a certain time must be allowed for getting into new ways.

There are some nice posts, but they are few and far between, and even in them the pay does not exceed more than about 25s. a week, with all your keep. I have never been able to get more than £1 a week, although I have kept on studying and making myself in various ways more efficient. At first I accepted even less, although I often took the responsibility of being left in entire charge of valuable dogs.

This is a long letter but I do hope you will publish it, as I feel it is time someone discounted the statement that a kennelmaid’s is such a very happy and lucrative career. - Yours, etc.,

A Sorely Tried Kennelmaid.’