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114th National Exhibition of Fila Brasileiro CAFIB

11th Exhibition of Fila Brasileiro CAFIB of Varginha

Américo Cardoso dos Santos Júnior
Tradução: Luciana Teixeira Gomes

The city of Varginha, in southern Minas Gerais, is considered by CAFIB the symbol city, or the world cradle of Fila Brasileiro, because it was there where the official history of this dog breed began, in the 1940's. As usual, in these circular letters about our Analyses and Exhibitions, we also register some historical data and curiosities about the region.

The farmers in southern Minas Gerais, influenced by the expansion of the coffee culture in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, also started planting coffee trees in the 1870's. Today, coffee farming is the most important agricultural activity in this geographical area, which accounts for 25% of the entire Brazilian production. There, the highlight is the municipality of Varginha, chosen by the National Confederation of Agriculture and Livestock and by the National Rural Learning Service (CNA/SENAR), together with their federations, to host the first Center of Excellence of Coffee-growing in Brazil. It is one of the ten Centers of Excellence of Professional Education and Rural Technical Assistance idealized by CNA/SENAR to attend the several productive chains of the agribusiness, making Varginha a national reference in the coffee sector

Despite all this prominence in coffee culture, what led the city of Varginha to achieve enormous national and even international repercussion in 1996 was the disclosure of several reports about UFO (unidentified flying objects) sightings and even immediate third-degree contacts with ETs (extraterrestrial beings). The unexplained death of several animals from the local zoo was reported, in which the autopsy indicated that the cause was an unidentified toxic caustic substance, in addition to the blackening of the stomach and intestinal mucous membranes of the victims. The death of a strong and healthy military policeman, just over 20 years old, who died of a generalized infection a few days after having participated in the supposed capture of one of the aliens, was also mentioned. The ufological community promoted a pilgrimage to the site and the sensationalist news strongly leveraged tourism, bringing great socioeconomic benefits to the city. Drawings of the ET, which became the municipality's mascot, began to illustrate several advertising campaigns; many dolls were sold with its shape and wearing uniforms of different soccer clubs; bus stops evoked alien visits; a huge water tank, 20 meters high, in the shape of a spaceship was built; and, in 2019, a complex called the ET Memorial was inaugurated, with a simulacrum of a space ship at the entrance, to celebrate the first alien visit to the city. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil in 2020, these statues scattered around the municipality have received protective masks, an idea suggested by local doctors to highlight the importance of prevention measures for the disease.

Varginha is one of the 34 municipalities bathed by Furnas Lake, called "the Sweet Sea of Minas Gerais" and considered one of the biggest tourist attractions in the state, with its stunning canyons, waterfalls and trails, as well as floating attractions such as pubs, restaurants and even an inn on an anchored boat. It is a body of water that floods an area of 1,400 km² and feeds the turbines of nine hydroelectric plants, Furnas being the main one. Its construction was started in the 1950's by the then President of the Republic, the miner Juscelino Kubitschek (1902 - 1976), and forms one of the largest artificial lakes in the world.

In the history of the Fila Brasileiro, it was in Varginha, where, as we have already mentioned, eight decades ago, that attorney Paulo Santos Cruz acquired from farmer Zé Gomes his first Fila Brasileiro puppy, the female Lupe, the first litter of his legendary Parnapuan Kennel, registered in 1951. Some years earlier, in 1947, 1948 and 1949, engineer João Ebner had already registered three litters, all sired by Tita do Rancho Alto, the first two times sired by Bumbo da Vila Paulista and the third time by Bacho do Vale da Decisão. Paulo Santos Cruz, very enthusiastic about the strong natural guarding instinct of the breed, returned several times to this region of Minas Gerais, both driving his car and flying small rented airplanes, to acquire puppies and adults and take them to his residence in Santos, on the coast of São Paulo state.

In March 1980, when CAFIB, already disconnected from the then BKC, held its second Analysis of Phenotype and Temperament, in São Paulo, the founding judges of the club, Airton Campbell, Américo Cardoso dos Santos Jr., Paulo Santos Cruz and Roberto Maruyama, evaluated 40 dogs. Coming from Varginha, breeder José Hamilton Alves Pereira was one of the first to arrive. On board of his truck, on whose doors were painted the name of the Kennel Aquenta Sol and the picture of a Fila Brasileiro, he brought seven dogs to be evaluated. Among them was Maroto da Jaguara, with excellent type and structure. José Hamilton - a successful farmer in the areas of poultry, dairy farming, and coffee farming - eventually became CAFIB's representative in the region, where he was our guide to many farms where we came to find, and use in breeding, great examples of the breed. There, he also promoted several Phenotype and Temperament Analyses followed by exhibitions.

Now, on November 27, 2022, the João Urbano de Figueiredo Filho Exhibition Park, the city's agricultural showground, was the stage for the 114th CAFIB Fila Brasileiro National Exhibition and 11^th CAFIB Fila Brasileiro Exhibition of Varginha, an event that constituted the closing round of the CAFIB World Championship 2021-2022. With the important support of the feed company Quatree, the judges of the show were the founders and directors of CAFIB Airton Campbell (São Paulo, SP), who judged the males, and Américo Cardoso dos Santos Jr. (Vargem Grande Paulista, SP), who judged the females. They were assisted by the President of the Club, Mariana Campbell (São Paulo, SP), who was also the official veterinarian of the Analysis and of the Exhibition, by Marcus Flávio Vilasboas Moreira (Belo Horizonte, MG) and by Elisabete Sayuri Hino (Guarulhos, SP), who was also in charge of the videos and photographs. Cleide Maria Cocito Cardoso dos Santos acted as secretary. The people responsible for organizing the event were Anderson Nogueira Luz (Varginha, MG), from the kennel Fazenda da Serraria - vice-president of the Union of Rural Producers of the city, entity that owns the Exhibition Park - and Átila Branquinho Dias (Três Corações, MG), from the kennel Barão dos Filas. The subject of the temperament and nervous system tests was Helder José Rodrigues.

At the Phenotype and Temperament Analysis, which began the event, 13 dogs attended, and all were approved. And, from the Exhibition, which had 55 registrations, 47 Filas participated. The results and classifications in all classes are already available at CAFIB's website, but it is worth mentioning the impressive achievement of the breeder and exhibitor Marcos Abrão Borges de Melo, from Jardim da Lapa Kennel, in Governador Valadares, MG, Brazil. He was the winner of all seven categories of this CAFIB World Championship 2021/2022: Breeder of the Year, Exhibitor of the Year, Breeder of the Year, Broodmare of the Year, Temperament of the Year, World Champion and World Champion. As if this incredible feat were not enough, he also won another unprecedented triumph. The World Champion and World Champion of the Annual CAFIB Championship, which has been held since 1982, are two litter brothers from his breeding and property: Logan Jardim da Lapa and Leoa Jardim da Lapa. As a curiosity, more than three decades ago, in the 8th edition of our Annual Championship, in 1989, the doctor Paulo Fernandes Soares Angotti, from the respected Ibituruna Kennel, also from Governador Valadares, MG, was, in the same way, the winner in all categories, which, at that time, were only three: he became Breeder of the Year and his dogs Óscar do Ibituruna and Fábula do Ibituruna won the titles of Brazilian Champion and Brazilian Champion.

CAFIB registers with emphasis, the already constant presence in our events of the Costa Rican breeders José Mario Rojas Ocampo (lawyer) and his wife Ligia Chaves Rodríguez (who was a nutritionist for the Costa Rican National Soccer Team). These friends, Fila Brasileiro enthusiasts in Costa Rica, own El Isidreño Kennel, where they keep a large amount of dogs. José Mario has donated Fila puppies to the Costa Rican police, who consider this breed to be the most qualified to trace missing persons. And he showed us a video, recorded by the police of his country, in which the dog found the remains of the victim, buried five meters deep. Still as a curiosity, this small nation stands out for its respect for nature, preserving native forests in half of its territory. With one of the greatest bio diversities in the world, Costa Rica, a country of ecological tourism, registers more than 1,400 species of orchids and more than 1,500 species of butterflies.

Thanking the organizers of the Varginha Show, greeting the Fila breeders and owners who gave us prestige with their presence and congratulating the winners and classifieds, CAFIB wishes Happy Holidays and an excellent 2023 to all.