Like father, like son
by: Mireya Denigris
It happened 2 years apart, on days completely different from each other. However, the feelings were the same, happiness, excitement, pride. At 2 different times our 2 black Filas, father and son were selected “Best in Show”.
October 12, 2001, St Charles, IL. Gray skies over our heads, show # 5 of the ARBA Windy City Classic was taking place as scheduled, suddenly a pouring rain forced all the participants: dogs, handlers, public and owners to find a shelter, the rainfall kept coming and the show had to go on. The organizers of the event were able to accommodate the competitors in a covered area of the Fair Grounds and with the sounds of rain as a musical background, one by one the different breeds made their appearance in the ring.
Windsor Spring Alex, (Apache), our black Fila, 26 months of age at the time, had made it all the way through best in class, best in breed, and best in group. The moment of truth was getting close; all the finalists were beautiful examples of their breeds. The judge, Ms. Lesli Valiunas took a final detailed look at all of them; she was ready to make a decision. Outside the rain continued to fall even harder, perhaps as an unusual way of presenting the results… and the winner is, the judge said: “The Fila Brasileiro.”
My husband Nick, who is the official handler of our dogs, rewarded Apache with a little play and the typical, “good boy”. I could feel Nick’s and Apache’s hearts beating as fast as mine even when I was several feet away with the audience. Apache, with a perfect camel pace, walked around the ring to receive his ribbon, he was “Best in Show!” |
