On Sunday, Bagalkot set the record of becoming the first city in the country to host the first ever exhibition of dogs only of Indian breed.
The extravagant event in which around 230 canines of different breeds had gathered to showcase their strength and sense of obedience, was organised by Society for Indian Breeds of Dogs (SIBD), an affiliated body to Kennel Club of India.
“It is just great to see so many different dogs here”, said Shalini Asnotikar, an Engineering student of Mangalore who is a dog lover. Though dogs of breeds such as Pashmi, Combai, Rajapalayam and Caravan hound were present, the dominating among them were the local, Mudhol hound breed.
B.C. Ramakrishna,president of SIBD, said that Mudhol hound, one of the domestic breeds, had got itself registered in the league of international breed of dogs. “ It is surely a matter of great pride for us”, he said.
Informing that the Union Government, in the recognition of Mudhol hound, had released a stamp, he said that this breed is being developed as sniffer dog for police and security personnel for its sharp memory and obedience.
With this lean yet sturdy physique and pointed face, Mudhol hounds instantly caught the attraction of the people during the event.
Sharing his opinion, Raju Anneppanavar, one of the participants who owns a Mudhol hound, said that the event encourages the canine owners and also to people to raise the dog as pet. The objective of the event was to spread awareness about the Indian breed of dogs, protect and promote them, Mr. Ramakrishna said.
Claiming that India once was home to 27 varieties of domestic dogs, he regretted that the owing to negligence, the country had lost some of the best breeds forever. “ Today, we have only seven Indian breeds, and if not protected, we may lose them too”, he said.
Earlier, inaugurating the event, District In-charge Minister, S. R. Patil promised to get an ambulance for dogs as demanded by Mudhol Dog Research and Information Centre, Timmapur. He also assured get a multi-special hospital built for canines at the centre with the help of Union Government.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> National> Karnataka / by Firoz Rozindar / Bagalkot – November 16th, 2014