This was a very fast decision. The time of departure, ticket reservation, resignation from an extra job – all these decision took only a second.

I had decided that August, 30 was going to be the day of my trip to get another dog and by occasion I wanted to visit some of the best CAFIB Fila husbandries.

I was welcomed with a wonderful Brazilian sunrise which showered the whole city in yellow and orange rays. All the surroundings were flooded with those warm colors – little islands on the ocean, houses in the hills. Everything was green even though it was the middle of winter.

I spent two days in Rio walking on the beaches of Copacabana and Ipanema. Two days is too little time to really get to know the people but it’s long enough to see that their cordiality and warmth are sincere.

The next stage of my trip led me to my new dog. After almost an hour flight I landed in place where my adventure with Brazilian Fila was supposed to begin. I was very excited to see these pets in their natural environment and to confront my earlier believes about these dogs.

I was interested solely in CAFIB Fila which I had expected to look and behave differently from the dogs that we are able to see here. I was not disappointed. Everything that I saw looked the same as in the pictures that I had seen in the past. Fila are of average built, strong and full of ojeriza. Every time that I visited new husbandry, the dogs were kept in cages or on leashes and kept in a safe distance from me. Fila is a harmonious built dog with graceful movements and a little bit sad eyes. Every CAFIB representative of this race has all these characteristics.

Every year there are special exhibitions of Fila in Brazil where the dogs are examined in the context of their looks, temperament and ojeriza which should be shown by the pets to strangers. Every dog that doesn’t pass this exam will not be given permission to reproduction. It’s one of CAFIB’s objectives. I had not met any Fila which would not be aggressive upon seeing me for the first time. Even 3, 5 month old puppies were growling at me and wouldn’t let me come near them. What really stroked me was the fact that every Fila which was sold while being 2, 5 month old, after few months in a new place, did not recognize his/her old masters and was very aggressive towards them. It was a great pleasure to see several dogs of the same phenotype which, apart from few details, looked almost the same. This is characteristic only of best qualified keepers who are able to preserve their “type” of the dog. There are no dogs which would look like Mastiffs or the Great Dane. This is thanks to the very strict selection of dogs which have the permission to reproduction.

I would like to present one more of my observations. In Brazil no one walks their Fila on a leash in the city. No one tries to socialize the dog with strangers. Such situations are possible only in places where people do not know this race of dogs. When I spoke of “socialization” of these dogs in my country, Brazilian keepers were simply shocked and surprised.

Brazil made a great impression on me with its diversity, culture, wonderful views, friendly people, great climate and excellent food. But what really draws me to this country are the most wonderful and amazing dogs which I would never meet at any other place.