The Perro de Presa Canario, its true origin
        MANUEL CURTÓ GRACIA 
       LA LAGUNA - TENERIFE 1991

 

THE ACTUAL PRESA CANARIO

To speak today of the Presa Canario is not easy. Much can be said not about that dog but of those multiple and diverse dogs. Six or seven years ago one could refer to the past, talk of  the few remaining dogs  of that present, and little else. And one could speak  of the future. But, what is the future? Recently I read an interview that FranciscoUmbral did to a veteran film and stage actor (Escobar), who says/said that the future is the only possible reality, the only thing that remain us. He was nothing silly this actor. The past no longer exists but live in our memory. The present is not more than a concept. The future is another matter. We all have a future, by which we live, the one that motivates us. The future is our reason for being. In the future we will be big, poor or miserable, lucky, rich, happy or not. In short, the future, our hope.
Around six or seven years ago, several fans of the Presa Canario Dog, in Tenerife and in Gran Canaria, exites  we talked, each on our side, with our acquaintances and friends, about our dogs, those of the present and those of the future. And we planned, of course.
 But the approaches  of Gran Canaria fans were not same or similar to those of Tenerife. The grancanarian thought/think in their dogs to fight, among other things, that is to say, the hunters thought their dogs for  hunting. The best dog, therefore, is the one that better hunt, the one than more pieces finds. The best dog of presa is the bravest, most powerful, the one who has not rival. In Tenerife the projects, except the  occasional rare exception, respond to other ideas. They thought (thinks) in a dog presa dog but not for the prey. That is, as a dairy  cow that is not going to have to give milk. In summary, a dairy cow only in appearance.

And what  happened? what is going on? I already said that is not easy to speak, today, about the Presa Canario. The grancanarian, seeing that the presa dogs  were already  almost thing of the past, because were not dogs, began to cross. The truth is that they started  to cross several years ago, but on very small scale and without fuss. And the truth is that at that time could think of it without  significant cost.
 Gustavo Rodríguez had English Mastiffs, and Neopolitan Mastiffs,which was  imported from England and Italy. This breeder soon  tired of these molosers - he prefered the dobermanns - and he sold them - before Gustavo Rodriguez; Jose Castellano imported Neopolitan Mastiff, and they crossed them thinking about dog´s fight -.
Juan Santana, associated whit the coroner, Jaime de Lorenzo, was benefited from an  acquisition. In a visit I made in those years to Gran Canaria (accompanied by the today secretary of the C.E.P.R.C., Manuel Martín Bethencourt, today both, us, irreconcilables), I saw in his kennels sited in the low part of Arucas, dogs of the breeds Great Dane, English Mastiff, English Bulldog, Staffordshire Bullterrier, and a Majorero dog of brindle coat. They had these dogs to cross tthinking in the  Perro de Presa Canario.
 And also benefited from this sale Don Manuel Alemán, butcher of Arucas, big fan of the presas and the fights. Mr. Alemán had in his house to Guanche, who was trained by the elder Pepe Ojeda, of Gáldar.
Sibling of Guanche was my female Piba, to Guanche even thought I insisted, would not let me photograph.  In the kennels  of Mr. Alemán I saw a Neopolitan Mastiff female and two Great Danes, Dobermann, two or three products  almost adult crossed of Dobermann, two or three puppies of about two months children of the Neopolitan Mastiff female with something.
In another visit to Gran Canaria I saw crossed of Neopolitan Masstiff in a fifty percent, crossed of Bullterrier, of Mastiff, of Majorero dog with Neopolitan Mastiff, of Bulldog with I do not know what, and several other crossings, without forgetting crossed products Bullmastiff.. And these dogs were fighting, that is of public domain.

Approximately one year ago I was invited at Las Palmas, to a concentration of Presas Canarios.- when I say presas canarios don´t understand breed - They were going to measure them thinking in a future racial pattern. Of this concentration of presas I conserve several photographies, that if at this time  have an interest, in a future it will have much more.
The specimen that seen and photographed in this concentration with the kind permission of their owners, were product of the such crossings, and there  was not some uniformity  among them, of course. Some were more Neopolitan Mastiff, others more Bullterrier, others more Mastiff, others more Bullmastiff, and so on.
That day invited me, in secret, to be present at one "Pechada" (dogfight  in canary style) in an unknown location, invitation that due my plane of Tenerife depart approximately at the same hour that  they were going to hold the dogfight, I had to decline.
In that concentration of presas, they told  me about  the Berry, the dog of Tauro, fifty percent Neopolitan Mastiff, and of the one of Salvador, the photographer of San Jose, who already I knew, also fifty percent Neopolitan Mastiff. And of course that in that concentration of dogs could not miss Demetrio Trujillo, with any  of his jet black dogs, and other old fans too numerous to mention. And something told, appart, one of them: "In Tenerife do not know what is a worth dog, because there they don´t  pechan (from pechada- fight) the dogs". That is, the one of the dairy cow.
-But the Club is in Tenerife, I said him jokingly. "That can put it in their..., what interest  us is to breed good dogs of presa, the one of the breed will be already clarifying itself. We will make our dogs gradually be a breed , but a breed with gusts".

And now we will devote some space, to be complete, to what has been done and are doing, in Tenerife.
In Tenerife is not practiced the dogs fighting, and there is not taste of them; if there were, then would be fights. And, although  it started something later that in Gran Canaria, has also been crossed.
And we will  see with which breeds. And let us mention some of the fans crossers, and I hope this does not disturb any of the aforementioned.
Before the founding  of the Spanish Club of the Perro de Presa Canario,  was already crossing here, but without determination, or at least as it is doing for three years here. And curiously, but that has its explanation, those that cross more, with big  diversity of breeds, are the members of the club of the breed, that according to what they affirm are recovering "the Breed", that is, the Presa Canario, of which they claim dates  back to centuries old, (the one that they have between the hand are product of crosses). Of course, from the president to the last partner (they are few members, that is the truth, in proportion of the amount of fans and breeders there is), no one has one of those old presas, which I call traditional.
 The members of the C.E.P.P.C.  have been limited, and they are confined, to cross with Bullmastiff (doctor Mario Montequi, Mr. Martín Bethencourt), Dogo of Bordeaux, Majorero Dog, Bulldog (Mr. Martín Bethencourt), Staffordshire Bullterrier, Argentine Dogo (doctor Mario Montequi, that I know), and other partners have crossed, before or after the foundation of the club, with Boxer, Great Dane, Majorero Dog, German Shepherd, Bouvier of Flandes, Bulldog, and other breeds.
And the C.E.P.P.C. does not stop to ratify itself in that of "we are recovering the breed". But what breed? We thought about a breed, they think about a breed, but as  things stand we can not talk of such breed.
Either they can come from the Central Canine Society of Spain, thye can come judges invited by the Club, or my submit draft standard, which is  what  to consider are the dogs, its diversity and its origin. And the grancanarios fans count, of whom the club totally ignore.
The presas of Gran Canaria need to taken in consideration, and observe them with magnifying glass; it is necessary to follow the movement.
That what matters is not what is displays in exhibitions, neither what the judges say (foreign long detached from this canine reality), or what they say the components of the C.E.P.P.C., or write casting pall of smoke  to hide the reality. And another truth that we must not forget: in Tenerife they breed meek dogs, without temperament, more of the times. Because what is look for is not the temperament of the animal, its fierceness, its nobility of character, its real physical strength. The only thing that they are looking for is the pure  appearance, the color (or brindles or fawns).
In Gran Canaria the color matters little. Before now, and from far back in the time, the presas canarios were selected by their skills, not by the color of the coat. White or black, brindle or fawn, stained or no, were not important "a good rush, the strong prey, and endurance", those were the qualities  needed to be a good Perro de Presa Canario. The dog that meet these characteristics could not be, never, gent with the strangers, neither cowardly or timid, nor was undecided at the moment of launch to bite the human intruder. That because so is the good dog to guard and defend homes and property.
And the future? The future is a reality that we walk step by step. The Presa Canario do minute by minute, day by day, year after year, in Tenerife and Gran Canaria (better in Gran Canaria - we will see if the time will give me or not reason -).
But one thing must be quiet  clear, namely  that, the Perro de Presa Canario is not a breed yet. Exist Presas canarios, a diversity of dogs that nothing they have to do with a breed.
 The C.E.P.P.C. believes  that "washing the head" to the members of the Central Canine of Spain (Now, and without loss of time) will recognize the Presa Canario, like breed, is subject that particularly does not worry to me. The paper holds everything what in it is written, whether or not certain, but the reality is not in the paper. The reality is into the hands of all those that we breed presas.
 And what interest moves to the author for not wishing to be recognized, at the moment, the Presa Canario?
Moves to the author the Presa Canario who is to become: uniform as a whole, of good conformation, outsanding temperament, and with all the traditional coats, that are, brindles, fawns, brindles and white, fawns and white, ash brown, and black. And all with level or scissors bite. Such were the presas canarios before its extinction.


Published by the author in "El Mundo del Perro", February of 1986
 

 

"Muti de Irema Curtó", puppy of presa canario at eleven mounths. Year 1991