FILA411-USA: February 2012

The First Bulletin called "O Fila" published by the Commission for the Improvement of the Fila Brasileiro breed was issued in December of 1978, after its creation in March of the same year, in Sao Paulo.

There is so much historical material contained in these bulletins, that it feels like a special treat to read. I consider this collection to be the "big book" of the Fila. Most of the articles were written by Paulo Santos Cruz himself. Much of it contains very thorough real science of those times, which ranges from genetics and anatomy; to "How to's" of kennel construction, complete with an architect's project.

Interspersed with the technical articles about the Fila named "O Curso" [The Course], there are very informative articles about the evaluation of important Filas, results of the shows of the times, names of dogs and owners included and my personal favorites, stories of Filas!

Here are some excerpts from the article "O Fila, Boiadeiro, Onceiro e Amigo"

By Paulo Santos Cruz ["The Fila, The Cattle-driver, the Jaguar hunter and the friend "

The article starts right in with: "Dunga do Parnapuan foi o primeiro canino brasileiro exportado. Foi adquirido pelo príncipe da Baviera, Herzog Albrecht von Bayern."

[Dunga do Parnapuan was the first Brazilian canine to be exported. He was acquired by the Prince of Baviera, Herzog Albrecht von Bayern.] (picture of the prince holding Dunga below)

Mr. Cruz, proceeds to recount the story of how the dog who was born at the shore town where his kennel was located, arrives in his new home in the middle of prussian winter. After having been kept for 3 months inside the prince's Castle to be spared from the brutal cold, the dog was released to the fields during the thaw, at 6 months of age.

(original picture of Fila with Buffalo in "O Fila")

The first thing he sees is a grazing bull, which he then rushes to hold by he nose with his teeth, as he tries to bring it down. The Prince was so impressed and enthusiastic about the event, that he sends Paulo Santos Cruz a cablegram recounting the story in detail.

He explains that Dunga was born at his kennel in Santos [Santos is a Port city near Sao Paulo in Brazil, people that are born and raised there are referred to as "peixeiros", meaning "for the fish"] as well as both his parents, however both his grandparents had come from Minas Gerais, at very very early ages. It baffles Paulo Cruz that Dunga should have such a reaction being that he was so far removed in time and environment from his ancestors, having only his great-grandfather been a cattle-dog.

It is plainly clear how important to Paulo S. Cruz genetics and the inheritance of traits were, being that in every issue of the first bulletins there is mention and technically precise pages of articles about genetics. He asks some questions that are still unanswered today, despite our much more advanced molecular technology:

Genes transmit only somatic and physical characteristics, therefore, which is the vehicle that transmits that which we call instinct? In which molecule, atom or particle does courage get passed on from ascendents to descendants? Where is the figure of the Bull archived in the mind of the Fila? And where is the physical or chemical molecule that starts the gears which signal it's brain that that bull is the one archived and also the file in which how to handle the bull is written.. These questions are unsettling because they show us how genetics is still taking baby steps.

He was such a forward thinker, that I believe that if he were alive today, he'd take into account Neuroscience and Psychology.

He also recounts a story about another Fila of his, used as an extra for a feature film of the Vera Cruz studios called "Sinhá Moça" [a slave term for a young woman, daughter of a master - "young m'am"]. They needed Filas to play the part of dogs to go after runaway slaves, so Paulo S Cruz sends in Aimoré do Parnapuan. Every time they slate the picture, Aimoré wants to "get" the slate person. The director, Tom Payne tells Paulo that one day the dog started to pick up a scent in the air, which made him stiff and his hackles raise. At this point Martinelli, the animal wrangler for the movie, lets Aimoré take him to where the scent is coming from, only to find a jaguar in a cage. He immediately jumps on the cage and startles the jaguar which then cowers to the back of the cage.

(original picture from the "O Fila")

Aimore was also born in Santos, but his parents were from Varginha and Nova Lima, Minas Gerais, and taken to Santos at around 2 months of age. Again Paulo S Cruz, questions about Aimore's onceiro [jaguar hunter] genetic Inheritance..

He tells the stories of how cattle was driven from the Mato Grosso swampland or the plains of Goias to the slaughterhouses of northern Sao Paulo state, a journey that would take weeks. Facing ever present danger, man and dog become brothers by taking on the same jobs and risks . He describes the cur-style in which the dogs and cowboys work in:

To listen to the the call of the man, in a large gesture in extended arm, asks the dogs to circle the stock to push it to move left or right.. After the job is done, the stock is parked and kept by circling around the herd and keeping it stationary. After fires are lit, man and dog eat and sleep together, keeping a close eye on each other and on the stock.

(Filas from Farmland in the south of Minas Gerais)

He finishes this wonderful article with this lovely thought:

..kept in the cells of the pure-bred Fila are the Cattle-dog, the Jaguar-hunter, the friend, the cattle-driver, the fight against the big cat, the protection and guard of the man that knew how to be its master and friend, comrade and brother.

Mastiffs my come from civilized land, but, precisely because of it, their cells did not get that which makes us love the Fila Brasileiro.

Many generations later, the Fila still defies time and odds, by showing us it is still capable of being a cattle dog and a hunter, as well as a guardian. Even with the advances of molecular science and neuro-biology, we still cannot pinpoint how behavior traits get passed on, but the Fila has shown to be capable of adapting well to its original environment.