Kuvasz has not achieved such success at a world event since the beginning of time.
We talk to Gábor Korózs, the president of the MEOESZ (National Association of Hungarian Breeders' Associations) on a bright May day at the András Korózs Memorial Dog Show event in Szilvásvárád.
What is the purpose of this event and what makes this exhibition special?
This exhibition has a sad story, my beloved brother András Korózs, who was the president of the MEOESZ for 16 years, passed away a year and a half ago. We have been organizing this event since 2001 based on a joint idea between the two of us here in Szilvásvárad.
The name of the current event became what it is because we remember it.
Our original idea was that this dog show also served to honor the Lipizzan horses, since throughout history, dogs have always been found next to the stables, and many of our canine friends have horses as companions in addition to dogs. The Lipizzan horse and its Europeanness and at the same time its connection to Hungary gave us the reason that the original event was organized here alongside the mother stud. This intention "came in", András and I organized it together twelve times. Unfortunately, now, for the thirteenth time, he is no longer here.
How many dogs participate in this exhibition, and what is the proportion of foreigners?
By now, this program has become a three-day series of events, as the dog show is complemented by countless hunting and sports events. During the three days, more than 4,000 professional judgments will take place, despite the fact that the Russian and Ukrainian dogs that used to participate in large numbers are sorely missed. Perhaps I can say that, in the eyes of the profession, this event is one of the 5 most important international exhibitions in Europe, and 50% of the participants are stable, as it was now, from abroad. The number of exhibitors from the Scandinavian region is exceptionally high, and they usually combine all this with a longer, 10-day or two-week vacation, which brings serious tourism income and recognition to the region.
Recently, an international dog show took place in Zagreb, where, according to my information, a kuvas achieved a surprising result. What exactly is this result and what do you think about the ranking?
Zagreb, 2024, the world exhibition took place with a record number of entries of 25,000 dogs, where many Hungarian breeders participated, and beautiful results were achieved. Perhaps the most important Hungarian-related news was the kuvas review, which I conducted myself, and I am very proud of the kuvas presented there, where an absolute surprise title was born. The kuvasz who won the world champion title and then the best of breed title represented the Hungarian kuvasz in the best in show, where a very famous judge colleague placed him on the podium, in third place in the shepherd dog category.
Kuvasz has not achieved such success at a world event since the beginning of time.
This result greatly excited the not only Hungarian, but also international judges and professional audiences interested in Hungarian shepherd dogs. Practically, during the 4 days of the world exhibition, I could not take two steps without someone stopping me with some questions or comments. The general opinion was that no one had ever seen such a beautiful gourd as this example, which was born in Brazil.
I didn't know this dog before, not even from the news, because as I mentioned, he was born in Brazil and competes in Canada and America, which is a rather special lineup. As I learned from the breeders, this dog is currently 7th in show points among all breeds in the American points competition, and leads the herding dog group.
I consider this a huge success, since the Kuvas is not a show type dog, but basically a traditional working dog.
This rarely happens to me, but when this dog entered the ring, I couldn't take my eyes off him afterwards. The dog's anatomy, movement, gender, show purity, snow whiteness and quality of fur were such that you simply couldn't take your eyes off of it.
It represented, and could represent, a kind of exemplary value for Hungarian breeders and exhibitors. For my part, I am very proud of this decision, which seems to be confirmed by the world. By the way, this dog competed on three days and won on all three days by three judges without us knowing about each other's decisions. This victory is a huge achievement, and at the same time a huge recognition and marketing support for the Kuvas, this ancient Hungarian shepherd dog breed.
Featured image: My dog
