Letter to Nehuel and Mencey

Dear friend Nehuel: I call you  friend due I saw  in some of your replies  to  Mencey that you defends  me like breeder and theoretician of the Presa Canario..

 Made this  courteous and pertinent  introduction, I want to say that I never liked the pseudonyms (writers and poets, men and women had used it, but not by whim but due social, cultural and  political imperatives, that in Spain no longer is justified since the democracy consolidated and everybody can expose their  ideas, as long as  them are  not acompanied by boms and shot in the nape.

In all honesty, I distrust of the people who hide themselves behind pseudonyms, and, much more, when those people talk about other people  by doing so with lies, critics, defamation, etc.

How different would things  if everybody show  the face, or write giving  the name with the last names, telephone and address, not with the aim to go to their  house to kick them   when they  said something against us that  does not have to do with the reality, but so that all we know who they are and where they  live.

  Mencey said about me  (I do not know who is Mencey), that “here in the Islands he dont have too much prestige” ...”he has some doggies but…” ask to the Club  about Irema Curtó and you will see what they tell you…”, “he is the one that is against the Club due he wants to change the Standard”  

 I deduce that Mencey is presero of new generation and, like neophyte, faithful follower of the teacher of all of them (the unconditional ones of the Club) Manuel Martín Bethencourt.

 I want to inform you  that when several years ago the Spanish Television in the Canary Islands wanted to make the first reportage about the Presa Canario dog, by recommendation of other preseros, they came to see me, they did not go to the Club.  When the reportage was almost finish (lacked only the  sound), there was change in the cupola of the TVE in the Canary Islands and all the work (that was produced, supervised, etc. by Cirilo Leal) remained for the posterity in the file of unfinished  reportages of  TVE.

 When the directors of the Italian magazine Pitbull and fighting Dogs (now Canidapresa) came to the Canary Islands with the purpose of documenting themselves  to make a reportage about  the Perro Presa Canario, they came to my house so that I lend them a hand with their work.  After long conversation, I said  them that if  they wanted  to make a complete  reportage they must  visit also  the directors of the Spanish Club of the Presa Canario, but  they refused, (I do not know why).

 When Juan Rodriguez and Alfredo Ayala, of Spanish Television in the Canary Islands, wanted to make a reportage of  the Presa Canario, they came to my house to speak  with me-,apparently who had spoken them about me was the  professor of the university institute of  Gran Canaria, Don Francisco Suárez Artiles, author of the inapreciable dictionary of  guanche´s vocable, Teberite. 

During  the conversation (first conversation) I said them  the same thing, that they must take in consideration  the Club of the Presa Canario, and also the directors of clubs of Gran Canaria, that  although were not recognized by the Royal Central Canine  Society of Spain, something would have to say about the Presa Canario.

 Throughout my activity (26 years) like breeder of Presa Canario, the different mass media like  daily press, radio and television, have resorted to me for explanations, commentaries, debates, etc. about the breed (at "La Cope" (radio) I made numerous programs related to the breed).

 I want to state also, that I never have been against the officiality, neither of the Royal Central  Spanish  Canine Society, of which I have been memeber  for more of a quarter of century, nor of the Spanish Club of the Presa Canario, yes against most of  the  directors, and of Manuel Martín Bethencourt, by what he  means (he is the head) within that Mafia – like someone of the Royal Central  Spanish Canine Spanish  denominates them -.

 And about  the Standard of the breed, with exeption of  some small lagoons and some details, very important ander my point of view, as they are  the lack of premolares, the prognatismo (undershot bite), etc. I think that is good, and so I had declared it in my writings. Who is not in  agreement with the present standard is Manuel Martín Bethencourt (and, by their influence, all those that  follow  him, and flatter him so that their dog become the next champion) that complete refuse  the black coat under the argument that  this color is result of  crossings with Great Dane.

 I say that well, that  to some presas canarios the black coat  would  come  by the black Great Dane like the fawn coat that  many presas canarios inherits it from fawn Great Dane (I can demonstrate it when they want and where they want presas  that descends, in part, from fawn Great Dane).  And  is an unquestionable reality that in the same litters where they appear puppies of black coat there are also of  fawn coat, brindle or bardina.  The moderately intelligent fan who knows of what I speak, will realize that those puppies of black coat are so Presas Canarios  like the fawns ones and the  brindles ones.

 If by reasons  of  racial purity is necessary to eliminate the puppies of black coat due they  descend from the Great Dane, it would be necessary to eliminate also all the others, and then we would be in front  an inevitable dilemma, this mean an alternative between two possibilities, to abandon the reconstruction (or construction) project of the Presa Canario breed  due it was included  among other breeds the Great Dane, or to accept the black coat without more debate. 

The black coat is included in the Standard of the breed, and  not due the arguments that Mr. Martín Bethencourt  exposes in his article, the Black coat in the Presa Canario, written after a visceral rage consequence of the reading of mine on the same subject, published in the newspaper El Día (Santa Cruz de Tenerife), in the Italian magazine Canidapresa, and the magazine Todo Perros, and that you can read in my web site, in Spanish or English.

 Sincerely, I dare to say that the content of my article on the black coat in the Presa Canario  adjusts to the reality and does not admit discussion, nevertheless the article of Mr. Martín Bethencourt does not resist the most elementary analisis.

 Says  Mencey also (with the same rigor), "personally I know most of the old perreros (I imagine that he talks about  preseros)...  To remember my  teacher Juanito..., and the majority are in agreement with the pattern ", (racial? I ask).  What majority of old preseros Mencey has known?  I invite him to mentions them.  And which Juanito he talks about, that he consider his teacher?, and teacher of what?,  and Mencey, student of what?,  by his declarations, affirmations, critics, censorships, etc. he seem  me a student nothing surpassed, little informed, nothing well-meaning, nothing objective, and little lover or sympathizer, of the study and the truth.

 I, indeed, I can speak  him of old preseros, without  doubt, and at my fifty and four years old (much more than half of them  in the Canary Islands and the majority dedicated completely to the Presa Canario), I  believe that you are nobody, by  your  little knowledge or your authority  moral (deduced from  what I read) to speak about  my person  in the terms that you do it in the Forum  of Mr. Nehuel.

   Respect to the presa that Mencey mentions, to say that Mencey, the champion of Spain, son of Verdugo, have dysplasia, and severe (according to version of the veterinarians that had x-rayed  them), just like Tamarán, of Casa del Presa, and Baron II, also of Casa del Presa, and about  Abedul is  commented that was  x-rayed and gave dysplasia, I do not know in what degree, and of Urco I will not say anything because I have not heard that he suffers that disease but I said yes, and written, that is a product of mestization in third or fourth generation with Bullmastif and that he gives tufo (appearance), by his phenotype, his color, his forelegs, his expression, by his  lack of temperament, etc. We must not  hide this reality, because they  are champions (always I say, champions of what?),  and one assumes that those champions must be racial prototypes, the example to follow by all the breeders. And what about the morphologic and fenotype differences between the different champions from Spain and their origins, and their  varied descendants?"

 "I live in the Canary Islands, concretely in Tenerife, where is Irema Curtó, of Manuel Mora", Mencey says.  My name is not  Manuel Mora (Manuel Mora is a man of La Gomera island, writer and publisher, who after buying me a presa Canario puppy for his son was so excited and wrote a booklet titled the Book of the Presa Canario dog). In Tenerife everybody related to the Presa Canario knows that my name is  Manuel Curtó Gracia (specially the directors and members of the Spanish Club of the Presa Canario), with national document of identity 78 043 912-J (and you?).

 And in the assumption case that indeed you  talk about me, it is clear that you does not know me, neither you has talked with me, nor you has been in my house, nor in my kennels, where I have "some doggies", of presa, of course.

 For that reason those of the Club loses the ass (excuse me) to cross whit my  males, stealthy always and avoiding as far as possible that the thing extends, and soon  they  register the puppies like offspring of another or other males, is not thus?

 No, Sir...,  how are you called?,  ah, yeah, Mencey. You know what  Mencey means?  (I think that you  have very  little of Mencey, to be a Mencey is necessary to be brave, truthful, integral, objective, impartial, etc. - in the rows of the Spanish Club of the Presa Canario few menceyes militate, believe me -), you do not know me, I repeat, you  have nor spoken with me, you have  not been in my house, nor in my kennels in where my presas canarios lodge.  And about to my reputation in the islands, I dare to say you that here I am  know, valued  and appreciate for many more people  than  you, dont keep  the minimal  doubt, and you knows why?,  because I have made much more than you for the  Presa Canario and during much more time. 

Nehuel, many thanks and congratulations for your  Forum.

 Manuel Curtó Gracia -11 April 2004