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STORIES OF
PRESAS CANARIOS
- Pancho El Rey
- In those dates (decade of the 70´s) don
Pancho de La Paz Hernandez, nicknamed the King, was around eighty years
old -he was born in 1895-, was of medium stature, rose face, dark eyes
very vivacious, alway with hat (I never saw him without hat) of dark felt
or something similar, and covered with a esperancera (of La
Esperanza) blanket -variety of layer of white virgin wool probably of
Castilian origin with three or four transverse strips of black ewe wool
below-. When we arrived was seated in a bench of wood at the entrance door,
the man no longer saw or at a distance, for that reason when he heard us
he made since usually they make the old dogs, sharpen the view as if was
night or getting dark. Pedro, the son of Gabino and Doña Carmen, made the
introduction. Listen, Don Pancho, I bring you here a friend whom wants to
speak with you, about the dogs of presa. Don Pancho stood with difficulty
and he tended me the hand. Welcome, said Don Pancho, this is your house,
for what you need, sit down, is not bad here, I like to seat in this bench,
here between these trees, must be because one is old, the years do not
respect, you knows?, when I was young I did not stop, I was always doing
something; to maintain the family, that I have had many children to feed.
Don Pancho, interrupt Pedro, that the gentleman has come so that you tell
him histories on the presa dogs that you had, we have said him that you
had very good dogs of presa.
Yes, said Don Pancho with satisfaction face, were not bad, although, sure
there would be better than them, I do not say that no, I had one white,
good dog, yes sir! we called him Teide, and was truth of the land, and the
Leon, that was chocolate-like, and the Santiago, that was coloradito
(tan), today are not dogs of those, in short, the time passes and
everything is lost. To not tire to Don Pancho with our visit, half hour
later of be talking with him we said goodbye. Come when you wants, said
the man to me, that here you will find me always, unless I dies before.
Soon after I bought a property in the Guillén way -where I live since then-,
in front the one of Pancho El Rey. Coincidence of the life. Once in a
while Don Pancho said to some of my children, in those years kids, say to
your father that comes to visit me when he wants, that we will speak of
presa dogs, of how I taught them, in old way. Thus, when my occupations
allowed me, I was going to take coffee at home of Pancho El Rey, who
always was very contented of being able to speak of his past and his dogs.
By those days someone told an anecdote about him -that already I published
years ago- that made me felt the personage most affectionate. In the past,
Don Pancho taught dogs of presa, and sometimes without receiving, by
liking said him that he did it. In certain occasion a lawyer of La Laguna
took him a dog so that he teach him, and to fed him once in a while also
one sack of gofio -flour of toasted wheat-, but seeing the lawyer
that the dog was more and more skinny, said him: "Look, Don Pancho, that
the dog is skinny". Don Pancho watched the lawyer and with certain sarcasm
answered him: "No, the dog eats, yes, which happens is that he has taken
the classes very seriously". They were the years of postwar and the hunger
pressed all the spanish families of little economy, Pancho El Rey had, in
addition, very numerous family.
One afternoon Don Pancho sent me message so that I go to take coffee with
him. When arriving the man was seated in his bench of wood. Very near him
they were the dogs Moro and Deny. Moro was a black dog with brindles legs,
son of a Spanish Mastiff and a female of presa; Deny was son of Moro and a
female of no breed semi lupine of brindle coat. Both dogs were magnificent.
To this type of dogs we called them bastos (coarse), said me Don
Pancho, and they are not bad, no sir, this dogs are useful for the
necessities of the field, to guard, to defend, for the coarse cattle. At a
given moment, Don Pancho said to his son Enrique, go to the block of the
cows and give a pair of sticks on the dornajo - dornajo is the
eat recipient of the cows done of a drained trunk of canary pine-. Enrique
went to the block of the cows, the dogs followed laying there, near us.
Pancho El Rey continued speaking me of his dogs, I do not know if to
distract me, the certain thing was that I forgot the mission that was
going to fulfill Enrique. At a given moment sounded two uproarious blows
in the stable of the cows, that was distant about twenty steps from us. I
was surprised. The dogs rose as impelled and impetuous went towards the
entrance of the block, immediately afterwards heard conciliation voices,
was Enrique who tranquilized the dogs that barked agitated as if they
wanted to eat to somebody. Immediately afterwards, Enrique left the stable
with the dogs surrounding him, well,well, that is me, said to them, damn
with these dogs, that almost bite me!
To the dogs it is necessary to teach to defend their own house, said me
Don Pancho, and the thieves can enter by any place, for that reason the
dogs must go to any strange noise and attack. Look, comes, that I am going
to show you a thing, said Don Pancho, standing of his bench of wood, comes
here, you will see. I followed the passages of Don Pancho, that was
entered in the stable of the cows. Entering, in left side was a
dornajo with four or five tied cows of red color with heavy chains,
in the right side there was a great space to store the hay, and more or
less in the center was an old bench of carpenter.
Look, you knows what is that?, a carpenter bench, was of a carpenter
friend mine, who when retired not knowing what to do with it, gave it to
me, I have had always very special endearing to that bench, for that
reason is there, well, I taught to bite to the dogs of presa in that bench,
what seems to you?, and you will say that how, well; with burlap coats I
made a manikin more large as a man, with head, arms, legs, everything, and
I put him also a hat, and I filled it with straw, and with that I taught
the dogs to bite, had it hanging of that beam, half meter over the bench,
and in the legs, that I sewed and ripped to my wish, I put pork meat
inside, and I struck the manikin with a stick while said to the dog,
pega perro, pega perro, pega perro!! (strikes dog),
and thus until the dog understood, and once the dog learned, bit the legs
saying him pega perro, at the same time I gave sticks to the manikin, yes,
the animal rose in a jump to that bench and attacked the man of coat like
fierce, until broke it and then ate the pork meat, that was his food, soon,
was enough that one said to the dog, pega perro, so that the dog
bit what were, a cabbage, a tree, a cow, or to a person if it had been
necessary.
Don Pancho always said that the dog that does not have collar is as if he
did not have master. I always have taken the dogs loose, presumed Don
Pancho, for that I taught them, and they always went to my foot, or next
to the cart, if I went with the cart and the cows, and if I meet with some
friend who went accompanied of a dog, my dog did not go to the encounter
of the other, nor to smell it nor to anything, and if the other went
towards mine, this one backed down, and if the other wanted fight, mine
refused the fight, because a taught dog either does not take the
initiative, this one is take by his master, that for something is the
owner of the dog, and those dogs that go that way to the encounter of
everybody are good for nothing, and by its behavior is evident that their
owners do not know to have a dog, and to whom does not know to have a dog
I say him that he does not have dog, and less of presa.
For Don Pancho, to have a presa dog was not a game, it was something
serious, and it was necessary to have him well taught. Because the dog
without teaching does not serve for nothing, he said, however if it is
taught serves for everything, a taught dog is of much aid, and he can
remove one from many hardships, you understand?
Don Pancho died a few years ago, the time does not pardon, used to say.
Moro and Deny also died. His son Enrique (unmarried), who continues living
in the same house with an unmarried sister, has a coarse dog without
quality some that follows him everywhere, and tied with chains has other
four or five, one of them of presa, that gave him his to nephew Ricardo.
Ricardo is grandson of Pancho El Rey, son of Ricardo that is not
perrero. Enrique does not know to teach a dog, said me in certain
occasion Pancho El Rey, he like the dogs but he does not have taste to
teach them. Ricardo, the grandson of Don Pancho (that in peace rests and
in the Glory be) has had several dogs of presa in these last years, but he
has not been contented with any of them, bought to the boys of the club,
says, but nothing, has no served. Ricardo has come some days to learn the
office of agitator, he likes the work, but..., he works more hours of the
desirable ones, has girlfriend, and he want to marry, he has to make house,
once in a while have meeting with the architect, who are going to receive
from him about two million pesetas for the plans, the direction of works,
etc., etc., in short, that this life is not like the one of before, in
certain way we live better, yes, but one is nobody, Don Manuel, says
Ricardo to me, a job is not more than a job, a pay gives for little. The
girlfriend of Ricardo also works, that mean that together they will be
able to pay to the architect, and the house will do it with a loan with
mortgage, soon, who know when they will be able to have children, because
the life is very complicated today, ah!!. Ricardo wants that I sell him a
presa, clear, when he will be in the house, that has not begun to build.
Ricardo has liking and qualities for perrero, but...
Published in Canidapresa Magazine march-april 2001
Manuel Curtó Gracia
-Irema Curtó Kennels-
Presas Canarios playing to
hunt
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