filaman@fila.org
BODIE RAGNAR, SON OF GABRIEL by Peter Lundell of Gatlinburg TN 3-15-98
So, I thought all the claims, all the superlatives in describing Filas had to be pumped up with at least a little hype. Now, doesn’t everybody who fancies a certain breed consider that breed the very best? When Paul told me that he had once owned a 170 pound Rottweiler, and anyone of his adult Filas could eat him for breakfast and then ask what’s for desert, well, just imagine me rolling my eyes upward on the other end of the phone. That’s before we met GABRIEL! After researching different protective breeds for over a year, I found myself going back to a copy of Filatalk and re-reading the many articles of devotion for this highly unusual canine (at least that’s it’s classification). Now Filas must have some negatives, right? I did not want a dog that barked all the time, a dog that was hyper and wired. I did not want a dog that if you cracked the door would be off like a shot and have you running all over the countryside attempting to find him. Especially, since bordering our acreage is 530,000 acres of the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. I did not want a dog that could become a fear biter. I did not want a dog that I might have legal problems with because of being overly aggressive. I did not want a dog I had to spend large sums of money in order to train. I did not want to have to take him to obedience school. I didn’t want a stubborn dog, a lazy dog or a stupid dog. And then we saw Gabriel! In every other protective breed, I was cautioned about the drawbacks to owning them. But, I didn’t want just a guard dog. I wanted a devoted, loyal companion, a loving and affectionate friend in a dog. What sense does it make if you can’t trust your dog around other people, or you have a dog that must be put up all the time? So here I am coming in on Paul and Helen’s driveway, the welcoming committee running along both sides of my vehicle. The largest, most beautiful dogs I had ever seen were there to greet me. However, I dared not open the door until Paul came out and the dogs knew we were welcome guests. When the other dogs lovingly greeted us and calmly kept circling myself and a friend, a former NAVY SEAL and one of my martial arts students, we were introduced to Gabrial. Gabriel’s size, majesty and bark would stop any would-be intruder in his tracks, by sight alone. If you thought he might bite you’d probably have a coronary first. My friend whispered, "I hope he likes us. I’m not sure it’s safe to look at him!" I laughed silently to myself, at that moment I knew I would be a Fila owner! Now, BODHI RAGNAR, Gabriel’s son, lives at my home. A beautiful red brindle, nine week old pup who weighs 40 pounds today, and growing at the rate of a pound a day. Oh yes, he stands 18 inches at the shoulders already. He looks like he’s going to be a big boy when he grows up. A friend commented, "His feet are already as large as our three year old German Shepherd. "Where are the negatives? If you consider being loved too much by your pup, then count one. If you don’t like a dog to nuzzle his head on your neck and shoulder or lick your cheek in the morning when he discovers you are awake, then count two. If you consider a pup who wants to learn to fetch a ball, play tug of war with a rope or insist you play sit, stay, down and come with him, then count three. By now you’re probably rolling your eyes up in your head and thinking, "This is got to be a bunch of hype." Well, let me tell you more, how about being paper trained in ONE DAY? How about learning to sit, stay and come on command - in ONE DAY? How about learning the same commands in sign language - in ONE DAY? How about a pup who loves raw carrots, garlic, parsley, herbs and cod liver oil with a passion? How about a pup who never wakes you up at night? How about a few more superlatives? The other evening I was watching an excellent and very popular video on dog training. It was called, "Raising Your Dog With The Monks Of New Skete". They were putting a dog in stay on a 40 foot lead and then calling him. I told my wife, "Our Fila can do that on his first try, without a lead!" Moreover, I told Bodhi, stay with a silent hand motion, walked more than 40 feet to another room in the house, clapped my hand once and he instantly bounded with the speed of lightening to a sit position by my side. This was his first time ever, and he has not forgotten it. When Helen told me how smart Filas were... well, I thought to myself, I hope so, but... So, now how can I expect you to fully believe me? Here goes - BODHI is so smart that he even puts his toys back into his laundry basket. After playing with his ball or one of his ropes or a rawhide chevy, he absolutely puts them back into his basket. If you give him a chew toy and he doesn’t want it he will put it away in the basket! Don’t you wish you could teach your kids that trick? My wife came into the room and asked me if I put his toys away. I told her I thought she had done so. We both looked at each other in a blank stare, and then at Bodhi. He just waged his tale, ran to his basket, pulled out his rope and bolted across the room happily. So, if you have a Fila, forget the tapes and training manuals. If you don’t have a Fila, then I can recommend some. So how’s that for a Fila? And if this is how he is at nine weeks - wait until you see him when he grows up. And if you want one of his pups, if he decides to have any when he grows up... Well, all I can say, is you better start saving a-lot of money now! FILA PROTECTION IN THE WOODS Paul Schuetz Shoo-its Mountain Filas Turtletown TN. I was in Atlanta one evening on business, and Helen stayed home. At that time we had three Filas ,and they lived in the house and on the front porch. As I mentioned we live in a remote area which is heavily wooded. Helen was home alone and about 11 that evening she said all the dogs started barking. Not a normal bark, but very ferocious sounding. She knew something was wrong and looked out the kitchen window and could see the outline of two figures out by our generator room, where I keep tools, chain saws etc. Helen called the police immediately, as we are a half mile off the main road with nothing but woods around us. There was no car to be seen, just the two men. She said two Filas (Gabrial and Mariah) were patrolling the 6 foot wood picket fence, while the other (Bianca) stayed right at the front door of the house protecting the entrance. She said the dogs were actually signaling each other and working as a pack protecting her. As the men moved off into the darkness, Gabrial and Mariah move off to the side and then the back of the house. We have a basement door that is quarter inch steel welded to a giant steel wood heater, but there is no latch on the outside of it, and no way of getting in that way. The dogs must have known this, because they made no attempt to protect this entrance. Even when Gabrial and Mariah were in the back of the house, Bianca stayed faithfully at the front door (at full attention with her hair straight up and in the protect mode) and would not leave. The police showed up about 20 minutes later and walked the woods with flashlights, but never found anyone, and saw no car either, so the men must have walked up. We never did find out who they were, but the dogs definitely stopped a burglary or much worse. Don’t Under Estimate Your Fila by M. Dowdy Locust Grove GA. I have to comment on Q’s Comments from issue 10 of Fila Talk. I think Mr. Quy sold the Fila Breed short in his description. I’ve owned Filas since 1987 and attended many shows, temperament tests and working events. Mr. Quy is correct when he says the Filas #1 job is to guard and protect its property, and do this with undying loyalty to his owners, but there is more to the breed than just that. Go to the breed standard and you’ll read "He is well directed by instinct to hunt big game and to do cattle herding". The correct Fila does have prey drive, and usually a VERY strong prey drive. Prey drive is best described as the instinct to seize a moving object; the desire to hold it is his mouth, and to possess and dominate it. This is an inherited trait and not learned behavior. The trait can clearly be seen even in young pups. Throw a soft toy or knotted sock and watch them tear out after it. The retrieving instinct is not strong in most Filas, so rather than bringing it back to you, they usually grab the toy and run off with it and settle down in an out of the way spot to chew it to bits. Some Filas may have weaker prey drives, but among the hundreds of Filas I’ve seen I would say the strong prey drive is the rule, not the exception. Since it’s inherited you can increase this drive by careful selection of parents with strong prey drive. It is the same force that motivates the Fila to possess and protect his property and owners. The same drive that makes him the ideal guardian of Brazilian cattle. The same force that keeps his nose to the track of the blood trail of a wounded deer. I have talked to Fila owners that hunt with their DOGS. Not as one would use a bird dog to find and flush out birds, but as tracking dogs to trail and recover wounded game (usually deer). I’ve known them to be used to hunt wild boar. In Brazil they are used in a pack to trail Jaguar and to tree them for the hunter, or to kill the cat before the hunters arrive (if you’ve ever seen your Fila attack something small and furry you know there isn’t much left when they are finished). As for the ability in schutzund or ring sport, many of them would do fine in the agitation. The problems occur when the helpers refuse to take a hit from the Fila. A Fila hits the "bad guy" a lot harder than most breeds. They are also less likely to bite the sleeve, and show a great desire to leap over or under the sleeve to bite the face of the "bad guy". Since their first love is protecting their owners they don’t like to be sent long distances across a field to attack, but prefer to stick close to their owners in case the "bad guy" comes to close. This is the reason they don’t chase deer into the next county, they return to check on their owner. I do agree with Mr. Quy that the Fila may not be a good candidate for search and rescue, but for different reasons. It isn’t that the dog won’t search and find the missing person, but rather the response the person is likely to receive once found. The correct temperament is a dislike for strangers. When a lost person is found, they will most likely be overjoyed to be rescued. This is often shown by grabbing the rescuer around the neck, or hugging and kissing the rescue dog. Most Filas would not take kindly to that sort of welcome by a stranger. Now if you are hunting an escaped convict, or using the dog in a wartime situation (as the Brazilian’s have done) the Fila is excellent for search and recovery work. Filas and livestock is an area of great variance. As I understand it in Brazil they are mostly used as guardians for the herd. Protecting from Jaguars and other predators along with protecting the herdsman. Some dogs are "catch dogs" and work as "bulldogs" catching or throwing the cattle to the ground, allowing the cowboy to brand or doctor them whatever. Others work as "drovers" acting to round up and drive the stock to other grazing areas. Most of the American Filas when given the chance to display their "cow" ability fall into one of these categories. My male was a "catcher" When he was given the herding test, he wanted to bunch the cows together and prevent them from moving. When he was challenged from one of the cows, he grabbed it by the nose and held on. I’ll bet with a little training he could have been used to throw the cow to the ground. His herding instinct certificate (HIC) reflects his ability as a "catch dog". Other dogs in the trials would group the cows keeping them from moving around the pen. These dogs kept at the heals of the cows rather then the heads and earned HCI’s for "Herding" aptitude. I also know of a Fila who was given a herding test on sheep. She showed working ability that unsurpassed all of the Filas I’ve ever seen. She worked like a Border Collie using the same "crouch" and "eye" on the sheep. In fact she won a high in trial beating out Border Collies. She so impressed the judges and spectators alike. Everyone asked how long she had been working sheep, the reply "This is the first time she had been used with any livestock". I agree this dog had instinct far above the average, but I do believe many of the Filas (if not most ) if given the chance would pass the HIC test even though they had never been around livestock. It isn’t so much the training, but the natural inbred instinct. I would encourage you to get out and attend one of the "working weekends" with your Fila. Give them a chance to SHOW you what they will do with livestock, tracking, weight pulling, obedience, and the temperament test. If your dog doesn’t participate, you will have the chance to see other Filas in action. You will be surprised at the versatility your dog has had all along. One last note, when I meet people with my dogs I tell them they are Brazilian Filas F.I.L.A., just like the tennis shoe. No one has any problem saying the name or understanding that they are related to the Mastiff or Bloodhound. If they are still interested I go on and explain the origin of the name is from the Portuguese verb "FILAR" which means "to seize or to catch". THE FILA AND THE POLAR BEAR BY BARBARA HOLIDAY OF THICKET TEXAS One miserable day this past winter after having a flat, I decided it was way past the time for a new set of tires for the truck. The nearest town is about 100 miles round trip, so all errands and stops are lined up to save where I can. My "Brooding Expressioned Companion" Fila Fair needed to go to the vet on top of everything else, so she rode down to town in the camper. She doesn’t get out very often and here in the woods we don’t have any close neighbors, so it is usually and experience when we do go some where. First stop was the tire shop and I knew she couldn’t stay in the camper when they put it up on the rack. Nobody touches her truck or even gets near it, hope she outgrows that "touch my truck or you die mindset". Whenever she goes to town I have to park in the far corner of the Wal-Mart lot and hope nobody walks by. I really hate to take her in the shop with me, and I am sure the poor salesman wasn’t all that happy with it either. He probably thought it wouldn’t be to good for business to make an old lady and her "puppy" stand outside in the rain when they put the tires on, so he said it was OK to take her in the waiting room. My Fila sat quiet on my feet, leaned all her weight on my legs and held onto her lead (does anybody else’s Fila do this or does Fila Fair have some strange quirk) until the salesman left and we started for the waiting room. The tire shop has had this poor old stuffed Polar Bear in the corner ever since I can remember. It has lost a lot of fur and isn’t even real white anymore. She looked at the mounting base and part way up several times while I talked to the sales man, but when we headed for the waiting room her gaze went all the way up. When she saw the outstretched arms with the long claws, and the big snarly mouth with yellow teeth and the glaring glass eyes, she went into attack mode and it was all I could do to hold her. She lunged over and over at the stuffed bear, and barked so loud I’m surprised the windows didn’t crack. She had managed to drag me within a couple feet of the poor old bear before I could get her stopped. The strangest thing will spook Fila and her reaction is always the same…hair up, tail up, charge. Fila is a pretty quiet dog, but when she decides to pitch a hissy, only a person that has been around Filas would recognize the uproar. Some of the men from out in the shop ran in to see what the commotion was all about. I finally got her calmed down to a deep low growl and we went to the back of the waiting room and sat down. This has to rank up at the least with the most embarrassing time of your life. She flopped down full length over my feet and you could see she was trying to figure out what was going on. (and probably wondering why big brother Jeb was not around when she really needed help). A little while later a distinguished older man came in and sat down by us. She just looked at him and accepted the comment about nice dogs etc. He opened the newspaper and that was the end of the conversation. I was just about to get up and get a bag of Cheetos (Filas all time favorites) out of the machine for her when the man stood up on his knees on the bench in back of us, leaned over and started to ask what kind of …that’s as far as he got. She was up in his face in a flash. I am sure he was a very nice man, but the Fila never seen a man with a beard down to his chest and fluffy shoulder length hair. She probably thought he was another animal after the Polar Bear experience. The gentleman next to us has torn his paper and he got up and moved. When we went out to get in the truck several men from the shop came out and were watching and giggling… talk about breaking up the monotony of a cold, rainy winters day. Somehow I got the feeling that the story about that "Big Old Dog" was going to grow and improve with each telling as time goes by. Well that’s the polar bear story and now I will have to find a new tire shop within the next couple of years. Fila Brasileiro’s are suppose to go after Jaguars, but it seems they will go after polar bears, even stuffed ones. THE FILA, ULTIMATE GUARDIAN by Lisa ford of Sedro Wooley Wa. What breed of dog is absolutely bred to be a farm dog and devoted Family companion? Why, in my eyes, no other breed can even stand in the shadow of the Fila Brasileiro. This breed was developed in Brazil, where the crime rates are high and the people needed a large , strong, intelligent dog to protect the estates (Fazendas). The breed resembles a bloodhound and Mastiff cross giving it a massive cuddly look. Don’t be fooled though, this is not a breed that will let a stranger touch it s long soft ears or its semi-wrinkled face and neck. It is no push over and cannot be bribed into being your friend. It has what Brazilians call "OJERIZA" or a natural distrust of strangers. This fine animal takes its job of home-guardian seriously. Surely you can tell this breed is not for everyone. Although the breed is not taken to wandering it should live where their is a sturdy or more preferred by the Fila) in the home. This way strangers are protected from walking into the dogs territory. After hearing all of this most people are weary of purchasing such an intimidating protector. Good! If you don’t think you can handle a breed that has this much natural talent for it’s work then get a breed with a much more mellow temperament. But if your still interested, this dog has much much more to offer. In Brazil "filar" means to hold or secure. I believe this is describing the dog’s heart. The devotion of the breed is legendary in its native country. "Faithful as a Fila" is a Brazilian proverb. When alone in the company of their owners, these dogs turn into comic clumps of adoration. Their place is on your feet (on you lap if you can breath with 130-170 pounds of dog flesh). They are always alert to strange sound but are not indifferent or aloof as are many of the guardian breeds. Their list of Credits doesn’t stop here! Filas are one of the few working rare breeds that are, in general, not animal aggressive. Mine love to have baby lambs and goats fight for "King of the Hill" on their backs. They are not usually used for flock guardians however. Their love is for their Family first. They are also natural drovers, able to move cows and sheep to and from pastures. They have been used for hunting as well. Wildcats, boar, bear, and other such adversaries have been successfully hunted with Filas. The job they consider their number one priority is guarding their family and their territory. The breed standards include fawns, reds, bridles, black brindle, and the occasional black. Minimum height for females is 24 inches weight 90 lbs., with males 27 inches and 110 lbs. Many Filas are in the 140 to 180 pound range. The breed is extremely agile for its size, surprising onlookers by its swiftness. The coat is short, dense, and easily maintained. The tail and ears are left natural. The Fila ia athletic when you want to be , yet content to lay by the fire for days on end. PHIL REDI’S CHAKA SAN PEDRO CA CHAKA is one of the largest boned, muscular Filas I’ve ever seen in person. As a pup his crate weighed 66 pounds (at 9 weeks). A month ago his temperament exploded before my eyes. It was about 10:30 at night and I usually walk CHAKA at this time on our regular route which is about one and a half miles around. Our walk came to an end with about 4 blocks to go. CHAKA stopped and lifted his head to pick up a scent. I told him "Lets Go, and it’s OK", but he wouldn’t budge. There was a large camper on the street parked and I noticed CHAKA was scenting from that area. I finally got him to continue walking, but he seemed to still be suspicious. We were adjacent to the camper when an individual came out from around the camper and all I remember is pulling CHAKA on to the ground, which pulled the hell out of my shoulder. With a loud clap of his teeth he leaped for this individual. A "SPLIT SECOND" proved to me how agile, quick, and strong a dog his size could perform within a 10th of a second. I see this person once in a while and he always says to me "HEY, IS THAT HORSE STILL LOOKING FOR ME". THE FILA AND THE MOLOSSUS DOG by Jan Liborel Los Angeles CA. Editor of HANDGUNS MAGAZINES The Fila Brasileiro is often described as being one of the "Molosser" breeds. This curious term comes from the belief that the Molossus dog of the ancient Greeks and Romans was an ancestral mastiff. Some canine historians suggest that the Neapolitan Mastiffs is the closest living counterpart to the ancient Molossus dog - a belief that is almost certainly false. Despite a lot of romantic buncombe in various breed histories, I have never been able to find any evidence that dogs were used for fighting in the Roman arenas (except, perhaps, at the very end of the classical period). Nor, for that matter, can I find any references to the practice of pit dog fighting or baiting sports among the Greeks and Romans. I have never seen any reference in any primary or reputable secondary source to the use of "War Dogs" in Greek and Roman antiquity. (I might mention by way of establishing my bona fides that I have a Ph.D. in ancient history, and taught the subject on a university level for some years). The Molossi, after whom the Molossus dog takes his name, were a people living in the mountainous roughly around the border between modern Greece and Albania. There are no grounds whatsoever for supposing that the huge (and very Fila like) dogs depicted on the friezes of Assyrian kings centuries earlier were in any way identical or closely related to the Molossus dog, although a great many dog books make this statement. The actual Molossus dog served actually the same functions as the Fila historically as the Fila performed in Brazil –Guard dog work, livestock protection and hunting. The first surviving literary reference to the Molossus dog occurs in the Athenian comedian Arisophanes’ Thesmophriazusae (line 416), in which the Molossus is referred to as a ferocious guard dog. This comedy was staged in 411 B.C. The greatest Roman poets referred to the Molossus dogs’ talents as livestock herders and protectors and as hunters. Thus in Horace’s Sixth Epode (lines 5-10) the Molossus and the very similar Laconian )Spartan) hound are first described as a "friendly force for shepherds" ("amica vis pastorbus") and as relentless trackers. Virgil likewise (Georgics III, 404-413) refers to the Molossian and Laconian dogs as both hunters and livestock protectors. FILA TALK contributor and columnist , John Quy, has remarked to me that livestock protection and hunting ability were contradictory talents in a dog, and it may well have been that there were two strains. Thus, aristotle writes: Of the Molossian breed of dogs, such are as employed in the chase are pretty much the same as those elsewhere; but the sheepdogs of this breed are superior to the other in size and in the courage with which they face the attacks of wild animals (History of Animals 608a, Revised Oxford Translation, ed. Johathan Barnes, 1994) The surviving literature makes it clear that the Molossus, was not a heavy built dog on the order of the Neapolitan Mastiff. Thus, Lucan, writing about AD. 64 (Pharsalia IV, 440) alludes to the levis Molossi. The basic meaning of levis in Latin is "light", but it can also mean "swift" or "nimble". None of these is an adjective one is likely to apply to a huge, mastiff like dog. At least some strains of the Molossus dog were sufficiently swift and nimble that they were used for coursing hares. One of the most complete descriptions of the breed is given by Aurilius Nemesianus (ca. A.D. 248) in his poem on dogs and hunting. He advises choosing a bitch for breeding that is a good runner, "tall, on straight legs" "with a firm belly" and her ultra soft ears should flow back when she runs. Nemesianus advises culling in favor of the puppies that promise to be swift runners and prescribes a course of training starting the young dogs out on slow hares until the dog is able to run down and kill the hare with full vigor. There is no real evidence to suggest that the Molossus dog particullary resembles or was in any way ancestral to today’s bull and mastiff breed. This identification seems to come from Renaissance humanists, who made the assumption that the famous Molossus dog of classical antiquity was one of the same order as the sundry mastiffs that abounded in the Europe of their day. This assumption was accepted by the great 18th century taxonmist Linnaeus and has gone virtually unchallenged down to the present day. In reality, the Molossus dog was evidently an "all purpose" dog very much like the Fila, and it may have very well have resembled the lightly built Brazilian Filas such as the crop-eared dogs shown on Semencic’s Pit Bulls and Tenacious Guard Dogs. True "Mastiffs" are conspicuous by their absence from Greek and Roman art (in contrast to the art of the ancient Mid East), but dogs resembling the lightly built strains of the Fila are very common. Whether the Molossus dog was in any way a direct ancestor of the Fila is highly questionable. On the other hand, in terms of working ability and very probably in physical conformation, the Fila – at least in its lighter strains may very well be the closest living counterpart to this famous dog of antiquity.
Keith Taylor's Pablo (Hazelcrest Illinois)
KEITH TAYLOR’S "PABLO" HAZELCREST ILLINOIS I'm writing to tell you how happy I am that I bought my Fila from you, and how pleased I am with PABLO. If anyone wants a large, beautiful, intelligent, graceful sturdy and protective dog then buy one from Shoo-its Mountain Filas. On 7-9-96 I took PABLO to the vet to pick up heart worm pills . They had to weigh him to see what size dosage to give him. He was 5 months and 1 week old. The last time he was there was 7 weeks earlier. At that time he was 16 weeks old and weighed 64 pounds. On 7-19-96 he weighed 101 pounds! He had gained 37 pounds in 7 weeks (over 6 pounds a week!) At 5 months he is already heavier, taller, longer and has a bigger head then my 3 year old male Rottweiler. love looking at the expressions on peoples faces when I tell them he is only 5 months old. There eyes buck, there jaws drop and usually they say "O....! I have followed your feeding suggestions as much as possible. Looking at what happened to the Rottie and Doberman (in breeding and over-breeding). No one should sell their Fila pups for under $1000, not even pet quality Filas. We are talking about the Rolls-Royce of dogs. I've got a Great Dog from a Great Breeder and I am putting my money together so I can get another one. VERY FEW PEOPLE OWN 2 ROLLS ROYCES! A FILA FAN FOREVER.
A FILA STORY
A FILA STORY (Author Unknown) taken from FILATALK MAGAZINE Issue 15 I bought a Fila puppy and we fell in love with her, but no one loved her more then I did. She was my doggie. I have to be honest with you, I had never felt that way about a dog before. She was soooo smart. She learned quickly, and potty training was no problem. As she grew I could see that this was a smart dog. My friends and neighbors came and I would brag about how she was the smartest dog n the area. Everyone knew I was proud of her. Ellie became large and strong. You could see it in her movements, the muscles would just ripple as she moved and I really was just fascinated with her. I never took her to an obedience class, nor did I try to train her to become aggressive. She was naturally protective. Remember what you told me?? You said she would bark and back up when she saw someone coming on the property. Then as she matured she would stop backing up, and she would bark and stand her ground...and finally as she matured she would bark and go forward. I actually saw this prophecy come to pass. It was amazing to see her grow and mature. Everyone in the neighborhood knew about the big dog on the corner. I loved it knowing that if the gate was left open she would lay on the grass and not bother anyone at all, although she did have a habit of wanting to play with the kids. I could never understand why they did not know that Ellie was just trying to say hi. Now, I have to remind you that before I got Ellie, my family and I were being tormented and threatened by some prejudicial people that live in our area. As Ellie grew we saw that the things like teenagers throwing trash on our front yard, or climbing over the fence to bang on the side of the house to frighten us and run away laughing thinking that was funny. Those things stopped. Then we noticed that our neighbors would have break-ins or their property was being vandalized, but we never experienced any of that. Our Fila Ellie was protecting our property. Well, one month ago, my daughter went into the garage and found that Ellie was dead. I was at work. I never thought anyone could hurt my dog, but someone "poisoned" her. She died an agonizing and painful death. My next door neighbor and I buried her near the house in a field, and sometimes I just go and sit out there and think about my friend. I am still grieving and I miss her greatly. Sometimes I call for her automatically, and then remember that she is no longer with us. I hope there is a dogie heaven and I will see her again. I liked my dogs before, but this dog I truly loved and she was a member of my family. Now, I am not writing you to ask you to give me another dog. I do not have any money, but if you could tell someone that wants to give away a good Fila, or sell one at a very low discount price, then please let me know. I would appreciate it. Recently we went through some depressing financial difficulties, and I do not even want to go into that, but my family still needs protection as we have seen some vandalism again. Anyway, thanks for listening to me. I would have called you, but wouldn't you know it, I lost your phone number. Oh well I will let you know what happens and in the meantime if you have any good news for me please let me know. A Former Fila Owner
PROTECTING MY DAUGHTER by Mersch Calabrese of Bradford PA. 3-3-97
My daughter who is 16 years old was home alone with our Fila Dino when he was 51/2 months old. Out of the blue two guys started to pound on our door and demanded my daughter to buy some raffle tickets. My daughter was frightened by their loud voices and demands and no doubt her fear was detected by Dino who hurled his body against the door trying to go through for these two guys. Well, he bounced off once, because of the steel frame and hurled his body again wanting to attack. My daughter told me he was a different dog other then the one she knew, and afterwards he followed her around the house until my wife came home.
STREET CRIME and A WOMAN ALONE
A woman walking alone with her leashed one year old Fila one night was approached by a man. He started getting fresh with her but did stay far enough away to be out of reach of the dog. She told him to leave her alone, and that the dog would attack him, and then turned around and walked back in the direction she was coming from to avoid a confrontation. The man follow her paying no heed and kept up the smart remarks when suddenly the Fila made a instant turn and bit the man in the groin causing enough damage that he needed hospitalization and stitches. This could have been a rape, or rape and murder, so chalk one up for the National dog of Brazil, the Fila. STREET CRIME IN CHICAGO 5-5-97 I have talked with people in Chicago that have bought the Fila for the sole reason of wanting protection from other large dogs. The latest thing going on is robbers walking up to a person on the street and instead of flashing a gun they have a Rottie or Doberman at their side and demand money etc., with the threat they will turn their attack dog loose on them. Carrying a Handguns is Mandatory Imprisonment and Robbers and thieves are now using dogs to threaten people. YOU MAY NOT BELIEVE THIS By Peter Lundell of Gatlinburg TN. "You’re kidding! Aren’t you? He’s twice the size of my Border Collie." "Believe me, I’m not joking." I replied to a nice couple I had just met hiking near my property next to the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. "He’s just a puppy. He is just four and a half months old. He gets a lot of love and good food. Who wouldn’t grow on that? As you can tell his eighty pounds is all muscle. And his bone structure says he’s got a lot of growing yet to do. His bones seem to grow like plants in a garden, he is 27 inches at the hips. But, you should really see Bodhi Ragnar’s father. Gabriel is well over 200 lbs. and he is all muscle." You can imagine their incredulous look of disbelief. I continued, "Though it’s not the impressive size that makes the Fila so special. Much like your Border Collie, if you spend time with them they can display amazing degrees of intelligence. You may not believe this, but the other day, when I was cleaning up tree branches blown down by a recent wind storm and tossing them down a steep embankment, I turned and to my utter amazement, Bodhi was dragging a large branch and attempting to also toss it over the bank. He is so smart, (Thank you Helen! You said he would be.) So loyal, with an unbelievable desire to please, that he is able to pick up on the most subtle cues. You may not believe this but, the other day when I was digging a footer for a set of stone steps, Bodhi jumped down into the hole and began digging furiously. I had to just laugh and put my shovel down and watch him. My wife Ann, was planting flowers nearby. I’m sure she appreciated my suggesting that Bodhi go over and help her dig. That is exactly what he did. While the Filas’ natural protective qualities are legendary, as is its undying loyalty and courage, the Filas’ scenting ability is often left in the background. Remember, the Fila also has some Bloodhound in it. And its ability to register and identify over a thousand different scents and track them is uncanny. Just consider that his ability to scent is thousands of times better than a humans. Well, you may not believe this, but the other day I threw some of Bodhi’s old bones down over the same steep hillside. The following day, as we walked together, he suddenly bolted down the bank and sniffed around the brush-pile. He then found his old bone and began to climb the vertical incline like a man would have to do if he had a ladder. He got to the top and then looked at me as if to say, (and I wouldn’t be surprised to hear him speak in English. He only speaks Portuguese with a Tennessee accent at the moment) ‘Hey! Would you believe some wise guy stole one of my bones and threw it over the hill? You wouldn’t know anything about this would you?’ Well, you may not believe this, but about a month ago, Bodhi was playing with a chew stick, romping in the snow. He threw it into the air and it came down straight like a knife and buried itself deep into a large snow drift. It was about ten minutes later, Bodhi came back, stuck his nose heavenward and dove deeply down into the snow-bank. I thought, what on earth is he doing by burying himself in the snow? Suddenly out he came with his lost chew stick in his mouth. Talk about scenting ability! Well, you’re not going to believe this... Hey, where are you folks going?" I thought to myself as the couple walked down the trail, you really have to own a Fila to know how good these dogs really are. That December day when I drove out of Paul and Helen’s driveway with that cute little puppy cuddled up in my lap, their words echoed in my ears, "You’re not going to believe these Filas..." I weigh a little over two hundred pounds. How much do you think the little puppy weighs? Bodhi is four months, one week old in the photo -- Seventy five pounds!
FILATALK MAGAZINE FLORIDA MOBILEHOME LIVING MOBILEHOMES ON THE WATER FROM $4500 THE SPRIG, 2 FLOODS OR 1 THE BRANCH MINISTRY SHOO-ITS MOUNTAIN FILAS PO Box 60 Turtletown, TN. 37391 Call 423-496-1114 10am to 11 pm EST
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