It’s been a long time coming, but the Kintamani dog from Bali has finally received recognition from the Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI), an international federation of kennel clubs.
According to Benny Kwok Wie Sioe, the chairman of the Indonesian Kennel Club (IKK), the recognition means that, like other pure breeds, Kintamani dogs will now be able to enter dog shows and competitions across the globe. In addition, their birth certificates will now be permitted to use the FCI logo.
At a press conference on Saturday, Benny admitted that obtaining the FCI recognition had been no easy feat.
“The FCI is well known as a very strict organization. We’ve been trying to get this recognition for more or less 20 years,” he said, as quoted by Kumparan.
During his speech, he expressed hope that, as a recognized breed with a good lineage, Kintamani dogs would bring more value to the community as they could likely fetch upwards of IDR3 million (US$213) now, around ten times higher than previously.
The Governor of Bali, I Wayan Koster expressed his pride and appealed to dog to keep the Kintamani dogs pure by not mating them with other types of dogs.
Unfortunately, dog breeders generally don’t have the best reputation here in Bali. Animal rights groups tend to encourage prospective owners to adopt rather than buy, often citing the shocking conditions that some breeders keep their animals in.
Let’s hope that the Kintamani dog’s new-found celebrity doesn’t backfire on the country’s new national breed.
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