We are visiting the location of the next Hungarian exhibition in our series of picture presentations about the world of exhibitions, in the heart of the Great Plain, this completely flat region, which is occasionally broken up by Kun mounds and elsewhere divided by rivers and oxbows.
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In place of the once forested groves, fields greet us. Yet this region, Nagykunság, hides numerous treasures that enchant the traveler with its millennia-old history…
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…I walked in a beautiful Hungarian land/In the flat land of Nagykunság/I looked into the distance/Into the hiding place of the Kun mounds/Millennia-old history/The saga of the Kun people/I walk in the most beautiful land of our country/Even if I leave, I always long to return here.
We arrive at the capital of Nagykunság, Karcag, which is also the Hungarian homeland of the Kun clan. The founders and settlers of the town were the Kuns, who inhabited this area from the 13th century. The settlement of the Kuns was completed by the 15th century, and having given up their nomadic way of life, they assimilated into the Hungarian population. Looking back at the history of the Kuns, we can see a kind of primal power, cohesion, which helped the Kun ancestors in both stormy and peaceful times. This unity lasts to this day and helps the descendants of the Kuns preserve their traditions. The Kun World Meeting held every three years revives the former customs and within it the election of the Kun Captain.
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The first World Meeting of the Kuns was held in the fall of 2009. During two weeks, numerous programs – historical exhibitions, traditional and cultural festivals, presentations – commemorated the anniversary of the Kuns' settlement 770 years ago. In 2012, the Kun II. World Meeting was held, the opening of which took place in Karcag city with such diverse and interesting programs as traditional horse shows, an exhibition of Hungarian dog breeds, as well as folk games and a fair of handcrafted foods welcoming visitors. The Kun Association initiates the exploration and collection of Kun memories and Kun memorial sites, which they also wish to make public later through publications.
Among the natural attractions of the Nagykunság capital, the Zádor Bridge and its surroundings stand out, serving as the southern gateway to the Hortobágy National Park.
In the surroundings of the city, there are additional nature conservation areas, such as the Kecskeri-puszta, whose untouched flora and fauna offer a true experience for visiting tourists, as well as the Kunhalmok breaking the monotony of the plain landscape, recalling the memory of the presence of the Cumans and standing out from their environment with their landscape value, unique animal and plant life.
Within the 67 thousand-acre boundaries of the city of Karcag, exactly 63 Kunhalmok can be found, all under nature conservation protection.
We are in Karcag, this historic city, which is also the venue of the dog show. The dog breeders opened the gates early and awaited the exhibitors and visitors at the dog show venue, Zuglóger.
Despite the harsh weather, many exhibitors thought that this dog event should not be missed. For the exhibitors, this dog sport is a great experience, and participating in the show is truly enjoyable, as reported to us by Erzsébet Sebestyénné Enyedi and her husband, Sándor Sebestyén, breeders of the Szentmiklósi Csillag Fénye chow-chow, kuvasz, and pug kennel:
„Finally Saturday… and finally the day of the Karcag dog show has arrived. We have been waiting for this day for weeks. We prepared with great excitement, diligently grooming our dogs. By evening we went to bed exhausted, every dog prepared, papers and equipment packed and waiting.
The long-awaited day greeted us with hurricane-force wind accompanied by some rain; the weather was not on our side that day. It was chilly, but that could not deter us from our goals. Full of excitement and hope, we finally set off. As we approached Karcag, we moved away from the rain cloud. Time flew, and we quickly arrived at the show venue. The organizers welcomed us with open gates and warm hospitality from 7 a.m.
The admission went smoothly, everyone easily found their judging ring – those who did not were gladly helped, which I think was a very nice gesture from the organizers. There was plenty of space and area for everyone, although unfortunately due to the harsh weather conditions, some went home before the judging began.
After taking our places around the ring, we tried to set up the tent, which caused great difficulties since we had to do this while battling the wind roaring like a hurricane. Finally, on our third attempt, we succeeded; the tents stood firm, and the dogs could at last occupy their wind-protected spots.
Our next step was to browse through the exhibition catalog. It immediately became apparent that only 415 dogs were entered in this show. This is quite few, although in recent years the number of entered dogs has shown a sharp decline in almost every show.
Before the official opening of the show and the start of judging, exhibitors and their dogs had the opportunity to practice in the rings. Most took advantage of this opportunity, including us.
Time flew quickly – along with the dog hair and our own – finally it was 10:00 a.m., and the judging began at last. In our ring, Ibolya Kiss, an international conformation judge, evaluated the dogs. From many breeds, 80 dogs were assigned to the judge, many of whom were fine examples of their breed. The judging proceeded quickly and smoothly, and everyone could leave with good results.
After the judging was over, we were very happy, the results of the exhibition made us forget the hardships we experienced due to the harsh weather. Our dogs performed well in the rings, Armand Cunami, our chow-chow male in the puppy class, received a very promising rating, Broken Hill Catriona, our chow-chow female in the open class, won the CAC and BOB titles. Black Jade Pakony Rose Liliana, our pug female in the open class, received a res.CAC result. After all this, the harsh weather did not dampen our spirits to wait for the start of the Best In Show. Quite a few thought so, almost no one went home after the judging. The most beautiful dog of the exhibition was finally a dachshund.
Overall, we can say that the exhibition took place in a very good atmosphere, despite the fact that the weather was not on the side of the exhibitors, but even the hurricane-like wind could not take away our enthusiasm for the event.
We were part of a high-quality exhibition, where our dogs performed well, achieved beautiful results, we had a good time and are already looking forward to the next Karcag exhibition. We thank the organizers for their dedicated work!”
Co-author's note (István Kovács):
I hereby congratulate Ildikó Lázárné Vámosi, the owner of Broken Hill’s Heart Kennel, who with Broken Hill Catriona’s CAC, BOB title has achieved the rank of Gold Laurel Master Breeder.
There is an active dog life in the city thanks to the Karcag dog breeders. The best functioning Dog Breeders Organization in the Kunság region works with a new spirit and youthful energy. Their goals include involving the future dog-loving generation in dog programs from childhood, promoting dog ownership among young people, introducing them to the colorful world of dogs and shows, breeding, passing on the knowledge they possess, thus nurturing the future generation of dog enthusiasts.
The Dog Breeders also organized and managed the exhibition to the best of their ability, as evidenced by the words of Beatrix Pethő and her husband Imre, breeders of the “Black Jade Pakony” pug kennel:
“We tip our hats to the leadership of the local organization, which has only 42 members, who demonstrated exceptional management talent! When at centrally organized CACIB exhibitions there is hardly any ribbon or cord, and sometimes even the card is a problem, Karcag had all three. The abundance of prizes and the list of vendors and performers who stayed away due to the windstorm show that a significant circle of supporters was mobilized. Moreover, they managed to appear in the local media and on the internet in many places with lots of photos!”
Despite the difficulties of the weather, those exhibitors who attended this event had a special experience, as Imre tells us further:
“Despite severe losses and making serious sacrifices, the people of Karcag finally held the CAC exhibition against all odds.
On Saturday night, the stormy wind tore apart the tents on the site, so everything had to start over on Sunday morning. To begin with, one judge canceled his participation, and since bad examples are contagious, except for the fearless military, the performers and vendors stayed away out of fear of the weather.
During the morning, the stormy wind still picked up or damaged a few tents. As some of my acquaintances say, all exhibitors are crazy, so those who entered usually came, and in fact, we didn’t run out of dogs for the BIS program either. For example, in the dog pairs, the wind was tugging the fur of a number of dogs that would shame almost any exhibition. Congratulations especially to the podium, it easily withstood quite a weight!
Nevertheless, there were smiles on the faces not because the ‘dog’ froze in the cold. Since we are talking about smiles, God willing, neither before the exhibition on the phone nor on-site was any organizer grumpy or sent us off to a warmer climate! And we also smiled because our male Black Jade Pakony Magic Silvester became breed winner, his sister Roxy was the most beautiful female, and our young ‘girl’ Black Jade Pakony Zara could walk in the junior BIS circle on her first young class show.
We think those who did not enter here and were not here will regret it. We will gladly come again next time if it’s up to us. Once again, congratulations and thank you!”
As a special feature, we recommend this summary video made during the exhibition both to exhibitors and dog-loving families, in which, besides the parade of beautiful dogs, we can also see very special and touching moments of the love between owners and their dogs:
Congratulations to all exhibitors, and special congratulations to the winners for their excellent results at the exhibition!
Many thanks to Erzsébet Sebestyénné Enyedi and her husband, Sándor Sebestyén, of the Szentmiklósi Csillag Fénye kennel>> as well as to Beatrix Pethő and Imre, of the Black Jade Pakony mopsz kennel>> for the interesting and detailed exhibition report and the many beautiful photos, through which we could get a glimpse into the “Colorful and Special World of Exhibitions”.
If you are a dog exhibitor or if you are interested in the world of dog shows, I recommend the author's official website, where the dog show calendars of recent years, the official 2020 MEOESZ dog show calendar and the Hungarian and English guides for all 2020 MEOESZ dog shows will be available in the usual format!
Look for the official website of dog article writer and author Ildikó Vámosi:
Http://ildikovamosi.hu/
🙂 Thank you if you honor me with your visit! 🙂
