I have finally made it back from Italy!
I was there from March 28th to April 5th, 2007
The trip was long and arduous - first a 6 hour drive to Denver, CO, then 2.5 hours to Alanta, GA, and finally a 10+ hour flight to Milan, Italy. I did not do the typical tourist thing - the trip was fantastic and totally about Bracco's . I went to learn how the Italians train and hunt their dogs, and came back with an increased respect for their ability. I was taken to numerous training sessions to observe, first with Flavio Fusetti, the secretary of SABI, who took me to several kennels, the largest of which was Cascina de Croce, owned by Renato Gritti. We also visited the President of SABI, Dr. Grecchi, whom I had met before in the Netherlands. Dr. Grecchi took us out hunting with several of his finest Bracchi. Flavio and I then went to a large raduno at a gorgeous castle in Piacenza, with upwards of 200 Bracchi. The first day of the raduno (gathering) was a dog show where there were many high-quality Bracchi with 3 rings going at all times. I watched the judging and learned much more from Bracco experts, who were very friendly and helpful, about correct conformation. The second day was for field trials, where I was taken in hand by a judge/veterinarian (name to follow!) who spoke English and explained everything that was going on for me. I followed him step by step while he interpreted the highs and lows of the day. There were some of the best Bracchi in Italy at the raduno, and also those that obviously needed more work! One thing that separated good from bad was the emphasis on the beautiful long, extended trot for which Bracchi are noted. Again, so many people were kind and helpful, even with my broken Italian!
I was then handed off to Mateo Tori, who took me to his beautiful 12th century home in the Tuscany area. He and his wife, Aura, were extremely hospitable, and welcomed me fully into their home. Mateo took me to see more dogs working in the field and then we drove up to Genoa to meet Maurizio Sodini, and see his breeding operation. We then went to Savona and met our good friend GianPaolo Poggio and spent two days at his training seminar (held at Federcaccia e Stata La Prima Resta la Migliore, a private hunting preserve) for Bracco owners from England, Holland and others.
Maurizio went out of his way to go back to Tuscany to pick up Apollo, our new brown male puppy, from Mateo, and brought him back to me. I also received Dixie, an orange female, from Maurizio, and he again went out of his way to drive me and the two puppies 4 hours to the airport. I was truly amazed at the time and effort everyone took to help me out in any way they could - I felt very welcomed and cared about. Special thanks to Alex Grecchi, who was both a pleasure to talk with and very informative - he also gave me the history of the red, green and white beads (for Italy, of course) braided in my moustache!
In closing, I look forward to returning as soon as I can to visit my new friends and learn more about them and their wonderful dogs. I feel that I learned so much about the Bracco, its traditions, the way they are hunted and how long and hard the Italians have worked to produce such a marvelous breed. Our primary goal as American Bracco breeders is to ensure that Italian traditions and breeding practices are maintained so that this breed continues to be the wonderful breed it is. We respect this opportunity.
Winners circle at Expo in Piacenza
Best dog in my group at
field trials
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