This past weekend, the Cretan Hound Club (Όμιλος Κρητικού Λαγωνικού) celebrated its tenth year on the seaside at Talos Plaza in Heraklion. The two-day event also served to register new Cretan Hounds and to recognize the best specimens of those presented.
The President of the Cretan Hound Club, Nikos Anetakis, administered the essential events where Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI) judges Sissy Adramitli and Dimitris Limperis examined and recognized the newest registrants. The judges inspected almost 50 new hounds submitted for registration and recognition, with some not meeting breed morphology or temperament.
For those unfamiliar with the breed, the Cretan Hound (Kritikos Lagonikos) is Europe’s oldest extant breed and one of the rarest canine breeds in the world. The dogs date from perhaps before 3,200 BCE and Neolithic times and are the world’s most prolific hare hunters. Kritikos is noted for being a rare breed known for hunting by both scent and sight.
Kritikos Lagonikos (sometimes) are some of the most agile dogs in existence, and they are also extraordinary in terms of intelligence and endurance. Indigenous to the island of Crete, there are probably fewer than 50 or 60 prime specimens of the breed in existence. Known as “The Living Legend,” the dogs have been a product of Crete tradition since before written time.
On both days of the event, the judges awarded Manolis Passas’ male Kritikos Lagonikos Agas (above left) “Best of Breed” winner. Previous show winners and some of the most famous keepers of these legendary hounds were also present. Two notable Kretan Hound experts attending were Nikos Anetakis, the legendary Cretan knifemaker Stauros Paterakis (below right with ), and Giannis Geniatakis, who is arguably the world’s leading expert on these rare dogs.
The Cretan Hound Club and the Hellenic Kennel Club seek international recognition for these superb dogs. Since the breed has been so isolated and protected by its keepers for centuries, widespread knowledge even of its existence is limited. Most experts believe the dogs are descended from breeding the now-extinct Egyptian Tesem and indigenous Cretan dogs of early Minoan times. Ancient iconography and art from North Africa and the Near East from more than 6,000 years ago reveal the roots of this unique friend of man.
The breed has recently become endangered because of a Greek sterilization law passed. The keepers and breed enthusiasts have been fighting for special consideration from the Draconian sterilization regulations. So far, their efforts have met with strict resistance from officials despite support from Greek veterinarians and the Hellenic Kennel Club.
