Another year begins.

The start of a new year is a good time to look at the work that was accomplished over the past year. It is the right time to take stock, and this year will be no exception.

Once again, 2016 has been a busy year for the FCI Office –we owe it to the extensive activities of our members, of their breeders, of the exhibitors, etc. 2016 has been a year of major and remarkable events. A year during which our new premises have been brought to life as we organised a few receptions and hosted the meetings of several Committees or Commissions.

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Y. De Clercq
Executive Director
FCI Office and members performing again!

As a fresh year begins, it is always a pleasure, a journey into the unknown, a moment of high expectations when the time comes to take stock of our members’ activities and, by extension, our Office’s actions.

Statistics are always indicative of our members’ well-being, energy and enthusiasm. They show how active a role they take on the international scene; in so doing, they serve the FCI’s main intended purpose: cooperating and sharing among members at all levels in order to protect and promote purebred dogs.

Figures speak for themselves and leave no doubt as to the international commitment of our members, of the national kennel clubs and of their own members. Think, for example, of the 23,199 kennel name applications the FCI Secretariat has recorded: it is with pride that we inform you we have returned to the impressive figures of 2008-2009 and 2010. This testifies to a genuine upsurge of interest among our breeders. To give you a better overall appreciation, it should be pointed out that these last few years, registrations amounted to 19,120 (2013), 19,474 (2014) and 18,849 in 2015. This is an opportunity for me to emphasise a spectacular growth in China: the CKU has applied for 1,927 kennel name registrations, from 397 in 2015 (and 32 in 2008)!

To highlight this surge of interest even further, the holding of no fewer than 1,206 CACIB international dog shows throughout the “FCI territory”, i.e. 91 countries, cannot go unmentioned. There is no doubt that all our breeders thus have the opportunity to show their best specimen every weekend, not to mention the even greater number of CAC shows and other national events about which we nevertheless record no information.

The working trials (hunting, defense, tracking, sighthound races, obedience, agility, herding) also perform strongly –a fact that can only give us cause for delight. It is indeed of utmost importance that the dogs we breed be fine, but also fit for purpose and healthy.

To sum up, 34 FCI members have organised 2,426 trials in total (all disciplines taken together) against 2,372 in 2015 and 2,341 in 2014. The trend thus remains upwards, and that is something to cheer about! Please allow me to make special mention to our French (SCC) and Italian (ENCI) members, who take the lion’s share with 424 and 811 trials respectively.

Last but not least, here is a brief overview of the number of international champion titles –the crowning achievement of the busy international careers our dogs lead in shows and/or trials. With 9,722 champion certificates issued (9,414 beauty certificates and 308 working certificates), the number of confirmed titles was at its highest ever in 2016! Last year, that number was 8,165. Once more, it expresses indisputable enthusiasm, a strong desire to see the dogs rewarded for their performance in the rings, the thickets, the undergrowth, and other race tracks. The prize for producing the greatest number of champions goes to Finland, with 1,175 award-winning dogs.

I felt it was important to start off the new year on this positive note which attests to the rediscovered drive and enthusiasm, among our breeders and exhibitors, about producing good, fine and healthy dogs!

I wish you the very best for 2017.

Y. De Clercq
Executive Director