MINUTES OF THE RESULTS REACHED BY THE ANNUAL MEETING OF THE INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR LEONBERGER DOGS (IULD)

-25 ANNIVERSARY OF THE INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR LEONBERGER DOGS--

Location : Brewery restaurant "Kirchner" in Leonberg.
Time : 23 September 2000, 10 a.m. until 2 p.m.
Presence of : Delegates of IULD member clubs from the following countries:
Austria
Belgium
Czech Republic
Denmark
Finland
France
Germany
Great Britain
Italy
Netherlands
Norway
Russia
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
USA
(in alphabetical order)

The delegates from Slovakia and Hungary had sent their apologies for not being present.

Chair : President of the DCLH and chair of the IULD, Mr. Gerhard Zerle

Minutes writer : Secretary of the DCLH, Mr. Mathias Ring

Items on the agenda:

1) Welcoming address
2) Reports of individual clubs about special issues of breeding (type, character, health), if any such issues exist
3) First discussion of new union statutes
4) Entry of a Canadian Leonberger club into the IULD
5) Miscellaneous

THE ANNUAL MEETING OF THE IULD CAME TO THE FOLLOWING RESULTS:

Item 2):
Reports of individual clubs about special issues of breeding (type, character, health), if any such issues exist
The focus of item 2) were statements of delegates on the character of Leonberger dogs with respect to the discussions conducted in society about dog-keeping, about very large dogs or the problems related to “fighting dogs”.
Switzerland
The Swiss National Council has not imposed any bans.
Germany
There is a broad public discussion of this topic in Germany. Leonberger dogs are not listed on a prohibitive list in any of the German states at the moment. However, this danger is ever-present, if any conflicts with the general public caused by a negligence of dog-keepers arise. The effort to reinforce the status of the Leonberger as a family dog is the focus of breeding. Leonberger dogs must have character traits which make them reliable members of this modern world. Character traits have been tested according to the standard in Germany for 15 years.
Spain
Every Leonberger club is to perform tests of character. This is demanded by the Spanish Kennel Club.
Italy
There are debates in the Italian Parliament on the topic of “fighting dogs”, which were started by the Green Party. However, the problem of dog fights or “fighting dogs” was not ended by this discussion, Doctor Perosino said. The Kennel Club of Italy is participating in working out an effective legal act.

Mr. Zerle summed up that the Leonberger clubs of the IULD bore a responsibility to prevent fearsome or aggressive dogs from being introduced into breeding. He also said that owners and keepers of Leonbergers must be made aware of the fact that they shape the image of our dogs' race in public.

Keepers of dogs that are older than 7 years are being surveyed in France on health issues. These surveys concentrate on the factors influencing the longevity of Leonbergers. The objective is to prevent diseases and disorders in the population. These measures are supported by veterinary surgeons. Data on the longevity, health and character of Leonbergers are also collected in the USA, where surveys are conducted at 5-year-intervals. Ms. Spirio suggests a comparison of this information among the member states of the IULD.
Last year, 5 Leonbergers died of the consequences of a paralysis of the vocal ligaments in the USA. This disorder is related to the X-chromosome. The animals develop the disorder between the 2nd and 4th year of their life. Doctor Perosino warned of a hysteria because of single disorders. It is biologically normal for living things, including Leonbergers, to develop disorders. According to Doctor Perosino, the IULD must set priorities depending on the frequency of cases when fighting or controlling disorders, e.g. for heart disorders or a dysplasia of the hip joint.

Some countries have had very positive experience when using microchips to mark Leonbergers. For example, all puppies are documented using a chip in the Netherlands. Breeders in Germany and Switzerland choose between tattooing and microchips.
Mr. Zerle summed up that microchips would prevail as a modern method of registration and identification. It is important that a global system (ISO standard, ten-digit-number, information on the name and race of the animal) ensures a standardisation of reading the chip.

Item 3):
First discussions of new union statutes
At first, the participants of the meeting expressed their gratitude to Messrs. Zerle, Cejnek and Perosino, who, in accordance with a commission of the 1999 annual meeting of the IULD, worked out a proposal for union statutes that will serve as the basis for further discussions in the individual clubs until the meeting of 2001 is held.
Later, Mr. Cejnek presented the contents of the proposal to the participants according to selected main items:
The introduction and item 1 define the general terms and conditions of the IULD (ability of the IULD to work, measures aimed at promoting the race on a super-regional level.)
In item 2 - Tasks and Activities - Mr. Cejnek emphasised the uniform interpretation of the FCI standard in its respective valid version, which was drawn up by the German Club for Leonberger Dogs (DCLH). He also emphasised the training and further education of special breeding judges on a common basis. Individual shows should be organised by the IULD in the future.
Item 3 deals with membership. No more than one Leonberger club of each country may be a member of the IULD, while this club must be recognised by the cynological umbrella organisation of the country concerned. This cynological umbrella organisaton must be a member of or be associated with the FCI. The member club must completely fulfil the FCI standard.
The meeting of delegates covered under item 4 of the proposal consists of 2 delegates per member country, at least one of the two delegates being on the board of his member club. Only members on whom no disciplinary punishment has been imposed may be nominated by the clubs. Mr. Cejnek emphasised that the member clubs had to supplement their statutes to prevent persons excluded from membership in other IULD clubs from becoming a member in their clubs.
Items 5 and 6 cover the board and its tasks. The assumption made in the proposal is that the chair of the IULD and his deputy are elected from among the delegates of all member countries for a term of four years. A view expressed in the discussion was that by way of tradition, the president of the DCLH should automatically be the chair of the IULD.
In accordance with item 7 of the proposal, every member club of the IULD is to pay an annual contribution of EURO 100.00, and EURO 0.50 per club member.
A draft of the new union statutes in German was handed out to all delegates of the annual meeting. Mr. Cejnek will supply an English and a French version by mail as a working basis by 31 March 2001. Mr. Cejnek expects to receive members' comments on the new union statutes by mid-June. There will be a vote on the statutes at the annual meeting of the IULD in Leonberg in September 2001.

Item 4):
Entry of a Canadian Leonberger club into the IULD
In the 1999 annual meeting, both Canadian Leonberger clubs present expressed their willingness to unify during the next year with the aim of an entry into the IULD. This intention has not been put into practice yet, which is why both clubs asked the chair for a deferment by another year. This request was granted by the meeting.

Item 5:
Miscellaneous
a) A new Leonberger club was founded in Hungary. Mr. Gergely is the president of both clubs. The IULD has taken notice of the situation in Hungary and will wait for further information to be supplied by the Hungarian Kennel Club or by Mr. Gergely.
b) Wanda Oud, Netherlands, acted as a judge of Leonbergers in England, which was criticised by members at the annual general meeting of the DCLH because Ms. Oud did not have a judge’s authorisation for this race. Ms. Oud asked to have the matter clarified. Mr. Inwood stressed the great achievements of Ms. Oud in developing the race in Great Britain. She is on the list of judges for Leonbergers in Great Britain. The problem is that there are no special breeding judges for Leonbergers in Great Britain. On the other hand, Ms. Oud is not a special breeding judge in the Netherlands, which is why no permission for her activity as a judge abroad can be given by the country of origin, which would be necessary.
c) At the meeting, the decision was taken that the Internet pages of the IULD are to be designed by a commission. Its members are Mr. Hein Sibrijns (Netherlands), Ms. Linda Spirio (USA) and Doctor Guido Perosino (Italy). The title is “Leonberger dot com”.
d) In the future, the dates of shows conducted by member clubs should be better co-ordinated. For example, the club shows in Austria, Italy and the Czech Republic in 2001 will all take place on the weekend of 7 and 8 April.

Leonberg,10 October 2000

Note: Due to unforeseen circumstances the Union had to register another domain name: http://www.leonbergerunion.com
Hein Sibrijns.