Page 30 - ShowSight Presents - The Coton De Tulear

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A small band of Cotons decides to cross a river infested with crocodiles. A pack leader moves along the shoreline. There he barks loudly and makes every effort to attract the attention of the crocodiles. They come running from all sides, expecting that he ventured into the water, in the hopes of an easy meal. At this time, the rest of the band comes out of hiding and quickly crosses the river at a lower point. Seeing and hearing this, the crocodiles then turn and swim to the other dogs, but to no avail. They have been outsmarted and all of the Cotons are on the other side of the river.
This adventuresome and beautiful dog became a favorite of the Merina, the ruling tribe of Madagascar. It was decreed that they could be owned only by “nobility”. This designation earned the Coton the title of “The Royal Dog of Madagascar”.
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In the 16th century, Europeans settled the Island of Madagascar, many of whom were French. The French played a strong role in Madagascar history and many expatriates still live there.
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One of the early governors, Etienne de Flacourt, governor of Fort Dauphin wrote that he observed “amount of dogs that are small, have a long snout and short legs like foxes. There are some who are white. They are caused by dogs who came from France and stayed... they have short ears.”
French colonists also became enam- ored with the descendants of their beloved Bichons. They now saw a dog that was extremely pleasing to the eye, thanks to its beautiful fur. Beneath this alluring appearance was a very intelligent, well built, dog whose joie de vivre made him absolutely irresistible!
The desire to preserve all of these wonder- ful qualities was to follow, but no registry existed on Madagascar, until 1966, when the “Societe Canine de Madagascar” was established by a group of Coton enthusiasts including Mr. Louis Petit. The Societe imme- diately applied to the FCI for recognition.
Monsieur Leblond, Monsieur Tri- quet and Monsieur Petit, all considered expert judges, studied the Coton de Tulear on Madagascar and developed the first description of the ideal Coton. The picture below is said to be the “example” upon which that standard was based.
Early exportation to France and Bel- gium, where the Coton became known
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as the “Anti Stress Dog”, was followed by the appearance of the Coton in the United States in the mid-1970s. These bloodlines are the foundation of today’s Coton de Tulear.
In 1970 the first standard was writ- ten. Approval and publication by the FCI followed in 1971. That original standard was revised four times, to the current FCI Standard of 1999.
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• 1996: AKC FSS accepted Cotons de Tulear into the registry.
• 2008: AKC Performance Events par- ticipation granted.
• 2012: The United States of America Coton de Tulear Club, incorporated in 1993, with its established history of dedication to preserving the breed, accompanied by the largest Coton de Tulear registry in the United States, was designated as the AKC PARENT BREED CLUB.
• 2012, Jan. 19: AKC Coton de Tulear Standard for the Breed: written by the USACTC and Approved by the AKC
• 2012, June 30: AKC Miscellaneous Class: Approved.
• 2014: July 2: AKC Non Sporting Class: Full Recognition
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218 • SHOWSIGHT MAGAZINE, JUNE 2014
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