The Congress for Judges and Candidate-Judges of the FCI’s Americas and the Caribbean Section was held on 14th and 15th July. This major event was held at the headquarters of the Federación Canófila Mexicana and was attended by the best judges from Mexico and Latin America, along with well-known dog lovers from the Americas and the Caribbean Section of the Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI), as well as the Mexican judges who came to find out about the latest developments relating to the standard set by the FCI for the excellent work carried out in judging rings around the world. It should be pointed out that this event was dedicated to the memory of the late Mr Enrique Filippini from Argentina, a dear friend who was also an excellent judge. An emotional tribute was paid to him, with moments from his life as a dog lover screened to the accompaniment of a tango and a pair of dancers. There was then more than a minute of silence, followed by many minutes during which there was a great show of our affection for our dear friend Enrique.

The FCM headquarters were packed and full of interest, as a result of the many interesting topics discussed at each of the conferences. The event was held over two long days, but there can be no doubt that this was time very well spent for everyone who came. The subjects that came up included the following:

• Anatomy applied to judging
• Morphology
• Hereditary diseases
• Handling the judging ring
• Judges' rights and obligations
• Zootechnical functions applied to judging
• Teeth and dental formulae
• Assessing junior handlers
• Chromatology and coats
• Interpretation of a breed standard
• Measuring temperament
• Awarding of prizes and trophies

This was a very positive Congress given that, apart from the sharing of knowledge among many different people, it afforded an opportunity to strengthen existing friendships and make new friends, both locally and internationally, and as a result a good time was had by all, especially at mealtimes, when there were even mariachi bands and one of the speakers wanted to show off her talents as a singer. The truth is that we had an amazing time and many of us will remember it for a long time. We hope that the next congress will be much better and much better attended, for the benefit of our beloved dogs.

MVZ César Miguel Delgado Contreras