Thuin, Canine Capital of the World!

In 1954 the General Secretariat of the FCI settled in Thuin. It is curious to note that dog lovers throughout the world know the name of the town in which the FCI operates and offers the services that its 13 employees provide on a daily basis. Thuin now figures on the world map in the hearts of all dog enthusiasts on all continents! This is a reality that, although not on a grand scale, has not escaped the town’s elected representatives, who have on several occasions expressed their delight in counting an international organisation celebrating its centenary amongst their population of 14,650 inhabitants!

Conscious of the role that the FCI plays as an ambassador for Thuin, Philippe Blanchart – Acting Mayor – and the Town Council have named the city “Canine Capital of the World”. In this centenary year, this designation crowns the good relations between the FCI and the town that welcomes the Federation by focusing attention on Thuin, which would become a Mecca for dog fanciers, providing a positive window to the world by displaying knowledge, projects, initiatives and other breakthroughs concerning an animal that in this day and age has an important place in our society.

What could therefore be more natural than this designation knowing that Saint Roch, the Patron Saint of Thuin, is also the protector of animals and frequently portrayed with his dog?

Marie Luna Durán
FCI Marketing and Public Relations Manager
Lithuanian Kennel Club General Assembly

Lithuanian Kennel Club (LKD) General Assembly and Elections took place on April 9, 2011 in Vilnius. The number of the voting delegates was 49 –one from each regional or breed club.

President of LKD Ramune Kazlauskaite presented the Assembly with her 2006-2010 report that was supplemented by the independent auditor Loreta Balciuviene and LKD senior bookkeeper Rasa Lisauskiene.

The motion to accept Ms. Kazlauskaite‘s report was supported by 40 votes.

The assembly also discussed and accepted several changes to LKD regulations that will give clubs more financial and operational independence.

There were two candidates for the post of president of the Lithuanian Kennel Club, and they presented their running platforms and answered questions from the audience. Ramune Kazlauskaite won the elections with 32 votes and immediately began her second five year term as president.

“I think that the image of LKD had improved over the past 5 years, but it is not enough”, stated Ms. Kazlauskaite in her presentation. Ms Kazlauskaite went on to say that “The LKD is also working on improving the relationship between dog owners and society, government and animal welfare organizations. This will take more than a few years, but the social area is very important for me and I am planning to give it a lot of time and effort. I realize that not many clubs are aware of this work, probably because we tend to keep our achievements to ourselves. I hope that more LKD member clubs and Lithuanian dog breeders and owners will become more active in their social work“.

The Lithuanian Kennel Club board now has 8 new members elected by the General Assembly for the term of 5 years: Livija Zizevske, Renata Petkeviciene, Svetlana Valueva, Raimundas Cvirka, Antanas Butkus, Natalija Nekrosiene, Jelena Doronda, Svetlana Postarnakova.

In addition, the General Assembly discussed several important topics and amendments were made to the breeding, dog show and hunting trials regulations.

LKD Press Center