Cane Corso Italiano

Breed Rating

Breed Details

General

The Cane Corso is an Italian dog breed that is valued highly in Italy as a guardian, hunter and companion. It is a descendant from the old Roman Molossian formerly scattered all over Italy. The name was derived from the Latin 'cohors' meaning protector and guardian of the farmyard. The word Corso in the breed's name is a characteristic of the dog to be strong and vigorous. Today, the breed is used for protection, guarding, tracking and police work.

These dogs love children that they sometimes allow them to any pranks and mischief. This giant dog will never push or drop a baby in the heat of joy as he is perfectly aware of his power and abilities. He will literally try not to breathe to protect the baby and cannot afford to make sudden movements. This dog is extremely responsive and agile. They are used to guard the family, livestock and property. Long ago, they were used for herding cattle and hunting big game.

Color

The dog's color can be Black, all shades of Grey and Fawn, Stag Red and Brindle. For the Fawn and Brindle colored dogs, the Black and Grey mask on their muzzles should never go over the line of the eyes. It is also acceptable in shows to have a small white spot on the chest, white on the toes and on the bridge of the muzzle.

Coat

The dog?s short, shiny and very dense hair coat are actually tough, heave and incredibly dense with a light undercoat. During the winter season, the thicker layer appears for protection. It is slightly longer around the rear, the rear of the upper thighs and also the butt area. The hair is smaller and softer over the dog?s muzzle.

Personality

These dogs are willing to please and are closely attached to their owners. They must have strong leadership and training at an early age. Although they can easily learn basic commands from training, the challenging part is controlling and molding this dog?s very strong protective instinct. They are highly suspicious of strangers as they are powerful and imposing. Aggression should never be encouraged. Introducing new things, animals and people should be carefully done as they dislike the unknown. The Cane Corso are a quiet breed but they will bark at anything when they feel unsure. They like always being with their owner. They should only react when a real threat is present. However, as proper socialization is crucial to control a dog's natural protective instincts, they will consider anything is threatening if they are not properly socialized as a puppy. With proper socialization, this dog can get along well with other humans and dogs.

Care

This dog's short coated hair does not require too much grooming. They are light shedders and they only require occasional brushing and combing to remove dead hair. These dogs are generally known to be healthy and robust but as a large breed dog, they have the typical bone and joint problems. Given proper nutrition, sufficient exercise and shots from the vet, they can live up to about 10-11 years on the average.

Training

The Cane Corso is an intelligent breed making them fairly easy to train. Even a beginner dog owner can easily cope with the education and training of this dog. They have a great ability to learn and a balanced mind. These dogs were bred as a companion, guardian and hunter.

Activity

As a large breed working dog, they will need lots of regular exercise. They make wonderful jogging or biking companions. This can also be alternated with one long brisk daily walk. They can adopt well to country house or city apartment living as long as they are given sufficient exercise.