With its natural propensity for defending its territory and its attachment to its master, the Cane Corso is an ideal choice for anyone looking for a guard dog.

The Corso can be very persuasive with intruders who approach the gate! And this behaviour is quite spontaneous: sometimes it can take a while for a puppy to take possession of its territory, but once it has no-one will be able to enter without its permission.

It is a well-balanced dog though: when its owner is present, it will behave peacefully. If the guest is invited to enter, it will even let itself be stroked. What is important is that the same person does not dream of entering when the owner is not present, because the dog will not allow it, even after they have been formally ... "introduced".

The incredible adaptability of the Cane Corso means that it has also been used as a hunting dog. Indeed, traditionally the breed used to be employed in the hunting of dangerous game, especially wild boar.

The job of the classic hunting dog - the bloodhound and the gun dog - was to flush out the prey, and - after what was at times a very long, exhausting chase - to corner it until the hunters arrived. This is when the Corso entered into action, hurling itself at the big game and holding it down by the ears and the snout, allowing the hunters to approach unscathed and finish off the prey with a well-delivered blow.

To enhance its sheepdog qualities, the Corso was mated with a Maremma bitch, and the result was called a «mezzocorso». To improve its sense of smell and hunting skills, on the other hand, it was crossed with a bloodhound bitch. In this case the result was called a «mezzosangue», or half-breed, while another cross-breed was created with a large greyhound to develop its chasing ability.
To ensure maximum performance in each role however, the cross-breeding was only practised once, and the dogs with mixed blood were no longer used for reproduction.
At this point it is easy to imagine that «pure» sheepdogs were used alongside crosses between sheepdogs and Corsos, and teams were made up of various types of dog - including the Corso - with different roles.

To enter a beauty contest, dogs must first have a Work Aptitude Certificate known as Cal 1.
To obtain a Cal 1, the dog must pass the following tests:
1) Harmless behaviour towards strangers: the dog must remain calm when faced by an unaggressive person. Following the directions of the panel of judges, the handler walks the dog on a slack leash without giving orders. The dog must stay calm when passing unaggressive strangers, and when the handler approaches or is approached by strangers to shake hands, ask for information, etc.. The dog must not be touched, and the exercise must be carried out in as natural a way as possible.
2) Indifference to the sound of shooting: two pistol shots (calibre 6) are fired for each dog almost immediately one after the other at a distance of around 20 metres. The exercise is performed with the dog on a slack leash around 2 metres long.
3) Defence of the handler: a person with a flexible stick is concealed, and the handler walks forward following the directions of the panel of judges, with the dog on a 5-metre leash held at a length of around one metre.

Cane Corso showing its determination in attacking the sleeve

A post is positioned at a distance of around 10 metres from the hiding-place, and when they reach the post the dog and handler stop. At the same time, the panel of judges signal to the person to exit from the hiding-place and threaten the handler and the dog.
The handler stands still at the post, and in response to the threat goads the dog and releases the leash so as to allow the dog to move towards the aggressor. The dog must react promptly, and defend its handler vigorously. There must never be any contact between the aggressor and the dog, and the dog must not be touched.
The exercise is stopped by the panel of judges when the speed of the dog’s reaction has demonstrated its aptitude to defence.

Training does not only mean getting the dog to perform the attack and defence exercises envisaged by the official tests. Training also means teaching the dog - starting from when it is a still a puppy - the rules of obedience needed to make it a good member of society.
In general, the perfect age to start is at two-three months, but it is essential that the teaching is done under the form of play: any puppy loves playing, and it’s a great way for it to learn thousands of things. Hard methods and shouting are absolutely to be avoided. A brusque “no” is a thousand times better than a hysterically raised voice and the use of words that the puppy will never be able to understand; violent physical punishment is worse still.
Calm, and above-all consistency are fundamental, especially in the first few months: a puppy should be followed every minute of the day, so that any mistakes can be corrected on the spot (rather than hours later when the puppy will not be able to associate the punishment with the mistake), and the dog can above-all be praised with a treat or a “good dog” when it does something which makes us happy.
In just a short time the dog will learn to come when called, to foul where it should, and to walk on the leash without pulling.

Photos: "Il tuo cane Corso"