Cane Corso: The best family protection dog
True:
The Corso needs no training to have a protective instinct.
False:
This is all that is needed to protect you and your family.
The
Corso should have a temperament that is calm, confident, loyal,
sensitive and protective. They should be athletic (for a
mastiff) and yet comfortable lounging around your family. But
even if your particular dog demonstrates all of those qualities, it's
not the best idea to trust to your dog's natural instinct, and hope
that it kicks in when there is a real-life need for it, and doesn't
kick in when there is not. If your dog mistakes a friend,
neighbor, or innocent stranger for a threat, you could be facing a
serious lawsuit. On the other hand, if a real bad guy breaks
into your home, your dog may be temporarily startled into flight
behavior and do nothing to protect you or your property. Proper
training makes both of these scenarios less likely!
What
I suggest is that most families do not need a "Protection Dog" or an
"Attack" or "Guard" Dog. Those are all very specific, expensive
schools of training that train very specific behaviors into your
dog. If you have the time and money and need, then go for it, but
my guess is that most of us need a dog that will bark at a bad guy, or
potential bad guy to drive them away. The dog needs enough
training and confidence to bark defensively when told
to. To make your dog even more effective as a
deterrent, you can train him (or her) to bark and posture when someone
is creeping around the house or fiddling with the door. And
as a final level of protection, the ultimate family protection dog can
be taught when and how to take the bad guy down. The
important thing with that last step is making sure your dog is educated
as to when to turn that on, and when to turn it off, and how to identify
valid targets of that training. If you do it all right,
taking your time, and focus on "educating" your dog as much as training
her (or him) then you'll have a gentle, loving, 4-footed family member
that you can rely on.
lll