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The
story of the Cane Corso, coincides extraordinarily with
the history of the Italic peoples, in all the splendor
and their misery. Unfortunately this race, saved in the
last few years from what seemed an inexorable and fatal
decline, reaches us with a scanty but still significant
historical and iconographic background from which a few
enthusiasts have tried to reconstruct the origins of this
race. The etymology of the name Corso is still uncertain.
The most credible hypothesis are those which indicate
Greek origins: KORTOS = wall and from the Latin: COHORS
= guard of the courtyard. Until recently the oldest documentation
citing the name of the Cane Corso, consisted of a few
poems and some prose dating from 1500. In 1998 the A.I.C.C.
or Associazione Italiana Cane Corso published a study
on the race which brought to light the military use of
the Cane Corso, in 1137 in Monopoli di Sabina (near Rome)
, the finding of kennels from the period and the close
links between the race and Roman history. All of this
allows us to consider the Cane Corso, as the principal
evidence of an ancestral race which has maintained particular
characteristics over the centuries, which take us back
in time, not just to the period tied to agricultural economy
immediately prior to the industrial revolution, but even
further back linking dog fanciers with the great civilizations
of the past; the rise and fall of the Roman empire, the
middle ages and modern times. The Cane Corso, has maintained
through natural selection over the centuries, the closest
possible contact with environment and the roles which
man has asked this precious companion to play. We are
talking about hard times when the success and survival
of a race depended exclusively on their ability to render
work, so the choice of raising and keeping a dog was a
purely economic one. A responsibility taken which had
to correspond to the acquisition of a good or service,
nothing superfluous was allowed. The Cane Corso, which
we can admire today is the best evidence of the theory
which sustains that when a race exhibits certain morphological
and behavioral characteristics relating to the work it
is required to do, then that race shows harmony of form
and balanced character. The past of the Cane Corso, is
not only largely present and alive but also extraordinarily
current, as if time had just slipped away. The Corso has
conserved from its ancestors the Molossi of Epiro and
the pugnaces of Rome, used in war and for fighting in
the circus, the aggressive and combative nature necessary
for successfully reaching its goal, with no hesitation
and with surprising potential force. Through contact with
man in social situations he has learned to react only
when necessary, becoming an excellent interpreter of human
gestures. With these characteristics the Cane Corso, has
survived until today. In small settlements in the south
of Italy where they have maintained an archaic system
of agriculture and a multi purpose dog is an essential
partner.
The
modernization of agriculture and systems of breeding,
in particular the disappearance of breeding in the wild
and semi-wild state. The disappearance of wild game and
the use of firearms with the consequently different techniques
of hunting have reduced the traditional uses of the Cane
Corso. It is for this reason that the diffusion of the
Corso has suffered drastic reduction since the Second
World War. The situation at the beginning of the 1970s
was worrying for the very survival of the race, then reduced
to a modest number of examples and no longer considered
by in official dog-fancying circles despite the efforts
of individuals like the Count Bonatti and Professor Ballotta.
It was in the 1976 that an enthusiastic dog lover and
researcher of the rural traditions of Italy, Doctor Breber,
brought the Cane Corso, to the attention of the public
and official dog fancying circles in an article published
in a number of the ENCI (Italian Kennel Club) magazine.
He followed this first step with the setting up of a rescue
mission carried out by a group of enthusiasts who had
made contact with Dr. Breber in the meantime. In October
of 1983 these enthusiasts formed the S.A.C.C. (Società
Amatori Cane Corso). The common intentions of rescuing
the race were the basis for the forming of the SACC, which
suffered its first shock in 1986 when Dr. Breber abandoned
the society. This fact has little resonance at the time
as the group was not well known and lived on the edges
of dog-fancying officialdom. This was a determining factor
in the future direction of the race as was the contribution
of the man who was among the first to contribute to the
new interest in the race and who provided the dogs for
the first litter: Basir the model for the standard of
the race was the son of Dauno and Tipsi, two dogs chosen
by Dr. Breber. When Dr. Breber left the SACC centered
itself around the kennels in Mantova run by Giancarlo
Malavasi with the entire breeding program of the race
and the running of the SACC in the hands of Stefano Gandolfi,
Gianantonio Sereni and Ferdinando Casolino. The need to
move the breeding program forward at all costs become
the justification for centralized running of the association
which was not very democratic and often object of not
positive chattering. For these reasons the SACC, two vice-presidents
from different times stand out, Mr. Oreste Savoia and
Dr. Flavio Bruno. In this period it must be highlighted
that the activities of the SACC for the recognition of
the Cane Corso were carried out with energy and appreciable
results. Unfortunately the same cannot be said from the
dog fanciers point of view because the level of quality
of the litter thrown by Basir in 1980 were never repeated
and the subjects produced, appeared and today still appear
distant from the desired model and show considerable variation.
In that period the SACC successfully organized dog fanciers
meetings with the scope of making the race known and allow
the judges of the ENCI to carry out tests and measurements.
This
activity produced an official standard document edited
by Dr. Antonio Morsiani ratified by the judging committee
of the ENCI in 1987. In the same edition of the standard,
perhaps because of the need to differentiate the Cane
Corso as much as possible from the other Italian Molosso
hounds, the Neapolitan Mastiff, for the purposes of recognition,
some inaccuracies were allowed which led to considerable
discussion. The most important regards the closure of
the teeth in that the standard requires a slight prognathism.
The level bite is only tolerated, however being just as
common in the Corso. This is shown not only in the many
positions taken by enthusiastic breeders (including Breber)
but also in the official records of the first convention,
Convegno nazionale di Civitella Affadena, June 16th 1990.
In 1992 in order to better follow the evolution of the
Race the ENCI decided to record the births of Corsi born
of parents verified by the judges and as such considered
heads of blood lines, in an unofficial book called the
Libro Apperto or open book. The data contained in this
book was transferred into the official books when the
race was officially recognized on January 20th 1994. The
enthusiasm for this race, the curiosity and the knowledge
that a greater number of dogs and a greater interest in
the race would have helped in the push for recognition,
lead to an uncontrolled increase in the production of
litters with a consequent reduction in the average quality
of the offspring. In this phase the SACC, not only omitted
take any action to inhibit this phenomenon, but rather
took every opportunity to publicize the race and themselves
as its saviors. Under this pressure the number of Corsi
produced jumped from a few tens of animals at the beginning
to the current 2500 annual registrations. Given the lack
of improvement in the quality of the animals produced
the success of the race was vaunted in terms of numerical
increase. This choice penalizing the zootecnical aspects
paid of in terms of political ratification. On May 22nd
1996 at Arese the best Cane Corso were gathered. CH Boris
was used as the model for the presentation of the characteristics
of the race at the upper levels of the F.C.I. A few months
later in November 1996 the Cane Corso was recognized at
an international level. This seemed a positive result
but it lead to further worsening of the system because
many enthusiast from outside of Italy, inspired by the
novelty of the situation bought the Corso without due
care or consideration. Often their chose was based on
lack of information, ready availability, colour or the
price of the puppies. What has been revealed in the last
few years is the total lack of a serious information service
and management of the race at an international level.
In the general confusion, those few who have tried to
organize the Cane Corso enthusiasts in their own country
have found difficulty in opening communication with the
SACC which has often hid its obvious shortcomings behind
a veneer of arrogance.
In
July of 1999, after years of superficial management and
repeated appeals against the controlling bodies the Enci
finally relieved the SACC of recognition as the official
club for the race of the Cane Corso». In an attempt
to obviate the situation some enthusiasts have founded
the A.I.C.C. If the second millenium closes under a cloud
of uncertainty for the Cane Corso, the third millenium
opens with a great hope; the presidents of several national
associations, Mr. Renzo Carosio for the Italian AICC,
Mr. Micheal Ertaskiran for the American ICCF and Mr. Erik
de Vries for the Dutch CCNL have decide to work together
towards an international coordination of the race based
on the commitment of serious dog lovers.
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Content & Design Copyright 2004-2007 © Charging Rhino Cane Corso & About Time Design May not be copied or used without permission. All Rights Reserved. |
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Design By |
Website
Hosting By
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