Do Cane Corso make good Service dogs?The short answer is NO.
A couple things to note about using Corsos as a Support and/or Service dogs for any anxiety or psychiatric related disorder. I do not recommend using them as an Emotional support animal or Service Dog for any anxiety related disorder; ie PTSD, BiPolar Support, Emotional Support and/or an alert dog for a disorder where an owner can become unconscious. Dogs that are good for this type of work need to be very resilient to their environment. They need to be more of a happy go lucky type of dog, where an owners emotions will not affect their emotional disposition. Even in a breed like Labs, or Golden Retrievers, dogs do bond to their people and its even difficult for them to not feed off an owners emotional disposition. The Cane Corso is an extremely sensitive dog. Especially when it comes to their owners. The corso feeds off of YOUR emotions. If you panic, they will panic. If you are unsure, they are unsure. While the temperament of a Corso can work for some service dog tasks, such as mobility support ie pulling a wheelchair, stabilizing an owner if they become unsteady, it takes an even greater amount of training from an owner to accomplish the goal of a true service dog. Most owners end up sending the dog to a facility to be trained and then work with a trainer for months afterward to get the dog trained so that it reliably responds to commands amidst major distraction. Even with all this training, there's no guarantee that the dog will be suited for Service work. According to Canine Companions for Independence, CCI, about 70% of dogs end up failing out of training and are not suited to be Service Dogs. Forgive me if you've already research and understand this, but here is a link to a breakdown between the difference between Service dog vs Emotional Support vs Therapy dog. Most folks dont know the difference between the 3 terms and what's required, or not required, for their designation. https://www.caninejournal.com/service-dog-vs-therapy-dog-vs-emotional-support-dogs/ Every time I explain these facts to people about the Cane Corso, they almost always say "But I know someone who has a Corso who is a service/therapy/emotional support dog... and he/she is just perfect" Yes. There are SOME dogs who can do the work, just like there are some Dachshunds who can scale a 6' fence, but its not the norm for the breed. Cane Corsos are protective of their owners and family and fiercely loyal. These traits do not make for a good Service Dog. Asking the dog to take on traits that go against their nature, is only going to result in disappointment for everyone. this is Ava and I doing focused heeling at the bank ATM. A well trained dog in public is not only under control but also very intimidating to passers by. Ava has been Obedience trained using only reward based training |
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