JUDGING THE CANE CORSO
By Joe Hovorka
S ince the Cane Corso fi rst appeared in the AKC show rings in July of 2010 we have seen a dramatic increase in the popularity and subsequent recognition of this magni fi - cent breed. Th e breed has gone from relative obscurity to Rock Star-like status seemingly overnight. Obviously, there are some upsides to this sudden rise in popularity but for those of us that know and love this breed it’s also clearly a valid reason for concern. An example I typically site when new people call me with interest about the breed is this: Many years ago when we fi rst started out no matter where we would go the mere
presence of these dogs with their impres- sive physiques and imposing looks would literally stop tra ffi c in an e ff ort to get a closer look. Today, the same can be said with the main di ff erence being that back then no one knew what breed of dog they were. Now the fi rst thing we hear is “ Th at’s a Kane Corso” (wrong pronunciation) the 2nd thing we hear is that they know some- one that has one and the 3rd thing we hear is “Do you want to breed that dog?” Th e reason I’m mentioning any of this in an article about judging the Cane Cor- so is with this huge interest increase it is more important than ever for those who love this breed to preserve the best exam- ples of breed type, characteristics, health
and temperament that we possibly can. So for those particular Judges in the AKC whose job it is to now accurately judge the Cane Corso—as if their job is not di ffi cult enough—clearly looks to get more chal- lenging in the future as a result of this popularity explosion. Again; as the breed quickly made its presence felt in the summer of 2010, it was clear that the judges were at best apprehen- sive when given the assignment to judge this breed. Th is was expected and after all under- standable, given the varying accounts and di ff ering descriptions of who and what these dogs were bred for and are capable of. In that fi rst year all of us that had seen
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