I’m researching good corso breeders and came across this one which seems to be pretty well known and respected, but this is one of their recent litters. Both parents are white (or very light fawn??) and the sire barely looks like a corso at all. I blacked out the name because I don’t really care to discuss the specific breeder, I’m just curious what people who are more knowledgeable about the corso breed standard think about this.
Hi all, our corso/pitbull mix passed away from a brain tumor about a month ago (pic of our sweet boy attached). We thought he was perfect, so before he passed, I always thought I wanted our next dog to be a well-bred corso. Since he passed, I’ve been thinking a ton about what breed we want next, and having second thoughts about a corso as I wonder if I should make it easier on myself with an easier dog (basically a dog that has less risk of reactivity and stranger aggression). Other breeds I’ve been considering are a bullmastiff, greater Swiss mountain dog, or even a lab to go full easy mode. But then again, I know I will be very involved and committed to daily training and socialization for whatever dog I get, so not sure I necessarily need an easy, “first time owner” dog.
So I wanted to ask, how hard are corsos really? Tito wasn’t the easiest dog. I think due to a mix of genetics and poor socialization, he had lots of excitement-based reactivity mixed with the pitbull intensity. He got very overexcited the moment he left the house so we couldn’t bring him in busy places. He was my first large breed, so I gained a lot of confidence in handling large dogs through him, and learned SO much about dog training and the importance of socialization. We made tons of training progress over the years that I had him and I do feel confident that I could use that knowledge to raise a well trained and socialized puppy. While I hope my future dogs aren’t as challenging as he was, training him was very rewarding and enjoyable.
To give some more context to our living situation, we plan to wait until we have a house with a fenced yard before we get a puppy. We would probably be adding human children to our family sometime after getting the puppy. So, are my apprehensions to getting a corso overblown?
I'm searching for reputable breeders and saw Sandhills Bullmastiffs recommended. In their puppy application, they say that females must be spayed before their first heat cycle:
"We require spay/neuter at or before 12 months of age. Sadly many well-intentioned people don't remeber to spay before the first heat cycle (usually around 11 months for a bullmastiff) and suddenly their barely adolescent dog is pregnant by studs of unkown heritage. Spay surgery, while pregnant, is very risky."
Is this a huge red flag? Isn't it important for large breeds to go through at least 1 heat cycle before spaying?