How to Train a Cane Corso to Hunt
Introduction
What is a Cane Corso? If you are the proud owner of a Cane Corso you may be getting tired of hearing that! This large, powerfully built dog was developed in Italy and is a very old dog breed, reputedly used as a war dog by Roman Legions centuries ago. Cane Corsos have been traditionally used as guard dogs, livestock protection dogs, and hunting dogs. Their attributes make them great hunting dogs, but they do need an experienced trainer and a suitable outlet for their talents.
Using a Cane Corso to hunt, which is one of the main reasons this breed was developed, and ensuring that his skills are controlled and directed, provides a good outlet for this dog's abilities and high energy. Working as a team with your Cane Corso is very important, as this dog bonds with his family, and having a job to do with you will help your Cane Corso develop a healthy attitude. Plus, hunting will keep this muscular, high energy dog in good shape by providing plenty of exercise.
Defining Tasks
Cane Corsos are natural hunting dogs. Their scenting ability, strength, stamina, and general fearlessness, as well as high pain tolerance, has made them ideal for hunting large, dangerous, game, such as wild boars, bears, lions, badgers and coyotes. Because of their strong prey drive, they can also be used to hunt small animals, including rabbits and birds. It is important to train your Cane Corso to be sociable and obedient, as his strength gives him the potential to do extreme harm to other pets or people. Although they tend to bond well with their family, these dogs tend to not to be friendly with unfamiliar people, or people outside their family. For this reason, having a well trained Cane Corso that has been given an appropriate activity for his high energy is important. This is not a breed or activity recommended for people who are new to training and hunting with dogs. Cane Corsos need firm direction to channel their natural prey drive and direct them to appropriate hunting targets in controlled environments.
Getting Started
Cane Corsos should be started in training as young as possible when they are manageable and when you can form a strong relationship with this dog. Teach your Cane Corso to perform obedience commands or activities to earn meals and play. This is a working dog and as such is geared to work for a living. Teaching your dog that “nothing is for free” and that he needs to perform to get food, affection, and play will help you in directing and training your Cane Corso to do more complex tasks like hunting. Socializing your Cane Corso early is advisable to prevent issues later between large, mature dogs that can result in injury. Make sure your dog is in in good physical condition for hunting large game.
The General Hunting Method
The Scent Trail Method
The Hunting with Others Method
Written by Laurie Haggart
Published: 05/25/2018, edited: 01/08/2021
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Success Stories and Training Questions
Training Questions and Answers
Pippi
How do I get her to attack a obey my commands
946 Dog owners recommended
Hello Titus, That depends on what you want to train her to attack. If you are trying to teach her to attack prey during a hunt, using an animal skin on something like a flirt pole and rewarding her with play and praise can help her learn. Also, right before you show her the flirt pole and start moving it around to entice her, give her a command, such as "Get It" or "Hunt" and praise her when she then tries to play with the pole. This command can later be used during a hunt to encourage her to attack the animal. Allow her to shake, bite and generally be a bit rough with the skin on the pole when she catches it. If you are trying to train her to attack people for protection, that should only be done with the help of a professional protection dog trainer - protection training is all about a high level of control and obedience, as well as confidence and rewards - not fear and punishment. Protection dogs are extremely controlled and highly trained so that they do not simply attack everyone like an aggressive dog would (that type of dog would be a danger to you and those the dog knows also). Obedience takes practice. You first need to spend time teaching your dog what each command means - this is usually done using rewards and positive reinforcement. Once your dog understands the commands, you should practice each command in distracting locations until your dog can do it consistently there as well. Start with very easy distractions, like smells in your yard, first, and gradually work up to harder distractions as your dog improves. It is very important to be consistent about your commands. If you give your dog a command, be ready to enforce the command. That might look like practicing come on a long leash so that you can reel them in if they do not come when called. It might look like not moving forward on a walk until your dog is walking beside you instead of trying to pull, or walking the opposite way when your dog moves to far ahead - so that your dog has to turn around and follow you. It might look like not putting your dog's food down until they obey sit first. There are a number of ways to enforce commands and most of the ways simply require patience and persistence. Wag's training section of the website has several more articles that cover how to teach specific obedience commands. I suggest looking for articles that cover how to train each specific command that you wish to improve. https://wagwalking.com/training Best of luck training, Caitlin Crittenden
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