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Argentine Dogo
Dog
Argentine Dogo Dog
The Dogo Argentine dog an
endurance hound much like the Irish Wolfhound ancestor
dog. The Dogo Argentine (Dogo's) are expected to track
wild boar across vast pampas, corner the animal and
attack and hold it for the hunters. They are capable of
incredible bursts of speed for short distances and
covering long distances at a gallop. Having cornered the
boar, they must have enough strength in reserve to
attack and hold a wild boar weighing up to 400 pounds.
The Dogo is a large, white, smooth coated animal that
gives the appearance of power. They have bodies slightly
longer than they are tall, with females being slightly
longer than males. The Dogo Argentine dogs have a mostly
square, slightly domed skull and a large black nose,
that may have some pink in it. The ears are naturally
dropped, but may be cropped for show. Made up of ten
different breeds for ten different reasons, the Dogo
Argentine may look fierce, but his friendly demeanor is
masked by his appearance. The Dogo Argentine craves
close physical contact with their people. As the saying
goes, a Dogo Argentine never lays at your feet, they lay
on your feet. They are a reliable family guardian,
interested in all activities and enjoying guests along
with their family. Dogos are very protective and good at
guarding. Unwelcome guests should not approach this
breed of dog. Should the Dogo Argentine discern a direct
threat to any member of their family, they will act to
protect that person. Argentine Dogos are very reliable,
affectionate with friends and family, and intelligent.
They are highly trainable, good with children, and love
to be the center of attention. A warm body and soft
couch will keep a Dogo Argentine quiet for hours.
The Dogo Argentine was developed in Argentina in the
late 1920s by doctors Antonio and Agustin Nores
Martinez, dog enthusiasts and avid hunters. The Dogo
Argentine was primarily intended to be used as a hunting
dog for puma and jaguar, as well as a guardian and
all-around family dog. As a guard dog, the Dogo
Argentine was expected not only to bark a warning at
strangers and stop intruders, but to do so with such
determination as to fight an intruder to the death, if
needed, without being distracted by any injury inflicted
to itself during the course of the battle. Dr. Martinez'
belief was that "A dog which attacks an intruder and
then, at the first threat of injury, abandons its
prisoner is worth nothing as a guardian." And so great
care was put into high pain tolerance for this breed.
Another trait highly valued in the Dogo was his white
fur, able to deflect the sun rather than absorb it.
Unfortunately, Dogos still suffer from sunburn in
intense heat. The base stock began with the Old Cordoba
Fighting Dog (now extinct). This dog was known for one
thing: fighting. It was said that an Old Cordoba would
even try to pick a fight with the female it was trying
to mate with. Next, several other breeds were added to
the mix. These included Mastiffs, Bulldogs, Boxers,
English Pointers, Bull Terriers, Old English Bulldogs,
Mastiffs, Dogue De Bordeaux, Harlequin Great Danes,
Pyrenean Mastiffs and Irish Wolfhounds. This created the
animal that Martinez was looking for. The Dogo had the
tenacity, endurance, confidence, trainability, guarding
instinct, speed and awesome scenting ability that they
had searched for. The first standard for this breed was
recorded in 1928. The breed is still used today as a
fighting and hunting dog in Argentina, and is popular in
Europe, especially Germany. Here it gained recognition
with the FCI in 1960. In America, there are clubs for
this breed, although not widely known. Today they are
used for narcotics and drug detection, police dogs, and
even guides for the blind. Dogo Argentines are one of
very few breeds to come from Argentina.
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