Why is my Cane Corso so small?

Cane Corsos are impressively large and powerful dogs. When you choose this breed, you assume that later you will have a dog that has a height between 25 inches and 27 inches (65 and 70 cm) and reaches a weight of 100 lbs to 145 lbs (45 to 65 kilograms), depending on whether you choose a male or a female. But again, some dogs become much smaller than the standard, and as an owner, you then ask yourself why my Cane Corso is so small.

I will try to answer this question in this post.

A Cane Corso can be very small if it comes from a dubious breeder and maybe is not purebred. With a Cane Corso without a pedigree, or if it comes from a shelter, you can never be 100% sure where it came from and what the parents or grandparents were. For example, if a Boxer or other smaller breed was crossed in, that may be why your Cane Corso is smaller than usual.

Cane Corso is not purebred

In general, Cane Corsos are a large breed. But it could be that your Cane Corso is not purebred and therefore is smaller than usual.

Does your Cane Corso have a pedigree, and do you know who the parents are, or does he come from a “private breeder” or shelter?

If you are not 100% sure who the parents and grandparents are, there is always the possibility that a visually similar but smaller breed, such as the Boxer, was crossed in.

This could be why your Cane Corso is smaller and lighter than the standard.

Even if your Cane Corso is slightly different from the standard, it will still be an impressive and excellent family dog.

Genetics is the reason why your Cane Corso is small

In dog breeding, people always try to breed the typical breed standard.

Cane Corsos are large dogs. According to the FCI breed standard, the males should weigh between 100 lbs and 110 lbs (45 and 50 kilograms) with a height at the withers of 25 inches to 27 inches (64 to 68 cm). The females come from 88 lbs to 100 lbs (40 to 45 kilograms) with a height of 24 inches to 25 inches (60 to 64 cm). In reality, however, they are usually larger and heavier.

If your Cane Corso deviates clearly from the standard, it can also be that the parents were both at the lower end of the size table.

So two “small” Cane Corso were mated with each other.

The resulting puppies are more likely to be small – or even smaller.

This happens mostly with unserious breeders, who take any male for their female to mate without paying attention to whether it makes sense type-wise.

Other related Cane Corso Posts:

• Do Cane Corsos drool?
• Can a Cane Corso kill a Wolf?
• Why does my Cane Corso pee so much?

The same can be observed in the other direction. Breeders with false ambition breed bigger and heavier to the detriment of the animals. The biggest and heaviest male is mated with the biggest and heaviest female in the hope of getting giant puppies.

In the example of the American Bully, you can observe this in the extreme. There was bred from a standard American Bully by a selection of the desired size, a pocket, and an XXL variant.

Cane Corso is not yet fully grown.

Cane Corsos grow, on the one hand, very fast but also very long. After about one year, they have reached their final size, related to the height at withers. Cane Corsos live about ten to twelve years.

However, their final weight has only reached two or even three years. From the second year on, they become much broader and more muscular and slowly approach their final weight.

So if your Cane Corso is still very small, it could be that he hasn’t grown up yet.

Our Cane Corso female is now 27 inches (69 cm) tall at two years old and weighs about 100 lbs (45 kilograms). However, she is nowhere near her final stature and will probably gain quite a bit in width over the next year.

Whether your Cane Corso is relatively small in proportion or not, it must gain weight slowly. It will still be a large, heavy dog.

If your Cane Corso gains too much weight too quickly, the stress on the bones and joints can be too much in the first few months and lead to damage later.

Cane Corso gets too little food.

If you don’t give your Cane Corso enough food, this can be why he is so small. Is your Cane Corso maybe always hungry?

Maybe he needs more food to grow “normally.” If he is undersupplied with nutrients, he obviously can’t grow as well.

It doesn’t matter if you feed your Cane Corso once a day or twice.

Advantages of having a smaller Cane Corso

Even if you wonder why your Cane Corso is small about other Cane Corsos, it is still a large dog when seen next to other breeds.

But if your Cane Corso is a bit smaller and lighter, this can also have advantages:

• You need less food. The amount of food is usually measured by weight and activity level. The bigger and heavier a dog is, the more food he needs.
• The larger breeds are bred, the more susceptible they are to disease. HD/ED (hip dysplasia/elbow dysplasia) is especially common in large breeds like the Cane Corso. However, if your dog weighs less now and therefore has less weight on his joints, his risk of developing the disease is not as high.
• Your Cane Corso may not be perceived as “dangerous.” Let’s face it. If you go for a walk with a Cane Corso, you will often get critical looks. Because a Cane Corso is considered aggressive and dangerous. But if your Cane Corso is a little smaller and lighter, it might not be looked at so critically.

You can buy a smaller dog crate for your car. Especially with giant breeds, it is challenging to find a suitable dog box.

Conclusion: Why your Cane Corso is small?

If your Cane Corso does not come from official breeding, likely, he is not purebred, and at some point, a smaller breed was crossed, and he is, therefore, smaller than usual. But also, the mating of extremely small Cane Corso can lead to the puppies becoming even smaller.

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