thank you
@UT-Erin03 ... she was possibly the best dog i'll ever have had the opportunity to meet. her 'pound' name was 'coco', which was changed to 'soco' (like southern comfort), which helped in her responding to the new name and paid homage to her catahoula breeding (state dog of Louisiana)... she rescued me as much as anything.
there were three breeds i was watching for once the shock of her passing wore- a presa de canario, a dogo argente, and a cane corso... the one i found (named vito) is the american version (not the italian), and they go a size or two larger than their italian kinfolk, and have much larger head proportions... i could really care less how he looks, though- as it's their temperament with 'family' as opposed to strangers that i like.... weird crap is encroaching in my 'hood, literally, and.... this ought to offer a layer of protection...
are you a really active type?
i have a friend with an Australian Shepard.. he literally runs that dog 20+miles a day five days a week... he's a competitive mountain biker, and the dog follows along him on the trail (5.25miles a lap for five laps) every time he goes... he bails out and chills in the truck most often on the last lap, he say's, and has since he was a pup... great dog- and madness that it has that much energy and stamina... dog has to be every bit of ten years old, now.
that dog may be too smart to not have a very active outlet.