Identify the breed. Pitt or Dogo?

[Deathcricket]

Cool forum you guys got going here, very good info all round. :hail:

So I got this rescue dog when he was 3 months old, his name is Atlas. I friggin love him! Best dog I have ever owned. Being a rescue I'm sure he is mixed.. but with what???

I was leaning towards american pitbull and was satisfied with that. But yesterday at the dog park, this guy brought in a Dogo Argentina and it made me question what he is... He is very skinny and not super wide like the other pitts he plays with. But he is taller and longer than them. Also at approx 9-10 months he weighs 65 pounds and I suspect will top off at 85. Which would be to huge for a pitt. But this Dogo Argentine was a lot bigger than him, and the nose was pure black, where as mine was brown. But the spots on the side matched exactly which i have never seen a pitt do. And the body structure seemed right also, lean yet powerful, but not "bulky"... Another reason he might not be a Dogo is they sound really rare. I had not ever heard or seen one in my life until last night..

Anyways, it's a fun thing to try and guess what my mystery Atlas was bred with, I suspect there are a couple experts here who can help me out. Thanks in advance for the replies! If you need any different shots than what I put up, let me know.
opcorn:

A video from around Feb when he was 45 pounds.
YouTube - Josh, Atlas, And bubbles

and then of course for reference here is a Dogo...

And a white pitbull...

 

[Chewbecca]

You know, my foster pit bull, Luke, has those same spots that your dog has along his sides.
They're faint, and they get darker on his belly, but they're there.
My foster looks like he might be pretty big full grown (though I DOUBT 85 lbs.).

I don't know much about dogos, but most likely you have one those gigantically bred pit bulls that were most likely mixed with American Bulldog not far down his line.
But I am not sure.
Your dog is handsome, though!

 

[Chewbecca]

I wanted to add, too, that I would not take my dog to a dog park.
Dog parks aren't the best place for our breed.

 

[Pops2]

not a dogo and your white pitbull reference picture looks like an EB cross.
your dog could be a pitXdogo but i doubt it, probably just another junk bred generic "pitt bull."

 

[ihartgonzo]

Pit Bulls come in a rainbow of colors, shapes and sizes...this is the side affect of COUNTLESS backyard breeders, cross-breeding, breeding for fighting or guarding or just a macho dog, and all of the over breeding going on with Pit Bulls. There are tons of styles of Pit Bulls, from huge, tall Amercian Bulldog mixes to short, WIDE, & usually blue hippo Pits. "Pit Bull" is technically just a term for a type of dog, not so much a purebred.

Definitely not Dogo mix... mostly for the fact that you stated; they are super duper uncommon. But he is one of the cutest Pitties EVER! Omg, he's precious. I love his silly ears. I think it could be possible that he had AB or some sort of mastiffy breed in his background somewhere.

 

[Deathcricket]

Darn.... I was hoping I finally found conclusive evidence of his 2nd mix. I suspect you guys are all right. Every single picture I see of a Dogo, they have a jet black nose and are much bigger than my pup. And the one at the park was a good 3-4 inches taller. What a gorgeous dog though it was. Same body type as mine, same markings, same profile. Just way bigger and darker face. Awww well, I guess it was kinda like hoping I hit some genetic jackpot finding a rare dog sitting there the rescue shelter, hehe. Like somehow my amazing dog that I love isn't just a plain ole mut. Who cares though right? He is gorgeous and has a perfect personality.

Plus I know he's not pure pitt, if you saw him standing next to any of his buddies he's way too lean, the shoulders and hind are definitely something else. You can see the pitt in the face though for sure. The comment that he's got some AB in him I agree is probably accurate.

Here is a couple pics of him and his buddy Jack who is an American Bulldog. This is around christmas though so he is still pretty small. Although jack still outweighs him to this day by a good 20 pounds. The body is no where near similar though but I can see where the spots and markings could be for sure.

I take him to the dog park every day. It's our routine to jog 1.5 miles there. And he carries the water in his doggie backpack. We play for an hour with his friends and then run back. I've even lately been taking him off leash and he's doing very well. Always at my side. He is well socialized and neutral/submissive, I make absolutely sure of that. Never aggressive. It doesn't matter whether it's a miniature pincher or a great dane. There has been a couple times he's been attacked by an asshole border collie that comes and is super defensive about the water bowl and pool. Atlas defends himself well and makes a lot of noise but it never escalates and I immediately take control of her dog to diffuse the situation. If you won't control your dog at the park, I will do it for you, hehe.

Maybe as he gets older and becomes an adult his demeanor might change... I hope not... But there are pitts, dobes, rhodesian ridgebacks, german shepards, and all manner of "difficult dogs" that are older and we hardly ever have problems. Sometimes when a new dog comes in and is swarmed by the pack as a "newcomer" there is a little tension, but we all call our dogs over (to us) and try only letting 2 or 3 sniff at a time, problem solved.

Man, I hope I don't have to stop taking my dog to the dog park, you are bumming me out now... it's the highlight of our day together.

 

[Miakoda]

Dogos are not uber-common so I have my doubts on the dog having any of that blood.

As for "spots", white dogs will begin to show pigmentation spots on their skin as they age and after more time spent in the sun. It's normal.

And like pops stated, that "APBT" pic you posted looks like some poorly-bred AmBully, not an APBT.

You're dog definitely looks to be a mix, but of what I cannot tell you. The shape of his face is odd.

 

[Saeleofu]

As others said, the white spots are on all white dogs, they're just more visible on some dogs. Gavroche has very thin hair, so you can see every spot on him. He gets more and more as he ages too lol

 

[Chewbecca]

I still would not take him to the dog park, unfortunately.
It's really NOT the place for our breed.

All the things you say about that dog park, well...you've gotten lucky, as far as I can tell.

I'm not saying your dog will be the trouble-maker at the dog park, but what happens when that lovely, water-guarding border collie decides to write a check his butt cannot cash with your dog?
What if he starts some crap, and as your dog matures, he decides he's NOT going to tolerate it?

Your dog will be blamed for any incident that occurs. Trust me.

And I cringe to think that there are that many pit bulls at a dog park.

I have two pit bulls in my care right now that are puppies, and they'd probably be AWESOME at a dog park because they LOVE other dogs right now.
But they are puppies. And I still won't take them to a dog park. EVER.
Social interactions will happen in small groups, or one-on-one, where the environment is more controlled and I can stop any snarkiness before it escalates.

The fact remains that our breed's predisposition for dog aggression can mean that if another dog gets snarky with them, they can become dog aggressive that fast.
Believe me, it happened with my last pit bull.
And it's our duty as responsible pit bull owners, who love our dogs and want to see them succeed, not fail, to NOT put them in situations where they can easily fail. Not intentionally, anyway.

Socialize him by taking him to petsmart on leash. Call up some friends and have them bring their dogs over. Talk to other dog owners you come across on walks and see if your dog can interact with them.


You can still jog with him, and run with him, and all of that, just don't take him to a dog park.
I mean, I cannot tell you what to do, obviously, you are your own person and your dog is yours, but I STRONGLY advise against it.

 

[Renee750il]

Good advice, Becca

It's not that our dogs CAN'T socialize -- some can; the problem is just what Becca said; another dog starts something and other dogs, including ours, get involved and it's always the Pittie who gets the blame -- and the needle.

Looking at the pic that shows the dome of his skull and then at his general shape, there could be a smidgeon of some kind of pointer or hound in there somewhere. He could be half APBT and then the other side of him could be a real mixture of all sorts of things. He's a great looking dog, though. Keep him safe

 

[MPP]

He brought a Dogo to the dog park? :yikes: Buy a lottery ticket, then, because y'all are riding the luck!

Your dog is just beautiful. No wonder you're crazy about him!

 

[Pops2]

dogos are more common than most people realize and where the OP is from is a big factor in what the dog could be.
i still vote for a BYB type generic "pitt bull" nothing else needed.
i agree that bully breeds will always get blamed unless you have nonstop video of an incident to show the other dog at fault.

 

[PlottMom]

He brought a Dogo to the dog park? :yikes: Buy a lottery ticket, then, because y'all are riding the luck!

Your dog is just beautiful. No wonder you're crazy about him!

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I was under the impression that a dogo is *technically* an endurance hound and a hunting breed first and foremost..? The last one I met (granted this was like 2 years ago), I asked his owner "more houndy, or more bully, in personality?" and she said definitely houndy.

 

[Amstaffer]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I was under the impression that a dogo is *technically* an endurance hound and a hunting breed first and foremost..? The last one I met (granted this was like 2 years ago), I asked his owner "more houndy, or more bully, in personality?" and she said definitely houndy.

They are hunting dogs but there is a real mixture of dogs in their recipe including but not limited to the Cordoba Fighting Dog, Great Pyrenees, Irish Wolfhound, Pointer, Great Dane, Dogue de Bordeaux, Boxer, Spanish Mastiff, Old English Bulldog. I would say they have more in common with APBTs or American Bulldogs than hounds.

 

[milos_mommy]

He could be half pit, half dogo. Because while dogos aren't super super common, there are a lot of bybs of dogos and i've seen a bunch end up in the shelters, i'm sure more are around in other areas, too.


I think 85 lbs is probably way too big to be a full pittie, unless he's REALLY stocky and muscular and big to begin with. But it's definitely possible, and he really does look like a big pit bull to me. My first guess would be 100% pit bull or maybe pit bull with a little american bully somewhere in there. He is really great looking, though.

I agree with Becca, bringing a pit bull or any other terrier with a temperament like them, or any similar hunting breeds, to a dog park is a bad idea. ESPECIALLY when they are between about 8 or 9 months and 3 years old. That is when they are coming into their adult temperament and hormones are fluctuating and at any moment they can realize they were bred to KILL other animals. Plus at any age their can be little scuffles in the dog park and unfortunately, if you have a breed like that, even if some other dog started it and finished it (and very few pit bulls are going to let another dog finish it), it's still going to be your fault, and your dog's fault, because they are some kind of bloodthirsty monster or something.

We have a lot of threads on BSL, and bringing a pit bull to a dog park, particularly a young pit bull, only increases the chances of BSL being pursued in your area.

If you have some friends from the dog park, I'd suggest setting up play-dates with them, instead.

 

[Pops2]

dogo'sare in no way houndy. they aren't really like other bulldogs either. they are magnificent but not at all for the average person. and yes the pitXdogo is common in certain states w/ large hog dogging communities.

 

[Deathcricket]

He brought a Dogo to the dog park? :yikes: Buy a lottery ticket, then, because y'all are riding the luck!

Your dog is just beautiful. No wonder you're crazy about him!

Thanks! It's funny you mention that. The owner did keep her on leash the whole time. It was her first time and he wanted to make sure it was a positive experience and see how she reacted to other dogs there. She did just fine, but she did seem to intimidate the other pitts there. And I have never seen them intimidated by anything. I didn't think about that until now. But they were trying to "sniff" her from a good foot or 2 feet away. Usually they get the nose right "up in there" to my disgust, hehe.

dogos are more common than most people realize and where the OP is from is a big factor in what the dog could be.
i still vote for a BYB type generic "pitt bull" nothing else needed.
i agree that bully breeds will always get blamed unless you have nonstop video of an incident to show the other dog at fault.

Good info, thanks. I'm in Saint george Utah. Instead of video, how about 4-7 other witnesses who would say the other dog started it?

I think you guys might be not understanding though. This is a regular group of people I meet with everyday. Yes it is a public place, but it's the same dogs 90% of the time. I know the 2 dogs that come that are aggressive (Cody and Sirrus) and we take extra care when those are around, we talk to the owners and then point out crappy stuff that their dogs do. They are appreciative and work with their dogs to help them be social, or we tell them to go into another section away from the core group. Only happened once actually.

But most of the time it's 5 pits (Atlas, Noel, Pixie, Athena, Gohan), 2 dobermans (Bella, Titan) , 2 greyhounds (Josh, Grace), 1 rhodesian ridgeback (Gator), 1 great dane (Scoobie), 1 Labradoodle (Lady Khelsey), 3 boxers... OMG I'm rambling hehe.. The point is, I know the dogs and feel like it's a controlled environment. So it's like a play date with dogs I know, just a lot more of them. The group dynamics seem to help out too. They keep each other in check and when a dog is misbehaving it's painfully obvious.

It's the best exercise ever. The 1.5 mile run over there and back is only 3 miles a day, that barely would even get him tired. I could run him on my bike since I can't run more than 3 miles each day without killing myself. But wrestling with other pits for an hour and he's done exhausted and happy. I can't prove this of course, but it seems like it works more muscles too and keeps him healthier than just "running" alone would. He uses his neck and back flipping over other dogs. He uses other muscles pulling the ropes in tug of war, etc, etc.

Anyways, I do really really really appreciate the advice. And I hear the stories too.... I'm just confident my dog will start to show signs of aggression first and will change to "play dates" with lower quantities of dogs the second he starts to show said aggression, promise. I don't want my dog to get the needle or hurt another dog either. I'm just confident with proper training and supervision, they can form a pack with us "people" as the leaders and they can happily play and have fun. He has been attacked on several occasions, and his response to said attacks has been perfect IMO. He even knows a great "roll out" to escape being mounted, some dogs try that with him.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I was under the impression that a dogo is *technically* an endurance hound and a hunting breed first and foremost..? The last one I met (granted this was like 2 years ago), I asked his owner "more houndy, or more bully, in personality?" and she said definitely houndy.

There is a really cool short documentary on Dogos National Geographic did. If you have a second check out this youtube clip. It shows all the breeds that went into making this. they spent 25 years breeding them.

YouTube - Dogo Argentino National Geographic

 

[Renee750il]

Since this is a group of friends getting together, not just a random group of strangers at a public dog park; if you're all in agreement and willing to be hyper vigilant and ready to take responsibility and NOT get animal control or other enforcement agencies involved if a fight breaks out, that's different.

I would, though, strongly suggest that you organize some obedience classes together, maybe even go together and hire a GOOD, NON-AVERSIVE, POSITIVE trainer, not a Cesar Milan follower, and have a group session once or twice a week. I'd also strongly recommend that several of you, if not all, learn to use a break stick properly.