An AKC & ICCF Registered
Cane Corso  Kennel
Located in Wichita Kansas

As summer in Kansas finally comes to an end, we are drawing closer to announcing our Fall breeding plans for 2023. This year Lyra will be the only breeding that will take place. Initially, we intended to breed Bugatti as well, but as you have probably discovered that will not happen. As responsible breeders, we just can’t bring ourselves to breed Bugatti with her hips scores as terrible as they are. We planned to breed a repeat litter between Lyra and Tiernan, but with Tiernan’s unexpected death, that plan fell through. I guess you could say our kennel has been hit hard with adversity this year. Truthfully, it has been extremely difficult to keep focused on our goals, but we will get through these difficult times. At this time, we will not release any specific information about the male we intend to use. We truly just don’t want to bring any more “bad luck” to our kennel. We can tell you this: The male we intend to use is owned by friends of ours who own a horse farm in the area. His sire is an AKC Grand Champion and Dam is an International Champion. His hips were evaluated through Pennhip, and his scores place him in the top 5% for the breed, right alongside Lyra. He has an excellent head, great movement, and an outstanding temperament to match. We expect that this breeding will produce a litter of puppies with excellent/stable temperaments. The male’s head should compliment Lyras. Both Lyra and the mystery male have excellent movement. Finally, it is our hope that with both Lyra and the male scoring in the top 5% for the breed in hip scores, their puppies will have excellent hips as well. It is also worth mentioning the excellent pedigree and genetics possessed by both dogs. Clearly, we are excited about this breeding. We have developed a great friendship as well as networked with another Cane Corso kennel that shares similar goals as we do. Once we have a confirmed pregnancy, we will happily share the sire's identity. Currently, we are forming a waitlist for this litter. There are six people on this list so far. Once we have a confirmed litter, we will reach out to those on the waitlist, in the order they have requested to be placed on the waitlist. Only at this point will we accept deposits on a puppy. Puppy picks will then be made in the order that the deposits are received. There is no charge or cost to be placed on the waitlist. If you would like to be placed on our waitlist, please click on the link below.

In mid-July, July 14th to be exact, we ordered an Embark DNA test for Amarula. Because of some of the extra features, we ordered the test for breeders. Truth be told, all of their tests are the same, Embark just allows you access or to more features based on the price you pay. The “breeder “test provides you access to things such as a “pair predictor” or “matchmaker.” You will also get more details, aside from basic breed identity by using the breeder version. Our test cost $159 but we had a coupon code that brought the total price down to $99, which in reality, is a pretty good deal. (It is worth noting that if you decide to use Embark's basic test kit, you are able to contact them to upgrade your level of access to whatever features you’d like to add) Recently, Embark began testing Cane Corso’s for Dental Skeletal Retinal Anomaly (DSRA). Prior to Embark, we submitted DSRA test samples to Vetgen at $50 per test. When Vetgen went out of business, Embark took up the slack and began including DSRA in their battery of tests, for that we are grateful. The addition of the DSRA test alone makes Embark a value that is difficult to beat. A few years ago, we made it a point to add Embark genetic testing to the batter of health tests we perform on dogs from our kennel. There are several breed-specific genetic diseases directly related to the Cane Corso that Embark tests for. As a responsible breeder, it is our obligation to test for these diseases. We have found shipping/tracking and poor customer service to be one of the most frustrating issues when it comes to dealing with Embark. Here is an example of our issues with Embark. On July 19th, 5 days after placing our order, the test kit arrived in the mail. We collected a DNA sample from Amarula by way of a cheek swab and submitted it to Emark for analysis the day after we received the kit and dropped it off at the local post office. Tracking showed the packing was picked up and sent to North Carolina, which happens to be the completely opposite coast where the kit should have been sent. Embark’s laboratory is in California, so perhaps this error could be blamed on the USPS and truthfully it was. But we would be lying if we said this is the first time, we have had issues with Embark. Each and every test we have submitted to Embark has at some point during shipping, been “lost” for a few days. Apparently, Embark recycles the tracking numbers they use, so good luck keeping track of your package if you choose to use Embark. According to the USPS the sample was delivered to Embark on July 31st, however, the Embark website still showed the sample was not delivered. We waited approximately 1 week before reaching out to Embark for clarification on the location of the sample. After contacting Embark and explaining the issue, we were sent a replacement test. Our initial test for Amarula was finally received on August 7th, over 3 weeks after we dropped it off at the local post office. That replacement test, we were told to keep it for next time, but if we wanted to use it on another dog, they would happily invoice us for it, no coupons codes apply. Embark ensured us they would discount the test, but “their hands were tied.” So now that we are done bashing Embark for their poor shipping practices, let’s talk about their turn-around time. According to Embark we were set to receive our test results within several weeks of them receiving the test kit. Embark sent us several updates advising us of the status of the test and where it was in the process. On August 13th, a week after Embark received the test, we got an email stating Amarula’s sample had “Begun Genotyping.” Four days later and 10 days after Embark received the test, we got an email titled “Get ready to apply Amarula’s test results. Finally, on August 18th, over a month after we placed our initial order, the results were ready. It is unfortunate in our opinion that other companies such as Wisdom or Gensol do not test for and provide the same benefits that Embark does. If they did, we would immediately stop using Embark. Before we get to the results, let's back up a little. For this test to be conducted a DNA sample must be collected by way of a cheek swab. The collection process is fairly simple, anyone who has used a “Q tip” and is able to locate their dog's mouth can collect the sample. You simply open the test packet, remove the plastic tube with the Q tip-style collection device, place it in your dog's mouth, and move it back and forth against the inside of your dog's cheek for approximately 30 seconds. You then place the device back in the plastic tube with the preservative fluid, seal it, and put it in the mail. Make sure you register your test kit Embark prior to mailing. It is worth mentioning that one of the features Embark is known for is breed identification. We wondered why Embark asked you to identify the breed your dog is supposed to be, after all, that is what we were paying them to do. And, if you're a sucker for punishment and frustration like us, make sure you copy your tracking number so you can watch your sample repeatedly disappear and reappear in places you never knew existed. So here are a few noteworthy results Embark was able to extract from Amarulas’ DNA swab: 1. Embark was able to confirm Amarula is 100% Cane Corso, we had no doubt. Did it matter that we told them she was a Cane Corso? What if we told them she was a Corgi? Maybe we’ll give it a try on the next DNA test we do if we go with Embark again… Embark also provides a certificate that can be printed and framed if a dog owner wants to do so. 2. Amarula is Dental Skeletal Retinal Anomaly, (DSRA) Clear. We already knew this because we had submitted a prior test to Vetgen but, it is nice to get “double” confirmation. 3. Amarula is Canine Multifocal Retinopathy, (cmr1), clear. 4. Amarula is Degenerative Myelopathy (DM), clear. Some other noteworthy information Embark provides is the ability to print your test results for your veterinarian. You can even print your dogs’ DSRA test results and submit them to OFA. Be advised though, OFA charges to certify that your certified results from Embark are, certified… Last time we checked the OFA charge was $20. Embark will also tell you what they project your dog’s full-grown will be. This is an area we find to be inaccurate. According to Embark, Amarula should weigh 84 pounds when fully grown, she is already over 100 lean pounds. In their “Breed & Ancestry” section, Embark will help you discover where your dogs’ ancestors originated, if you are interested. With all this cool information, it is hard not to recommend Embark, especially if you are a breeder or are thinking about breeding, Truthfully, the worst part about using Embark is their terrible shipping/tracking and their customer service, it almost seems as if they use AI or a bot to deal with customers. Until one of Embark’s competitors catches up with them, we will more than likely continue to use their services… We have listed links to a few DNA tests for dogs below, both Embark and Wisdom. The links are more for comparison as we have no first-hand experience with any of the companies, aside from Embark. It is always best to conduct your own research. Embark: https://amzn.to/44ndZUR Wisdom Panel: https://amzn.to/47HdwzF DNA My Dog: https://amzn.to/3YJUcxD

Are you interested in learning more about AKC FastCAT? As a dog owner, you have probably heard of this exciting sport that allows your furry friend to showcase their speed. AKC FastCAT events are gaining in popularity and are becoming more and more common, especially in the Wichita, Kansas area. In fact, last year, (2022), the Wichita Kennel Club hosted the very first AKC FastCAT event in the Wichita Metro area. Several Cane Corsos from Vae Victis love FastCAT and participated in the event. First, let's start with the basics. AKC FastCAT is a timed event where dogs run a straight 100-yard course, chasing a lure, which is usually a white shopping bag tied to a line, that is pulled on a motorized pulley system. The goal is to complete the course as quickly as possible. Your dog’s time is then converted into miles per hour using the following equation 204.545/time, and points are awarded according to the result. For example, let’s say your dog took 7.43 seconds to complete the 100-yard sprint, 204.545/7.43 = 27.53 mph hour. So, your dog earned 27.53 points on that run. Typically, each dog runs twice a day, and the hosting club usually has at least three days of runs, for a total of six runs. At the completion of each qualifying run, your dog will receive a light blue ribbon. Your dog's time should be recorded on the back of the ribbon. As your dog accumulates points, it is awarded different titles, with the first being the BCAT, followed DCAT and FCAT. It only takes 150 points for your dog to earn their BCAT title, 500 for the DCAT, and 1000 points for FCAT. Points are accumulated, each run counts, and you don’t start over at each title. If you enter your dog in both runs on all three days and, using the same math in paragraph two, your dog runs an average of 27.53 mph on each run, your dog will earn the BCAT title in one weekend. Remember BCAT is only 150 points, that is how they get you hooked. Currently, Bugatti is ranked the 5th fastest Cane Corso in the United States, last year she finished in third place. Narco is not too far behind Bugatti, he is currently ranked in 16th place. His last few runs were held in the spring and the weather conditions were not ideal. It was a typical spring day in Kansas, with a strong headwind and wet/muddy soil. We are hoping the weather will be more ideal at his next event, which will be held in mid-September. To be ranked within your dog’s breed, he or she will need to complete at least 3 runs. After the events are completed and the hosting club submits your times to the AKC, your dog's three fastest runs will be averaged and your dog will be ranked accordingly. At the end of the year, the top 5 dogs in each breed are invited to the AKC FastCAT invitational, held in Florida. It's important to note that AKC FastCAT is a sport that considers the safety and well-being of your dog, so all events are closely monitored to ensure fair play and safety. All dogs can participate in AKC FastCAT, as long as they meet the following requirements: 1. Your dog must be at least 12 months old. 2. Your dog must have an AKC registration number via one of the following: · AKC registration as one of the AKC recognized breeds. · AKC Canine Partners, this is for mixed-breed dogs and other dogs ineligible for AKC registration. · Purebred Alternative Listing program (PAL) This is for purebred dogs that cannot be fully registered with the AKC. · Foundation Stock Service (FSS) this is for breeds in the process of gaining full AKC recognition. So now that you’ve established that your dog can participate and you have entered the event, what is next? Well, when you arrive at the event you will be required to check in and your dog must pass a basic health exam. The exam is usually held at the check-in table and consists of an event official observing our dog as you trot or gait him back and forth. If you have a female, you will be asked to prove she is not in season by wiping her genital area with a paper towel. If your female is in season, she will not be permitted to run. As long as no obvious health issues are observed such as a noticeable limp, or an over obese dog, your dog will pass the exam and your dog will be allowed to run as many times as he or she has been entered. Here are a few things to make sure you bring along: 1. A Catcher. If possible, bring someone along who will be able to catch your dog at the end of the course. There are usually plenty of friendly volunteers who will help you, but it is important to know that the hosting club is not required to provide someone to catch your dog for you. 2. Bring two leads. You will need one for releasing your dog, assuming you don’t use a quick-release style collar. And you will need a second leash to catch your dog at the end of the course. We recommend a sturdy slip lead. (slip lead link provided below) 3. Bring poop bags to clean up after your dog. All too often people allow their dogs to poop and don’t clean up. This is one of the fastest ways to not be invited back to the event location. (link provided below) 4. Bring a bowl and some water for your dog. A pop-up bowl is convenient for traveling with your dog. (link provided below) 5. Bring some beverages and snacks for yourself. 6. Dress appropriately. The dogs will usually run even if it is raining or snowing. Think of things like gloves, sweatshirts, sunscreen, etc. Overall, AKC FastCAT is a fun and challenging sport that allows your dog to showcase their natural speed and agility. If you're interested in learning more, be sure to check out the AKC website for upcoming events and registration information. We have left a few informational links below. AKC FastCAT website:https://www.akc.org/sports/coursing/fast-cat/#:~:text=All%20dogs%20can%20participate%20in,No%20wonder. AKC FastCAT Top 20 rankings: https://www.apps.akc.org/apps/fastcat_ranking/?sso=rel 6 foot long 3/4 inch biothane lead #ad: https://amzn.to/3qfS0Bl Slip lead for catching at end of run #ad: https://amzn.to/3DOGhNi poop bags #ad: https://amzn.to/43XxFhW collapsible water bowl #ad: https://amzn.to/3qv0ODc

An online search of “How much does a Cane Corso puppy cost?” produced an interesting result. According to Google, the average Cane Corso costs between $1500 and $2000. We are not exactly sure where they got their information and would argue that it can vary by location. However, we can tell you without a doubt that when it comes to the Cane Corso, for the most part, you get what you pay for. Although there are countless advertisements on craigslist and other sites and Facebook pages that support the selling of “subpar” Cane Corso puppies at discounted rates, it is a wise decision for a potential puppy buyer to do their research. All that said, we were truly surprised to find out that our prices start right where Google “said.” Vae Victis Cane Corso is located right outside Wichita Kansas and there are countless backyard breeders in our area, unfortunately the number is growing at a rapid pace. When we say it would be easy to play the “us vs them” game and list out all the things they don’t do, it is because that is how this post initially started. We had multiple items to discuss about the wrong doings of a backyard breeder, but then realized that is not the point of this blog post. The point is to provide some insight into why a Cane Corso puppy cost what it does, or at the very least why our Cane Corso puppies cost what they do. We’ll save the dreaded backyard breeder post for later, but truthfully, our hope is to eliminate backyard breeders, even if that is unlikely to happen. This being the first Vae Victis Cane Corso blog post, we wanted to compose a post about something that is one of, if not the first questions people ask when looking into buying a new puppy, and that is “how much do your puppies cost?” Often, a follow up question is asked, “Why do they cost so much?” The answer to how much is simple, our pups start $2000 and go up depending on the pairing. We do not adjust pricing based on color, gender, or breeding rights. In fact, color is the last thing we look at when selecting a competition or breeding prospect for our program. We would rather keep a puppy in our home, despite the added expense of allowing extra time to evaluate it. The answer to why they cost what they do, compared to a backyard breeder, which as it turns out is almost the same, is a little more complicated. The answer requires much more detail. We hope this sheds some light as to WHY they cost what they do. Let’s get to the answer, why do we charge what we do? It all starts with our dogs. We do our best to select the most promising and healthy prospects for our program, that can cost thousands of dollars per dog. We raise our dogs in our home with our children. If we have people over, they are greeted by us and our dogs. If we make a run to the store, more than likely at least one of our dogs accompany us. Our children help with daily chores related to the dogs, feeding, cleaning, scooping poop, and socializing. Our “prospects” are constantly being evaluated, both physically and mentally. Beyond that evaluation, we put extensive time into our dogs assuring they will contribute to the betterment of the breed. Our dogs may be two years old before we even think about breeding them. We refuse to breed a female until she has reached her third heat cycle, that could take two and a half years. But before we breed them, we health test our dogs. At minimum, we check hips, elbows and for DSRA. Pennhip is the organization we prefer for hip evaluations, OFA for elbows, and up until recently we used Vetgen for DSRA evaluation, now we use EMBARK. Just looking at those three tests, a breeder would easily spend over $1000. If a dog passes our health screening process, we like to compete with them, occasionally we compete with our dogs prior to health testing. All our dogs are registered with the American Kennel Club. In addition, starting in 2023 we made it a requirement for all puppies produced by Vae Victis Cane Corso to be registered with the AKC. The good news is, we pay the registration fee. It would not be unreasonable to expect to pay between $300 to $500, between registering the litter and each puppy with the AKC. Locally, in the Wichita Kansas area we checked pricing with four other breeders, including us, for a total of five to determine the average cost of a Cane Corso puppy in our area. The breeders in the Wichita area averaged $1500 - $2500 per puppy. As expected, the prices went up by $500 - $750 if you wanted “AKC registration” or breeding rights. In an effort to protect the breed from over-population and protect the reputation of Vae Victis Cane Corso, we do not charge more for breeding rights simply because we believe not all dogs SHOULD be bred. Across the country we contacted two breeders on the West Coast. One breeder sells their pups from $3000 - $4500, another had a price set upwards of $5000. East coast prices were similar, although it was difficult to lock down an exact price. There are dozens of excellent kennels on the east and west coast, too many to name. The main issue being, getting the pup from there to here, which would inevitably add to the overall cost of a puppy. Importing a dog is a whole different ball game. Currently, Vae Victis Cane Corso has three imported dogs in our program, and one dog that comes from Eastern Europe, but his mother was imported to this country after she was impregnated. When you import a dog from a foreign country, you’ve now got to account for transport fees as well as broker fees. (More on that in a later blog post.) We’ll use Bugatti, our first delve into the world of importing dogs, as an example. We purchased Bugatti from her breeder in Sicily for around 2500 Euros. We paid approximately 2200 Euros more to have her flown here. About a week or two before she was scheduled to arrive, we found out we “needed” a broker, that cost approximately $350 USD more. But wait, there is more. The closest international airport we could have her sent to was in Houston Texas. So, add several more hundred in hotels, food, and fuel. And then there is the airline handling fee that no-one tells you about until you arrive at the airline to pick up your dog, that was another $150 if memory serves me correctly. For us to purchase Bugatti and get her into our home it cost us over $5000. But it does not stop there, we registered Bugatti with the AKC, UKC and IABCA, that was an additional few hundred dollars. We also entered Bugatti in several conformation shows, she even earned her International Title. She earned a BCAT through AKC and was ranked the third fastest Cane Corso in The United States in 2022. Currently, as of August 2023, Bugatti is ranked 5th fastest Cane Corso after only running 4 times this year. The “topping on the cake” is that a few months ago, we had Bugatti’s hips evaluated by Pennhip, they are terrible. After all the money and time, we invested in Bugatti, she will not be bred. We made her breeder aware of her test results, even sent him the x-rays. She will not be replaced, no health guarantee will be honored, the monetary investment in Bugatti will bring us no return. It’s a risk we took, and we learned from it. One might think, “they are dogs, let them have their pups, nature will take care of them.” The truth is that there are countless things that could go wrong. Your dog needs an emergency C-section in the middle of the night, on a holiday weekend? (Because that’s when things will go wrong, ask how we know). You are looking at several thousand for that C-section. Don’t forget about your pregnancy sonogram or X-ray to get an accurate puppy count, that’ll be a few hundred. Add in hundreds in routine care, for each dog… We haven’t even gotten into the cost to compete with your dog. You’re looking at hundreds, if not thousands of dollars in cost, just to earn your title. Now if you want to enter competition from another kennel club, you are once again looking at registration fees and show entry fees. Currently, our dogs compete in the AKC, UKC and IABCA. Let us not forget about the intangibles. Those things that don’t cost money, that you can't even begin to describe, such as everything going wrong. You lose a pup; you lose several pups during their birth. Or even worse, your female dies. There is no exchange rate for heartbreak into dollars. But what if you don’t even make it that far? That part I mentioned about our dogs being a part of our family, here is where that comes into play. Our family bonds with each of our dogs. The disappointment of a dog we have built a bond with failing health tests is indescribable. Many breeders would simply remove the dog from their breeding program and send the dog off to live with whoever wanted a dog at a discounted rate, with the knowledge that it will have health problems for the rest of its life. However, for us that is simply not an option. As we mentioned, our dogs are part of our family and that means they stay with us for life. Those dogs will not contribute to the program, they will be pets. And at the end of the day, that is 100% ok with us, because we did not get into this to “make a quick buck.” So here we are, full circle: “Why do they cost so much?” The answer as it turns out is quite simple. The puppies bred by a reputable breeder such as Vae Victis cane Corso cost what they do because the kennel owners spend hundreds to thousands of dollars on health tests, hundreds if not thousands in show entry fees, and possibly thousands of dollars just to import a dog. They also provide high quality food and veterinary care for their dogs. They will gladly take a dog back rather than allow it to go to an animal shelter. All the while knowing, some of their prospects may fail their health tests and be eliminated from their breeding program. With all this in mind, a reputable breeder will also provide their clients with a defined and specific health guarantee, anything less than two years should be unacceptable. As a rule of thumb, if a puppy has health issues covered by the health guarantee, the reputable breeder will provide you with another puppy, at no cost to YOU and even allow you to keep the first puppy, we will. Again, another loss a reputable breeder is willing to cover. When you go with a reputable/responsible you are getting a quality puppy from health tested parents, that more than likely have earned their own conformation titles, they come from true champion bloodlines and have solid temperaments. You are getting a health guarantee, that should last a minimum of two years. You should also be gaining friendship and lifetime support for you and your puppy. It is ironic, that while composing this blog post we discovered our health tested, titled, and guaranteed puppies, cost just about the same as non-health tested, non-titled and non-guaranteed puppies… In future blog posts, we hope to continue to cover topics that affect our day-to-day life as a Cane Corso kennel located in the Midwest and go into detail about our experiences dealing with “dog people” and the Cane Corso. Our true goal is to supply our clients with a healthy, stable dog that will give our clients years and years of companionship.