Breed: Cane Corso
Sex: Male
Name: GR. CH Val Derro Astro
Pet name: Astro
Titles and awards: 21 times Best in Show winner, ICCF Grand Champion, Rarities Grand Champion, ARBA master CH,
ARBA CH, Rarities CH, ICCF CH, Mollosarstock CH, ICCF Dog of the year, ICCF National Specialty winner,
CCPS National Specialty winner, #2 ranked rare breed dog in America 2003,
United States Temperament Test Assoc. certified, American Tending Breeds Association herding instinct test certified,
Canine good citizen, Therapy dog International certified
Born: 4th June 2000
Breeder: Renzo Carossio, Italy
Owner: Michael Ertaskiran, USA

I had been waiting for a stud dog for a couple of years from my good friend Renzo Carossio. Litters came and went but just the right dog did not show itself until the summer of 2000. Renzo wrote me that he thinks he might have the right puppy for me “good angles, good bone, good substance, short muzzle but not boxer type”. When Renzo told me his name was “Astro” I immediately thought of the Jetsons and how could I have a stud dog named after a cartoon character, but Renzo explained to me that Astro in Italian meant “star of the galaxy”. The timing could not have been better as I was planning on going to Italy that fall and I could bring the puppy home with me.

I remember when I first saw “Astro” he was this skinny unsure of himself puppy, but even then he had this impressive head piece that boasted an outstanding muzzle-just as Renzo said “short but not boxer type”. When I looked in his mouth his dentition was perfect, just what I wanted for my breeding program. Renzo told me that if I did not like him that he would find me another dog, but there was no need for that, I recognized that this puppy had great potential. His pedigree boasts outstanding dogs like Boris, Fidel and Arek insuring that this is an important bloodline. When I first started showing Astro he was far from a natural, hard to believe if you saw him at a show. But we stuck with it kept to the training and most important made it fun for him. In his first year as a show dog we had a professional handler on him with mixed results. I would have to admit he finally started to excel in the show ring when I made the decision to handle him myself. It was apparent to me that Astro was only happy when he was with me and only really responded to me in the ring. If he was going to be campaigned it would have to be with me doing it.

Astro morphologically is as outstanding a Cane Corso as you will find His virtues are almost too numerous to mention. He has beautiful angles of the skull, a short wide muzzle, great bone and substance; he is what I have always considered the perfect height to weight ratio-26 inches tall, 128 lbs. He has big white teeth, light undershot bite inscissors in a straight line with divergent canines. Full dentition, nice dark eyes, strong wide nostrils, a volumous head, great expression. His movement is flawlessly correct for the breed, which is to say he is a trotter. Well developed thorax, solid topline, and good rear angles. Too me he combines all the breeds historical morpho-functional characteristics. He possesses the apparatus the be successful in catch work, a strong head, undershot bite, developed masseter region, light convergence to protect the eyes. He has longer musculature to enable him to carry on the hunt over long distances. The correct ratio of size, speed and substance. He is substantial enough and capable of over coming prey while agile enough to save the farmer from the boards tusk’s without being gored or driven to ground.

Astro’s show career was astounding in 2003 he racked up 21 Best in Show wins, countless Best of Breed and Group placements. He won the ICCF Nation Specialty, the CCPS National Specialty, ICCF Grand Champion, Rarities Grand Champion, ARBA Master Champion, ARBA CH., Rarities CH., Mollosarstock CH, 2003 ICCF Dog of the Year, He was the top rare breed dog in the US in 2003 combined systems, 7X RBIS winner, BISS, 4X Loving award winner. Astro never failed to receive less than an EXCELLENT rating from any judge he had ever been under. A particularly rewarding evaluation came from SIG Guido Vandoni, one of the judges instrumental in the breeds recovery. After he awarded Astro the Rarities Cane Corso Specialty this was his written critique;
- Correct bite
- Very typical
- Excellent head, proportioned skull and muzzle
- Head planes correct
- Rib cage to long
- Excellent angulation

What makes’s this dog special for me that he is every inch a Cane Corso. From his morphology, to his character. He is a Canine Good Citizen, Therapy dog International certified, United States Temperament Test Assoc. certified, American Tending Breeds Association herding instinct test certified. He is the most devoted dog I have ever owned. When he looks at me I know I am his sun and moon and to him everything in the universe revolves around me. What is that old saying “I wish I was the person my dog thinks I am”. Well...that definitely applies in this situation.

Michael Ertaskiran

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