The story about Charlie have been covered in the magazine "Rare Insight, a magazine for and about the rare breeds", and with the permission of Don Stout some of this story are going to be used at this page. So, we let Don tell with his own words about Charlie:
"We were taking a trip to the pet store to pick up some mice for our four snakes-an innocent enough errand. Driving into the parking lot, we noticed a man with two big white dogs nearby. Before entering the store, we just had to stop to pet these beautiful creatures. We thought the man was holding larger American Bulldogs. He corrected us, identifying the breed as the Dogo Argentino. We had never heard of it before. After a brief and instructive conversation, we went on our way to purchase the mice.
At the check-out counter, we commented about the big white dogs. The clerk alerted us that one of the dogs needed a good home. We had been planning to get a dog but not for a few months. Yet here was an opportunity we could not pass up, especially after seeing those incredible Dogo faces. We went back outside to see if the dogs were still there.

They were, and we ended up exchanging names and phone numbers with the man, whom we came to know well, calling numerous times over a three week period. We must admit that we were relentless. We must admit that we were relentless. We had decided the big white Dogo needing a good home was the right dog for us.
Finally the man agreed to come to our house and check us out. He gave in and offered us a one week trial, a challenge we knew we could meet. We were aware that Charlie had been moved around a lot before we got him. While unfortunate for the dog, the fact did not deter us. It only made us want him more.

Typical of a Dogo, Charlie greeted visitors as though he had known them for years. Dispite his previous experiences, Charlie was eager to meet people and would approach them without hesitation. Most people were afaid of him because of his size until they realized his gentleness equaled his stature.
We took Charlie to obedience school. He really had no training, and he neede to understand who was and was not the boss. He had to learn what number he was in the pack. With his natural intelligence, Charlie excelled. With his personality, he was the hit of the class. The trainer, John McMurray, asked us to attend his advanced and therapy classes and Charlie are by now a certified Therapy Dog, for which he has the perfect temperament.

Love is essential but understanding the breed is important too. Consistent training reinforces and channels the Dogo's natural instincts so that it can fit into a family invironment. It sure has worked for Charlie and us.
At the same time, he has that willingness to protect. When that urge is blended with intelligence, you get a dog who knows the difference between good and bad.
We may have rescued Charlie, but he becoming part of the family changed our lives too. He even made it into our wedding album. Between the wedding and reception, we brought the entire wedding party to our house just so we could get our pictures taken with our Charlie. He even wore a bow tie for the occasion.

We love our Dogo very much. Naturally we wanted to learn more about this rare breed. The task wasn't easy. We tried our local library but didn't find much there. We did discover a wealth of knowledge in our good friend, Brent. He told us about ADCA (Argentine Dogo Club of America), and we became eager members. As if we weren't already obsessed with the breed, our call to ADCA President Leslie Walden clinched it for us.
Through Leslie Don started rescue of Dogo's who needed a good new home and Don recently recieved his second Golden Paw Award, recognizing his efforts in Dogo rescue.

Don & Lisa Stout together with Charlie

We can't imagine life without
a dog-or Dogo-in it. Charlie's got to be there--to run
up and great us when we come home, to pester us to play, to take
him for a walk, or just to give him some love which he returns with greatful kisses.
For questions or comments you can contact us HERE, Don & Lisa Stout

Molosserworld wants to thank Don & Lisa Stout for sharing the story about Charlie with us and we wish them everything good for the future.

Do YOU want to nominate a Molosser for Dog of the Month? It does not have to be a dog who have achieved alot at shows, other reasons count as much to be Dog of the Month.
Send me suggestions!

Read this before you mail me

Mail me
or