26-02-2025
Local Dog Trainer speaks about Cane Corso dog breed following deadly attack in Beulah
COLUMBUS, Ga. (WRBL) – A Beulah woman has died after being attacked by her neighbor's dogs.
Lee County Sheriff Jay Jones say it happened around 5 p.m CT on Monday, February 24. Lee County Coroner Daniel Sexton says Patricia Burt, 78, was pronounced dead at 10:21 a.m. CT on February 25, 2025, at Piedmont Columbus Regional Midtown.
Jones say the deadly attack occurred on Lee Road 356. He tod WRBL Burt walked over to visit her neighbor and say hello. When Burt went to hug her neighbor, the neighbor's two Cane Corsos escaped their enclosure and attacked Burt. As Burt's husband and the dog's owner tried to stop the attack, Burt's husband pulled out a gun and shot both animals.
Abby Taylor, founder and owner of Family Dog Obedience and Training in Columbus, has trained Cane Corsos in her home, with her family. She says the Cane Corso or Dog Guardian, is a native mastiff from Italy, a descendant of the Canis Pugnax, or canine soldier used by the Roman Army.
After the war, Cane Corsos became guardians for homes and livestock. Taylor says these guardian dogs are loyal and assertive. While she has no direct knowledge about the dogs in Beulah that attacked Burt, generally speaking, Taylor says guardian dogs need training early on.
'I do a lot of behavior modification work. A lot of that behavior modification work are aggressive dogs. If the dogs had had that early socialization, then it's a very high probability that we would not see that reactivity. Early socialization, especially for guardian breeds like the Cane Corso are very, very important,' said Abby Taylor, owner, Family Dog Obedience and Training in Columbus, Georgia.
Taylor says she likes the Cane Corso for its intelligence and loyalty and that in her experience she has not heard of any attacks in her circle.
As for the two dogs involved in yesterday's attack, they were shot by Patricia Burt's husband. Sheriff Jones calls this a 'horrific, tragic set of circumstances involving neighbors who are friendly.'
In addition to teaching behavior modification in dogs, Family Dog Obedience and Training also trains service dogs.
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