| Great Pyrenees: the most honest dog breed review you'll ever find. Information about Great Pyrenees personality and behavior. |
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My book, Your Purebred Puppy: A Buyer's Guide (published by Henry Holt & Co.), includes a full-page profile of the Great Pyrenees, including these excerpts:
"The AKC Standard describes the Great Pyrenees as "strong willed, independent, and somewhat reserved, yet attentive, fearless, and loyal to his charges -- both human and animal."
A majestic-looking dog with a kindly, regal expression, the Great Pyrenees is calm, composed, and serious.
As an adult, he is quiet indoors and content with long daily walks and regular opportunities to stretch out. He does love to romp in the snow, and pulling a cart or carrying a backpack gives him a purpose in life.
Aloof with strangers, he should be accustomed to many different people in his early months.
The Great Pyrenees is patient with his own family's children, but some are overprotective when neighbors join in for rough-and-tumble play. Likewise, he may be protective of his own family's pets while aggressively driving off others.
These characteristics stem from his background as a livestock guardian, where he was expected to keep watch over the flock, making his own decisions about friends and foes and appropriate actions. Unless you establish yourself as the alpha (number one), the Great Pyrenees will trust his own judgment.
Great Pyrenees have a deep, impressive bark, which they tend to use freely, especially at night when they are most vigilant.
Fences must be high and secure, for they have a tendency to roam. Some produce "slime" (excessive saliva)."
History
On the steep slopes of the Pyrenees Mountains between France and Spain, the Great Pyrenees guarded sheep flocks against wolves and bears.
Size
25-32 inches and 85-130 lbs |
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Great Pyrenees
What's good about 'em
What's bad about 'em
- Is very large and rugged, resembling a majestic white bear
- Will protect your horses, llamas, sheep, goats, or chickens
- Can be found with a strong protective temperament, or a more easygoing mellow temperament
- Tends to be serious and steady, rather than playful and silly
- Is quiet indoors and content with moderate exercise
A Great Pyrenees may be right for you.
| If you don't want to deal with... |
- A very large dog who takes up a lot of space in your house and car
- A heavy dog who wants to sit on your feet, lie on your lap, and lean his weight against your leg
- Destructiveness when bored or left alone too much
- Aggression or fearfulness when not socialized enough
- Aggression toward animals who don't belong to his family
- Strong-willed mind of his own, requiring a confident owner who can take charge
- Providing six-foot fences and lots of supervision to prevent wandering
- Deep booming barks, especially at night when he hears a sound
- Heavy shedding
A Great Pyrenees may not be right for you.
| If I were considering a Great Pyrenees... |
My major concerns would be:
- Providing the proper balance of exercise. Young Great Pyrenees need enough exercise to keep them lean and healthy, but not so much that their soft growing bones, joints, and ligaments become over-stressed and damaged. Adult Great Pyrenees need more exercise to keep them in shape, but not in hot or humid weather for fear of overheating. The proper amount of exercise can be difficult to regulate in giant breeds.
Since you have to minimize their exercise, young Great Pyrenees can be very rambunctious. They will romp with uncoordinated gawkiness all over your house. You need to substitute extra quantities of companionship and supervision. Otherwise, left alone, young Great Pyrenees become bored and destructive -- and their powerful jaws can literally destroy your living room.
| Great Pyrenees are most satisfied when guarding livestock. You can substitute pulling a cart or sled, or backpacking, or a similar canine activity, but if you simply want a pet for your family, I do not recommend this breed. Great Pyrenees were never intended to be simply household pets. |
- Providing enough socialization. Great Pyrenees need extensive exposure to friendly people so they learn to recognize the normal behaviors of "good guys." Then they can recognize the difference when someone acts abnormally. Without careful socialization, they may be suspicious of everyone, which could lead to biting. Some Great Pyrenees go in the opposite direction -- without enough socialization, they become fearful of strangers, which can lead to defensive biting.
| If you have small children, I do not recommend a Great Pyrenees puppy. Young Great Pyrenees (up to about three years old) romp and jump with great vigor, and things can go flying, including people. There can also be problems if a Great Pyrenees tries to protect his own children from other children, which could lead to tragedy if kids are simply roughhousing and the Pyr decides to stop it. With such a massive dog, you can see the potential risk. |
- Animal aggression. Most Great Pyrenees will treat the pets in their own family as members of their flock. But they have strong instincts to drive away animals who do not belong to their family. Many Great Pyrenees are dominant or aggressive toward dogs they don't know. Many do not get along with cats. If anything goes wrong in the breeding, socializing, training, handling, or management of this breed, it is capable of seriously injuring or killing other animals.
| To keep your Great Pyrenees in, and to keep other animals out, fences should be high, with wire sunk into the ground along the fence line to thwart digging. Gates should have the highest quality locks. |
- Heavy shedding. Great Pyrenees shed a LOT. You'll find hair and fur all over your clothing, upholstery, carpeting, under your furniture, on your countertops -- even in your food. Frequent vacuuming will become a way of life. Make sure you're REALLY up for this.
- The strong temperament. Great Pyrenees are not Golden Retrievers. They have an independent mind of their own and are not pushovers to raise and train. They can be manipulative, and some are willful, obstinate, and dominant (they want to be the boss) and will make you prove that you can make them do things. You must show them, through absolute consistency, that you mean what you say.
| To teach your Great Pyrenees to listen to you, "Respect Training" is mandatory. My Great Pyrenees Training Page discusses the program you need. |
- Noise. Unless you live on a farm or ranch away from close neighbors, Great Pyrenees should never be left outside in your yard, unsupervised. Their booming barks will have your neighbors calling the cops to report the nuisance -- or perhaps letting your Great Pyrenees out of his yard so he'll wander away.
| Frankly, most Great Pyrenees are "too much dog" for the average household. This is a serious working dog with tremendous strength. Very few people really have the knowledge or skills necessary to manage this breed, or to provide the activities that keep him most satisfied. |
| Not all Great Pyrenees are alike! |
- There are energetic Great Pyrenees, and placid Great Pyrenees.
- Hard-headed Great Pyrenees, and sweet-natured Pyrs.
- Serious Great Pyrenees, and good-natured goofballs.
- Introverted Great Pyrenees, and individuals who love everyone.
| If you acquire a Great Pyrenees puppy, you can't know for sure what he or she will grow up to be like. Because a good number of purebred puppies do NOT grow up to conform to the "norm." |
| If you're considering an adult Great Pyrenees... |
There are plenty of adult Great Pyrenees who have already proven themselves NOT to have negative characteristics. If you find such an adult, don't let "typical breed negatives" worry you.
When you acquire a puppy, you're acquiring potential -- what he one day will be. So "typical breed characteristics" are very important. But when you acquire an adult, you're acquiring what he already IS.
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