Great Pyreneese

[SampleMM]

I am thinking about getting a Great Pyreneese and would love to hear from other folks that have one or know of any friends that own one.

Do you think they would be good guard dog for my miniatures?

 

[krissy3]

I grew up with one ...Viva....I think she is responsible for creating my bond with animals . She followed me everywhere, and as a child I would eat her dog food right out of her dish with her..I am 40 now and still remember the taste of it , and her watching me eat this crap.

Now I live in Switzerland where there are a lot of these breeds. They are truely the gentle giant. They were used to guard the sheep , and goats, and still are used here in the alps for this purpose. Now looking back Viva guarded me as a child, once she ran after me when I was sleding , and went too far, she stopped me from going into a big lake, my sled did not break the first layer of ice and I just kept going , crying the whole way, and she was there to protect me . So YES, I do think this would be a nice dog to have with the minis. They are not aggressive towards goats, sheep or cows, a Bernise Mountain dog, on the otherhand is a bit more aggressive with the guarding . The farmers here usually have one type or the other , and the Great Pyreneese is calmer, and more gentile. We have about 6 in our village....and they LOVE the snow.

Do you have some snow ?

 

[Jetiki]

I have one. I love him.

He was a rescue, the first day I didn't put him in with the minis he was really depressed his goats were taken away from 2 days before I got him. So I grabbed on of my minis and put in the pen with him. He walked out right up to her, sniffed noses, licked her nose and came out and laid where he could watch over. He watches my children and will alert me to anything thats not right. He hasn't been here a year yet. He's been awesome, on several occasions now he has kept one of my animals safe by alerting me to something going on outside. Even the cat that he doesn't like. Awesome dogs. I wish mine was a little more handle able, he was obviously not used to much. I can't get a collar or leash on him. I think he was abused with one in the past but he's a great dog otherwise.

Karen

 

[SampleMM]

Yes Krissy, I have snow. :Cold-Scared I happen to live in the "snow belt" area by Lake Erie and we get pounded every year. So that is really good to know that they like snow.

Jetiki and Krissy it seems like both of you have had very positive experiences with your Pyreneese.

:wub Thanks for sharing.

 

[MountainMeadows]

THey are great dogs, I had one for over 12 years and got another a couple of years ago. Do have to say that they have a LOT of hair, and when not maintained it will become very matted, so upkeep is kind of a hassle. I bought a Pyr/Anatolian female (Bella) about 18 mos ago and when she is 2 I plan to breed her to a Pyr to produce a litter of LGD's that have the instincts, but not all the hair, and not so aggresive a personality as the Anatolians. Bella is a total ham, and not at all like a traditional leery Anatolian so I expect the pups will be absolutely great in both their guarding and their personality - I am a pretty strict breeder and will be doing all the standard health tests on my dogs prior to breeding them at all, hip dysplasia, elbows, eyes, heart, etc - I CERF all my breeding Havanese and would not want to bring a litter of "mutts" into the world that might have health issues, but I do think there is a place for dogs that are working dogs to not have as much coat as the Pyr's do - and also don't want the double dewclaws - if I breed, I think I can attain the goal of having really good, healthy dogs that aren't as mainetance heavy as a Pyr or as leery a guard dog as an Anatolian -- JMO

Stac

PS - You do need to have a fenced property for any LGD - they like to roam ! !

 

[River Wood]

My dad used to own one. He loved him. Great dog!

 

[Irish Hills Farm]

I have one and absolutely love her. She was a rescue and has fit in here perfectly. She LOVES HER minis!! She is the perfect baby sitter for the foals, she tries to play with a few of the bigger ones, and she watches over HER herd big time. I'm very grateful to have her and wouldn't mind owning another one.

 

[Magic]

I have a Great Pyrenees/Anatolian Shepherd mix, and an Anatolian Shepherd. Stacy, it's odd, because you kept saying that Anatolians are "leery", but my Anatolian is much friendlier than my mix.

I belong to a Livestock Guardian Dog chat group, and they always say that there can be more differences inside each breed than between the breeds themselves. (This is the Livestock Guardian breeds). I think that a HUGE factor in how each dog acts is a matter of early and continuing socialization and training. Choose a puppy (or adult) that has the type of personality that you are looking for, and then build on that. I love both of my Livestock Guardian dogs, they are absolutely awesome. Last year my Anatolian saved the life of an early, unexpected foal by coming up to the house and barking her head off at me, then when I looked out at her, she stared at me then ran back to the barn. That was odd behavior for her so I checked on the horses and lo and behold, a mare had just given birth to a still-soaking wet filly who was still attached to the placenta. It was freezing cold that night and the filly would have died. Yep, my dogs are worth their weight in gold to me!

 

[MountainMeadows]

Hi Lori

I am soooo glad to hear that Anatolians have a friendlier personality than what I have experienced. I have only been around a few different farms that had them patrolling and they just seemed more suspicious and to a certain extent more aggressive than the Pyrs that I have met - of course each dog has it's own personality, but I had come to believe that the purebred Anatolians had a far deeper instinctive protection "thing" going on. Truly, my Anatolian/Pyr Bella is a total hoot, and would really prefer to be a house dog than an LGD - she is always cracking me up with her various behaviors that she does to get our attention - she likes to sit on top of the picnic table and stare into the house, she likes to walk around on the edge of the retaining wall which puts her at eye level, and the latest is curling up in one of my fairly large round planters and taking a nap - so much for trying to have a little color on the front porch!

Stac

 

[PHF Fancy]

I love my Pyr's. Two days after my first one died of old age, something came into the farm yard and took my ducks. I promptly went in search of a replacement Pyr. I have found the Pyr's to be gentle with almost anything smaller than themselves and tolerant of other dogs if socialized young. Pyr's also develop slower than other breeds and seem to take a while to come into their own but once they do, you'll never have a better guard dog. Watch for hip, elbow and heart problems but a good breeder should test for these things.

I had a strange car pull into the driveway and my male Pyr jumped on the hood of the car and stood there barking in the drivers face. It was hysterical. I wish I had a camera to capture that guys expression. I never did find out who he was and he never came back.

 

[Stef]

We have three Pyr's they're only six months, and they all ready take their job of gaurding the horses and birds so seriously. We were having problems with coyotes digging under, and climbing over our six foot fence. Every time they killed our peacocks and chickens, and then they even attacked our 28" stallion. So we got these three puppies two sisters and their brother who already weighs about 90 pounds, and we haven't had a problem since. I can't say enough good things about these guys, I just love them.

 

[susanne]

Stacy, Let me know when your Pyr/Anatolian litter is born -- I miss Ella, our late Pyr/Lab mix, so much!

She was the perfect dog for light guardian duty, a great blend of LGD and house dog. She was gentle and loving, but at nighttime feedings she was on guard, and when the mail carrier delivered a package, Ella wagged her tail but made a point of standing between us.

My mare, Scarlet, loved having Ella hang out with her and lick her nose...

She also would lie in our driveway, keeping an eye on our little dogs and cats, making certain nobody ventured down the road. All of our neighbors commented on how once Ella arrived, the coyotes kept their distance from the neighborhood.

About the only bad thing I can say about Ella is that she broke our antique bed (that's my story and I'm sticking to it!). She loved coming in and lying on her back, hind feet on my nightstand...unfortunately she was the size of a third person on a fragile old double bed...

 

[SampleMM]

Thank you everybody for sharing your knowledge, information, and stories with me.

This is what I love about LB. Everybody is always so willing to share and help if they can.

I am still thinking about the potential pup. It won't happen for awhile as the owners won't be breeding until late summer. That will give me plenty of time to think this through.

 

[Magic]

What I advise is that you do plenty of research into them, pros and cons, etc, and learn as much as you can before you do get a pup or dog. I've done that with the last three different breeds of dog I've gotten, and it has helped immensely. Here is a great link to lots of info about Livestock Guardian Dogs: LGD Library Good luck!

 

[The Simple Life Farm]

I had 2 Great Pyrs for my goats and minis. They were awesome guard dogs, took their job seriously. The male would go on the alert while the female stayed back with the animals. Only con: the hair. It MUST, MUST be brushed DAILY!!!! If not, then it will mat faster than you can blink.