Great Pyrenees Dogs Anyone have one?

[w5pv]

Atoyan Shepard is another good breed for protecting live stock,My neighbor had one that stayed with his cows day and night,When he sold the cows off the dog ran away to other places that had live stock.I see him down the road staying with a person's goats.He was a gentle type dog with people but A terror on any animal that threaten the stock.

[Moonie]

Thanks to this thread it had me looking at Great Pyrenees, family discussed it and I believe we have decided on a related breed for our next dog. Newfoundland, a little bigger than the chihuahua's we have now...

[unclogum bill]

Have had Newfs, Mastiffs , St Bernard and a few large mixes. A disadvantage to the large breeds is they age fast, Something to consider. Hard to lift a large dog in a car when the years creep up, and they do, way to fast.

[felix]

Excellent point! ... felix

[Moonie]

I am aware of the aging bit, one of the reasons I have chi's but the wife and daughters have their mind set on a newfie

[savagetactical]

I have three Great Pyrenees , they are wonderful dogs especially if you have livestock, my oldest one is about 12 years old. She likes to sleep in the chicken house with the chickens. They are good protectors predators and are very gentle animals with people, I could not recommend a better dog for a family.

[redneckdan]

Thanks for the info guys.
Dan are those Barred Plymouth Rocks? They make for some good fly tying of mosquito's on #22's Mustads. If I could still see them though.

Yup, 6 barred rocks and 6 silver wyandottes, a rooster if each. I borrow a feather every now and then. The hackles are pretty big. Not sure i have any 22s. I have tied a handful of 12 & 14 parachute Adams though.

[Moonie]

Wanted to update the thread, I thanks to this thread I have talked the wife into a Pyr instead of newfie. We pick him up day after tomorrow.



This is him at about 4 weeks old.

[Bret4207]

I know Duke hates it when I reply to his threads, so please forgive me Duke.

We have 3 Pyrs. One is a "house dog". The other 2 we got last winter off an Alpaca farm. I'd lost about 50 sheep to coyotes that year. This year I lost exactly 2 to coyotes and they were way outside the fence where the dogs couldn't go. They are friendly but flock oriented. They don't eat much for their size. You can write off the dog food on taxes. Seeing them in action is like watching 2 white lions going after their prey. They DO bark! A lot, at night! I know my neighbors were getting annoyed, so I went and apologized and explained about the lamb loss the previous year. The neighbors were a lot more supportive then. Plus, we move them as far from the houses as we can. They are lower on the status chain than the sheep or cattle. A ewe will ram the dog if it gets too close and the dog will roll over and take it. Sometimes the dogs get rough housing and run the sheep a little or knock one down. We discourage that and it seems to work.

The only issue we've had with the dogs is that the male will steal newborn lambs from the ewes! Came home from church last spring and couldn't figure out what the dog was doing. Got out to check and found 2 lambs curled up against his belly and one laying on top on him. Meanwhile the ewe (Mom) is going crazy trying to figure out how to get her lambs back. We ended up having to chain the dog up and put the newborns in a jug with the ewe so they'd bond. OTOH, we know he's saved several lambs that were weak or got off away from the ewe and one we actually saw him pick up out of a water hole and start licking to get him going. Great dog, I'd never be without a pair again as long as I have sheep.

The house Pyr bit me bad. Got a real impressive scar. That dog was not socialized properly. We've adapted and so has he. It's SWMBO's dog. I know where I rate on her scale......

[Just Duke]

Would this dog do OK in the Midwest where Chiggers and Ticks were about?
Thanks again all that contributed here.

[azrednek]

My neighbor to the North of me raises Boer goats and uses Pyrenees to guard his herd. They seem to work pretty well, and they are friendly to people.

While I was still pounding the ground for the Post Office. One of my patrons had one. It was as gentle and friendly as a kitten. He'd sit and insist on shaking hands every time I had to approach the door often with a toy in his mouth. According to the postal patron his coyote problem went away after he got the dog.

[Just Duke]

[jsizemore]

A friend was considering a GP and ended up with a Kangal. The dog jumped from the top of the mulch pile over the 4' fence 6' away to get a coyote. Looked like a Jack Russell on a rat.

[MaryB]

That is one BIG dog... though my 110 pound lab was a moose when I had her.

[Moonie]

Ronin is now 9 months old and over 70lbs. Grown a little since the last picture I posted.


This is him at 7 months, good grief they grow fast...

[Just Duke]

I suppose a cross between a dog and a horse might also work.
Here's a Dorse or Draft Dog.

[PB234]

Back a long time ago I knew a breeder of AKC champion GP dogs who kept them in a very expensive not large city town house with a small yard. Later they moved to an expensive suburb and had about 10 acres as a backyard which they fenced and bought some sheep to give the dogs something to do.

This breed of dog potentially can cost a bunch of money to keep between vet bills and food and other care. For example when the dog gets sick and needs medication you are buying medication in large dog quantities. Food means bringing in 40 pound bags continuously. It will make it much harder to rent a home and perhaps secure homeowners insurance.

I had large dogs for a long time and am very happy with a smaller one now. Previously when something went bump in the night I would roll over and consider if I needed to call an ambulance for anyone who intruded. This new small one hits the door barking like crazy providing an alert.

Big dog equals really big expenses usually. Make sure you know what you are getting into and go out and meet breeders and interact with their dogs. If you live near others and the dog bites someone's child your life will get very complex and expensive.

[Moonie]

Back a long time ago I knew a breeder of AKC champion GP dogs who kept them in a very expensive not large city town house with a small yard. Later they moved to an expensive suburb and had about 10 acres as a backyard which they fenced and bought some sheep to give the dogs something to do.

This breed of dog potentially can cost a bunch of money to keep between vet bills and food and other care. For example when the dog gets sick and needs medication you are buying medication in large dog quantities. Food means bringing in 40 pound bags continuously. It will make it much harder to rent a home and perhaps secure homeowners insurance.

I had large dogs for a long time and am very happy with a smaller one now. Previously when something went bump in the night I would roll over and consider if I needed to call an ambulance for anyone who intruded. This new small one hits the door barking like crazy providing an alert.

Big dog equals really big expenses usually. Make sure you know what you are getting into and go out and meet breeders and interact with their dogs. If you live near others and the dog bites someone's child your life will get very complex and expensive.

Actually fully grown GP's do not eat much as 90+% the time they are sedentary. Normally less than 2 cups of food a day, which for a dog that size is really very little. Currently Ronin eats 5, but he is still growing.

[MaryB]

I am on the lookout for a rescue dog, black lab(doesn't have to be purebred). Want old enough to have all the house training fight done already...

[BruceB]

Mary, if you really want a Lab, do a Google search for "Labrador Retriever Rescue". Many pages of "hits" will come up.

I'm uncertain of where you live, but I'd wager that somewhere in your area is a wonderful dog waiting for a good home.

We rescued several dogs of our chosen breed; most of the breed associations have rescue groups that often specialize in their particular dogs.

One of our dogs was delivered from Phoenix to Las Vegas NV , free of charge by volunteers, and we picked him up there for the last few hundred miles to home. IT WORKS!