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Pyrenean Mountain Dog

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Pyrenean Mountain Dog
Other namesGreat Pyrenees
Chien des Pyrénées
Chien de Montagne des Pyrénées
Montañés del Pirineo
OriginFrance/Spain[1]
Kennel club standards
Fédération Cynologique Internationale standard
Dog (domestic dog)

The Pyrenean Mountain Dog, known as the Great Pyrenees in the United States, is a large breed of dog, used as a livestock guardian dog.

The Great Pyrenees is a very old breed, and has been used for millennia by the shepherds which includes Basque people, who inhabit parts of the region in and around the Pyrenees Mountains of southern France and northern Spain.[2] More recently, the breed served as the official dog of the royal French court (whose prominence began circa the Middle Ages, and lasted until the middle of the nineteenth century). During World War II the dogs were used to haul artillery over the Pyrenean Mountain range to and from Spain and France. They are related to several other large white European livestock guardian dogs (LGD), including the Italian Maremma Sheepdog, Kuvasz (Hungary), Akbash Dog (Turkey) and Polish Tatra or Polski Owczarek Podhalański.

Description

Males grow to between 110-120 pounds (50-55kg) and 27-32 inches (69-81cm), while females reach between 80-90 pounds (35-40kg) and 25-29 inches (64-74cm). They will live to between 10-12 years of age. Their coats are white and can have varying shades of gray, Red (rust) or tan around the face (including a full face mask), ears and sometimes on the body and tail; as a Great Pyrenees matures, their coats grow thicker and the longer colored hair of the coat often fades on those dogs that were not born completely white. Sometimes a little light tan or lemon will appear later in life around the ears and face. Being a double coated breed, the undercoat can also have color and the skin as well. The color of the nose and on the eye rims should be jet black. [3] Grey or tan markings that remain lend the French name, "blaireau," (badger) which is a similar grizzled mixture color seen in the European Badger. More recently any color is correctly termed "Badger" or "Blaireau." [4]All white dogs are not preferred by top breeders for many reasons. Therefore, these all white dogs in most breedings are less frequent. Its not unusual that breedings that result in a high incidence of all white puppies do not have the required jet black pigment on the nose and eye rims. These breeding lines are therefore not, as a rule, desirable in well bred stock. There are generally all white puppies in most litters. This is normal and these all white puppies can be bred successfully in the hands of a competant breeder. The rear leg bilateral double dewclaws are required.

Puppy, approx. two months old
A Great Pyrenees guarding sheep

See also

References

  1. ^ http://www.greatpyrenees.com/ A profile on the history of the breed
  2. ^ http://clubs.akc.org/gpca/gpcabreed.html Early History of the breed
  3. ^ http://www.akc.org/breeds/great_pyrenees/index.cfm American Kennel Club Profile
  4. ^ http://clubs.akc.org/gpca/gpcabreed.html A description of the breed
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