HAVE YOU ENTERED OUR GIVEAWAY?!? DO IT NOW!!! Then come back and read about the Great Pyrenees.
I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but Klondike, the beautiful white dog in yesterday’s post, is a Great Pyrenees, also known as a Pyrenean Mountain Dog. I have said for a long time that I would like our next dog to be a Great Pyr, along with a house in the country, more land, lots of chickens and a few goats… and I realized that Great Pyrenees have never been shown. here as gender of the week. WHAT?! And that is.
Dog of the Mountains
These dogs take their name from the mountain range in southwestern Europe, where they have long been used as guardians of flocks. In the US they are called the Great Pyrenees. In the UK and continental Europe they are known as the Pyrenean Mountain Dog. In their native France, they are Le Chien de Montagne des Pyrenees or Le Chien des Pyrenees. Whatever it’s called, it’s a beautiful, mostly white dog with a «certain elegance» that has for centuries been the working companion of shepherds high on the mountain slopes.
The breed probably evolved from a group of mostly white mountain guard dogs that originated ten or eleven thousand years ago in Asia Minor. It is very likely that these large white dogs came to the Pyrenees with their shepherds and livestock around 3000 BC. There they met the indigenous people of the area, one of them being the Basques, descendants of the Cro-Magnon man. In the isolation of the Pyrenees during these millennia, the species developed the characteristics that make it unique to the herd group. dogs in general and primarily the white members of that group.
Height – 65 – 85cm
Weight – 38 – 50kg
Appearance and Temperament
The Great not only his distinctive physical features, but also an important factor in his success as a livestock guard dog. The double coat of the Pyrenees consists of a soft, downy undercoat combined with a thicker, almost weatherproof outer coat. Together, these layers help protect the dog from harsh weather conditions while providing protection from the teeth and claws of would-be predators. The fur also serves as camouflage, allowing the guardian to blend in with its flock.
The Great Pyrenees are usually content to lie low until action is taken. They are natural animals and prefer to spend the daylight hours resting so they can stay awake and alert throughout the night. Beth Viney, longtime owner of Great Pyrenees and board member of Great Pyrenees Rescue of Wisconsin, says, “Every night my two Pyrs will go out and climb the hill on our property. One faces east, one faces west, and they stand guard from these points. Together they visually cover 360 degrees. This is a behavior called «broadcasting». Tundra, our younger female, will be out all night, and Czar, our older male, will still be out until three or four in the morning – even at nine. They are very focused, driven workers.”
Color
These white-colored, friendly babies come in all shapes and colors. While the Great Pyrenees breed is famous for its luxurious white outer coat, there are a variety of colors and different combinations of them to choose from!
Most of the dog breeds range from white to cream in color, but some tend to have markings and spots of different colors on their bodies. Some Great Pyrenees have gray, maroon, dark brown or brown markings on their tail, head, ears or other prominent body parts.