Pyrenean Mountain Dog

The Pyrenean Mountain Dog, also known as the Chien de Montagne des Pyrénées in its native land and the Great Pyrenees in the United States, is a breed of livestock guardian dog from France. The breed comes from the French side of the Pyrenees Mountains that separate France and Spain, it is recognised as a separate breed from the closely related Pyrenean Mastiff which is from the Spanish side of the mountains.
History.
It has been claimed the forbears of the Pyrenean Mountain Dog, and the Pyrenean Mastiff, were white livestock guardian dogs that they were introduced to the Pyrenees Mountains from Asia by the Romans. As such the breed is believed to be closely related to both the Maremmano-Abruzzese Sheepdog of Italy and the Kuvasz of Hungary. For millenia these dogs were used by shepherds throughout the region to protect their flocks from predation by wolves and bears; in this role the breed was usually equipped with a heavy iron collar studded with long nails to help protect it when fighting off wolves. The Pyrenean Mountain Dog was often used by shepherds in combination with the much smaller Pyrenean Sheepdog, the former guarding the flocks and the latter herding them. Historically the Pyrenean Mountain Dog was also used to smuggle contraband between France and Spain across the Pyrenees, carrying packs, these dogs traversed routes impassable to humans to avoid detention by customs officials.
In the 17th century, Madame de Maintenon and Louis, Dauphin of France brought a Pyrenean Mountain Dog to the court of King Louis XIV where the breed soon became in great demand, the King even naming the breed the Royal Dog of France. The breed came to be used by the French nobility to guard their chateaus, particularly in the south of the country. It is sometimes claimed French settlers brought Pyrenean Mountain Dogs with them to Canada and the breed is one of the forbears of the Newfoundland breed. In the 1830s Pyrenean Mountain Dogs were used as one of the foundation breeds in the creation of the Leonberger breed.
With the extirpation of wolves from the Pyrenees the popularity of the breed declined and by the beginning of the 20th century it was on the verge of extinction. Local shepherds sold pups to eager tourists and it is from these pups the breed found its way to Britain and several were registered with The Kennel Club at the beginning of the century, although British interest in the large breed declined during the First World War. French aristocrat and dog authority Bernard Senac-Lagrange is credited with saving the breed from extinction at the beginning of the 20th century, touring the mountains to collect the finest specimens available to form a breeding base. Senac-Lagrange established the first breed club, the Réunion des Amateurs de Chiens Pyrénées, and drew up the first breed standard for the breed in 1923; he also registered the breed as the Chien de Montagne des Pyrénées with the Société Centrale Canine in the same year. In 1946 the Real Sociedad Canina de España recognised the large white livestock guardians on the Spanish side of the Pyrenees as the Pyrenean Mastiff with a slightly different breed standard.
In the early 1930s the Pyrenean Mountain Dog was imported into North America where it is known as the Great Pyrenees. The breed became a favourite in the show ring in both Canada and the United States. In 1935 the American Kennel Club adopted a new breed standard that had a number of deviations from the French original that would not be permitted in France. This standard promoted the exaggeration of certain physical features at the expense of functional form and was later adopted by Britain’s Kennel Club. To combat the deterioration of the breed’s show lines in their country, in 2011 the British Pyrenean Mountain Dog breed club released a brochure with instructions for show judges not to reward glamorous, heavy-bodied, short-muzzled examples of the breed over lean and muscular examples with weatherproof coats capable of performing their original role in high mountainous regions.
Description.
Appearance.
The Pyrenean Mountain Dog is a very large and heavily built breed of livestock guardian dog that, according to the Société Centrale Canine's breed standard, dogs stand from and bitches from . Healthy adults typically weigh between . The breed's head is not overly large in comparison to the body; it has a long, broad and slightly pointed muzzle with lips that are not pendulous and small triangular ears that hang flat to the head. The breed has a short and strong neck, a broad and moderately deep chest and a long tail that hangs low when the dog is at rest but curls over the dog's back when the dog is roused. A distinctive feature of the breed is that it possesses double dewclaws on the hind legs, the absence of which is considered a disqualifying fault in conformation shows.
The breed has a long and thick double coat that provides it protection from harsh weather; the long and flat outer coat is particularly long around the neck, tail and backs of the legs, and it has a fine and thick under coat. The breed is predominantly white in colour, with patches of black, badger, grey or various shades of tan found mostly on the head; badger is defined as a mixture of brown, black, grey and white hairs and is commonly seen in puppies but usually fades as the dog ages. Whilst purebred examples of the breed with black patches are seen in litters, such colouration is considered a fault by show dog fanciers and is not permitted in conformation shows.
Character.
The Pyrenean Mountain Dog is described as independent and protective, dogs typically being more independent than bitches. As a livestock guardian the breed retains strong protective instincts and will revert to its guardian roots whenever the need arises. The breed is more of a one family breed than a one master breed, being protective of all members of a family and particularly affectionate towards children; it remains wary of but not demonstrative towards strangers. The breed is considered intelligent and a quick learner but due to its independence can be quite difficult to train. Furthermore, due to its size if obedience training is not firmly established before six months of age, it can be physically very demanding to establish obedience later.