Great Pyrenees Puppies How are they as a family pet?

[Diavolicchio]

Quote:
I raise Maremmas. These 2 are nine weeks old

http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/maremmasheepdog.htm

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k238/Bearfootfarm/BrandysPuppies068.jpg

Beautiful pups. I'm curious what your thoughts are on the temperament of Maremmas vs. Pyrenees. How did you end up raising Maremmas yourself?



John

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

Maremmas seem to have less of a tendancy to roam, although mine are contained all the time anyway.
They also have a slightly less dense coat, and can handle hot weather better.

I got my first one from someone who had Maremmas, Great Pyrs, and Akbash.
They said they wouldnt have any more Pyrs due to those two issues.
Their female Maremma died, and all the have now are Akbash.
They have a flock of around 500 ewes at any given time, and the last time I was there they had 6 or 8 dogs.

I think temperaments vary more between individual dogs than they do between the two breeds.
Much of that depends on how they are socialized when young.

I do think trying to raise one strictly as a "pet" is asking for trouble, because it's going against all their instincts


http://www.bountifulfarm.com/lgd_seminar.htm

 

[luvzmybabz]

I have owned 2 one about 15 years ago and one know The only grooming issue I had to deal with is one time while living away from home the one I had while I has younger got ticks BAD I had to trim his belley and pick them off by hand took Hours!! The one I have now I have not had any troubles with other then when she starts to blow I brush her our VERY good everyday or everyother day for a couple of weeks. You will know when she starts to blow as you will go to pet her and come away with a handful of hair. I am actually thinking about using her fur this year in felting. I am a little off the beaten path. Both of mine were livestock animals.

Now I have friends that had a GP as a pet only ( one of the largest female GPs I have EVER seem) she went to the groomer every other week, was an awesome family dog for them and was around lots of kids of all ages!! It would GUARD the infant. SAy they laid the baby down and shut the door the GP would lay in front of the door ( not easy to move a HUGE GP if it does not want to move) until the baby woke up if someone did not immediately care for the baby after the slightest whimper she would bring them to the baby not meanly but you had to take care of HER baby.

 

[Promiselandfarm]

I think they are great family pets we have three of them the bonus is ours also watch the livestock. The swim with my children and take care to watch over them. Ours are outside dogs but have come in overnight and never used the bathroom in the house... The shed but so do other breeds and if you brush them then you don't have the problem. I know other breeds the shed as much or more. They are very loving kind large dogs. Have a litter right now with some puppies for sale

 

[vicki2x2]

Quote:

The next dog I get (I currently have two, one of whom is getting a little long in the tooth) will be for the same purposes you've got Nugent, specifically as a livestock guard dog who will live primarily outdoors within a fenced-in orchard. I'm leaning toward a breed called a Maremma Sheepdog (or Cane Da Pastore Maremmano Abruzzese, pictured below) which is quite similar to a Pyrenees, although their demeanor tends to be a little different. The Maremma is from the area in Italy where my family is from, specifically Abruzzo.

http://windancefarms.com/yahoo_site_admin/assets/images/100_0585.28084931_std.JPG

John

Hey John,

This dog is my dog's father, his name is Crisco. I would caution you however about lifting pictures off of private sites, because they are copyrighted, says so right on the site.

On another note, Crisco is awesome!! He is an absolute lover and my boy Remi is too!! I picked Maremma's because I too have read they are less likely to roam and less likely to bark all night long and so far I have found that to be true, though my boy is fenced, he only barks when needed. This was a concern of mine since we have fairly close neighbors. Crisco's breeders, awesome people by the way, highly recommend them, do have a Maremma in the house, well 2 actually, as one is retired now. They decided to train one as a guardian for the children as they live in the mountains and have had wolves, coyotes and even a cougar in their barnyard! Their Maremma's were all with their livestock and alerted them to something amiss, but it was scary to walk out of your house and see something like that when your kids are outside playing. So now the kids have their own guardian who goes where they go, who is bonded to them, and not the livestock, not slowed down by fences. Would this work for everyone? Not sure, this woman is awesome trainer, people bring her dogs from all of the country and she even consults with people from all over the world, to help train or retrain their LGD's.

 

[Diavolicchio]

Quote:

The next dog I get (I currently have two, one of whom is getting a little long in the tooth) will be for the same purposes you've got Nugent, specifically as a livestock guard dog who will live primarily outdoors within a fenced-in orchard. I'm leaning toward a breed called a Maremma Sheepdog (or Cane Da Pastore Maremmano Abruzzese, pictured below) which is quite similar to a Pyrenees, although their demeanor tends to be a little different. The Maremma is from the area in Italy where my family is from, specifically Abruzzo.

http://windancefarms.com/yahoo_site_admin/assets/images/100_0585.28084931_std.JPG

John

Hey John,

I would caution you however about lifting pictures off of private sites, because they are copyrighted, says so right on the site.

Vicki:

I didn't "LIFT a picture off of a private site," but rather LINKED TO a photo on a PUBLIC site. As you can see from the URL, it's linked right back to Windance Farms.

Glad to hear you like the dog you've gotten from them.



John

 

[vicki2x2]

I can see that now, after I have posted and the pic didn't come back up. Not trying to be picky but I still believe that is a privately owned site and copyrighted means you can't use something without someones written permission. I would be upset if someone "borrowed" my pics, because if you let it happen for something innocent than you can't say boo about when someone else does it to promote their own birds, dogs, or whatever.

 

[Diavolicchio]

Quote:
Vicky,

The point is no one is borrowing anyone's images. I simply posted a link pointing BACK to a photo on the original website on which it resides. I didn't claim it was my photo, imply it was my dog, nor did I keep a copy of the photo. So clearly it wasn't being used to 'promote my own dog(s),' or do anything the least bit misleading. If you want to have an issue with somebody about photo usage online, would you mind terribly having it with someone who's using a photo unethically or for personal gain, rather than simply as an innocuous reference?

Quote:
Thanks.



John

 

[aggieterpkatie]

Hey Jen! Did you by any chance get your new pup in Southern Maryland? I saw an ad for pups in So. MD and they're all marked like yours. Just curious! Hubby said he wanted to go see the pups, but I think that'd be torturing ourselves. If we go look at it, chances are we'll HAVE to bring one home with us!

 

[mekasmom]

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They love their families dearly. But they aren't golden retrievers. A bored pyr is very destructive. Our male tore the phone box and wires off our house last Sunday. It cost us a fortune to have the phone company do a housecall to repair the internet, tv, phone lines on a Sunday. I really wouldn't suggest them for a family pet unless you have livestock for them to stay with. They need a job. They are working dogs. They are good with kids, friendly to their family, protective to their flocks. But they are a working breed. They need something to do or else they will find something to do.