|
These dogs take their name from the mountain range in southwestern
Europe where they long have been used as guardians of the flocks.
In the United States they are called Great Pyrenees. In the United
Kingdom and on the continent of 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 the name, it is a
beautiful primarily white dog with a "certain elegance" which for
centuries has been the working associate of peasant shepherds high
on the mountain slopes.
The breed likely evolved from a group of principally white mountain
flock guard dogs that originated ten or eleven thousand years ago
in Asia Minor. It is very plausible that these large white dogs arrived
in the Pyrenees Mountains with their shepherds and domestic sheep
about 3000 BC. There they encountered the indigenous people of the
area, one of which were the Basques, descendants of Cro-Magnon Man.
In the isolation of the Pyrenees Mountains over these millenniums,
the breed developed the characteristics that make it unique to the
group of flock guardian dogs in general and the primarily white members
of that group.
The Great Pyrenees is a lupomossoloid as opposed to a mossoloid.
While there has surely been some cross breeding over the many centuries,
the Great Pyrenees is not a mastiff nor are its lupomossoloid ancestors
principally from the mastiff family. There are other dogs of the region,
such as the Pyrenean Mastiff, and the Spanish Mastiff that fill that
description. It is no coincidence that the Great Pyrenees is approximately
the same size as the European Grey Wolf.
A Peasants Dog
The Great Pyrenees is a mountain shepherds dog. Over this long period
of time the Great Pyrenees developed a special relationship with the
shepherd, its family, and the flock.
In 1407, French writings tell of the usefulness of these "Great Dogs
of the Mountains" as guardians of the Chateau of Lourdes. In 1675,
they were adopted as the Royal Dog of France by the Dauphin in the
court of King Louis XIV, and subsequently became much sought after
by nobility. Having a precocious sense of smell and exceptionally
keen eyesight, each dog was counted equal to two men, be it as guard
of the chateaux, or as invaluable companion of shepherds. While their
royal adoption is interesting, the dogs main fame was from their ageless
devotion to their mountain flocks, shepherds, and shepherds’ family.
When not working the flocks, you would find “Patou”, as he is loving
called, laying on the mat in the front doorway of the shepherds humble
dwellings.
Across the Ocean
In 1662, dogs were carried to Newfoundland by Basque fishermen
as companions and guardians of the new Settlement. Here it was they
became mated with the black curly coated retriever, favorite of the
English settlers. This cross resulted in the formation of the Landseer
(black and white) Newfoundland. In 1824, General Lafayette introduced
the first pair to America by bringing over two males to his friend,
J.S. Skinner, author of "The Dog and the Sportsman".
In 1850, Britain's Queen Victoria owned a Pyrenean Mountain Dog, and
in 1885-86, the first Pyrenean Mountain Dogs were registered with
the Kennel Club in London and shown at the Crystal Palace.
In 1870, Pyrenean blood was used with that of other large breeds to
help bring back the St. Bernard after that noble dog's numbers had
been so greatly depleted by avalanches and distemper at the hospice
in Switzerland. It was not until 1909 that the first Pyrenean Mountain
Dogs were introduced into England for breeding purposes by Lady Sybil
Grant, daughter of Lord Roseberry. It was twenty-six years later (1935)
that Pyreneans were again bred in a kennel in England. At that time,
Mme. Jeanne Harper Trois Fontaines started her de Fontenay Kennel
at Hyde Heath, Amersham, later becoming well known the world over
and accounting for many exports to distant lands.
Reconstitution
By the late 1800's and early 1900's the state of the breed had deteriorated
due to the vanishing of the natural predator foes in the mountains
and the practices of many unscrupulous breeders selling to naive tourists
through the region.
In 1907 Monsieur Dretzen from Paris along with Count de Bylandt of
Holland and Monsieur Byasson of Argeles Gazost formed the Club du
Chien des Pyrenées (CCP) A.K.A. Argeles Club in Argeles Gazost. They
combed the mountains for a group of “faultlessly typical” specimens.
Monsieur Dretzen took these dogs back to his kennel in Paris. Also
in 1907, the Pastoure Club at Lourdes, Hautes Pyrenées, France, was
organized to perpetuate interest in the breed. Each club wrote a breed
standard.
After the decimating effects of World War I the breed's numbers and
quality had been severely compromised. A few dedicated breeders, headed
by Monsieur Senac Lagrange, worked to restore the breed to its former
glory. They joined together the remnants of the two former clubs and
formed the Reunion des Amateurs de Chiens Pyreneans which still exists
today. It was this club that was responsible for the breed standard
being published in 1927. This standard has served as a basis for all
current standards for the breed. After World War II, it was again
Monsieur Senac-Lagrange who took the lead in getting the breed back
on its feet from the devastating effects of the German occupation.
First Kennel in the U.S.A.
In 1931, Mr. and Mrs. Francis V. Crane imported several specimens
to seriously launch the breed in North America with the founding of
the Basquaerie Kennels at Needham, Massachusetts. Their lifelong efforts
on behalf of the breed provided the breed with an atmosphere in which
it could thrive and prosper. They imported important breeding stock
out of Europe just before the Continent was closed by World War II..
The American Kennel Club accorded the Great Pyrenees official recognition
in February, 1933, and beginning April, 1933, separate classification
began for the breed at licensed shows.
Today the Great Pyrenees is a working dog as well as a companion and
family dog. Most of our dogs never see a show ring, but they are trusted
and beloved members in homes and may function as livestock guardian
dogs on farms and ranches. The Great Pyrenees is proving itself very
versatile, gaining fame as therapy dogs, rescue dogs, and many activities
with its human companions. They are very social dogs in the family
and get along extremely well with other animals that belong to the
shepherd, farmer, or family. They are wary of strangers in the work
environment (this includes the home). They adapt easily to other situations
such as dog shows, and make extraordinary ambassadors for the breed
in many settings such as hospitals, old age homes, with children,
etc. They have an special ability to identify and distinguish predators
or unwelcome intruders. They are nurturing of small, young, or sick
animals.
A publication of the Great Pyrenees Club of America,
rev. 1991. 2005
|
