Now THAT'S a Real Bird Dog!

Leo, our 8 year old Great Pyrenees is as patient with the baby chickens that climb all over him (note chick on his head) as he is with the human offspring he's helped to raise. A well bred Great Pyrenees basically has all of the prey drive bred out of him. These livestock guardian dogs (as opposed to herding dogs like Corgis and German Shepherds) have been bred over thousands of years to develop the temperament that allows them to be left safely alone with even the smallest and most helpless baby animal, keeping the babies safe from any would-be predators. Like Leo, most Pyrs don't like to play fetch or chase a ball; instead they prefer to lie calmly but ever-so-watchfully wherever their "flock" happens to be. And although Leo is as gentle as a lamb with the chickens, I pity the fool (be it raccoon, possum or another dog) that would attempt to get anywhere near "his" children: of either the  human or feathered variety.

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