Life With A Great Pyrenees

What’s it like living with a pyr as your companion? Maybe not exactly what you would expect!

You’ll be checked on as if you’re living with your mom again. Periodically throughout the day, you’ll hear a soft “woof” behind you, or maybe a cold nose resting on your knee. Soulful brown eyes will gaze up at you as if to say “I missed you, is everything OK here?” and you won’t be able to keep the smile from your face.

You’ll lie awake at night wondering when the neighbors will form a mob at your front door. Just as you settle down and get comfortable in bed you’ll hear your precious pyr rounding your property warning all other beings to be aware that she’s on duty and will take no challenge to her authority over her domain. On the rare nights when all’s well and she doesn’t see the need to sound her warnings, you’ll lie awake and wonder if there is a problem. You’ll think back over the day and scrutinize her behavior for illness or depression.

You will find clever solutions to pyr hair. Pyrenees not only shed but occasionally they’ll “blow” their coat. There will not be a time or place in your life that pyr hair isn’t present. It will be everywhere. At times throughout the year, there will be monster size dust bunnies rolling across your living room and your yard. Your pyr will saunter by as little tufts of fluff literally fall off her body living a fuzzy trail behind her. Mats of hair will be your new nemesis.

You’ll never have to pee alone. Your pyr will quickly realize that, on occasion, you’ll be sitting quietly, apparently trapped in a little room all alone. To her, as long as there is nothing else for you to do, you might as well spend some quality time petting her. Besides, it’s her life’s mission to watch over you and she can’t quite seem to figure out what the problem is that you have to hide in this small strange room on a regular basis.

You’ll learn her voice. She’ll have different barks for different things, she doesn’t bark randomly, but she does bark. She has a warning bark to let those that don’t belong know to stay away. There is a “Do you HEAR that?” bark, and in the distance, you may just be able to make out a siren or other noise, barely discernible from the background noise. Then there’s the low growl that just says she has heard something as she looks to you to see if you think it may be a threat.

You’ll quickly realize that she does indeed fit. The saying among pyr owners is, “If it fits, I sits” and you’ll be amazed again and again where she fits. For a dog that weighs between 80 and 150 pounds, she can wedge herself into the tiny six-inch gap left over in the recliner. She doesn’t understand personal space and will slowly, cautiously climb onto the couch and sit on whoever is there. Many times I’ve feared my other dog would suffocate as she plopped down directly on her head.

You’ll learn to depend on her intuition and attentiveness. It’s her job to know when something’s different and she’ll alert you to whatever she’s found. She’s told me of downed trees after a storm, visitors to my house, and impending storms on the horizon. She’s barked at a misplaced trashcan and tracked airplanes across the sky.

You’ll realize that you don’t own a pyr, you are owned by a pyr. She’s fiercely loyal and protective of her charges. If there’s no livestock for her to adopt, you’ll become her charge.

You’ll understand the meaning of stubborn. Docile, friendly, intelligent, loyal, all describe the pyr personality. Unless their agenda outranks yours. They are known for their ability to assess their surroundings for threats or problems and will act according to their instinct.

You’ll fall madly, deeply in love! Your smile quota will go through the roof and you’ll wonder how you made it through life pre-pyr.