- White or white with patches appearing grey (badger or wolf) or pale yellow or orange (arrouye) on the head, ears, base of the tail and sometimes on the body.
- The most appreciated are badger grey patches
About the Pyrenean Mountain Dog
Origin: France
- Typical life span
- 10-12 years
- Size
- Large — from its typical weight
- Weight
- Male
- 45-73 kg
- Female
- 39-52 kg
- Height
- Male
- 69-81 cm
- Female
- 63-74 cm
- FCI status
- Recognised by FCI
- FCI group
- Pinscher and Schnauzer - Molossoid and Swiss Mountain and Cattledogs
- Origin
- France
- Also called
- Perro de Montana de Los Pirineos
- Known hereditary risks
- Not researched yet
About
What is a Pyrenean Mountain Dog?
Large, majestic, and immensely powerful livestock guardian with thick white double coat and natural guardian instincts developed for mountain work
Pyrenean Mountain Dog history and origins
Ancient breed used for centuries by shepherds in the Pyrenees Mountains of France and Spain to guard flocks against predators like wolves and bears. Known as 'Chien de Montagne des Pyrénées' and standardized by the FCI.
Pyrenean Mountain Dog appearance and size
Males typically weigh 45-73 kg and stand 69-81 cm at the shoulder; females 39-52 kg and 63-74 cm.
What the breed standard says
- Bred for
- Pastoral guardian in the mountains
- Behaviour and temperament
“Used on its own to guarantee the protection of flocks from attacks by predators, its selection depended on its aptitude for guarding and dissuading as much as on its attachment to the flock. The resulting main qualities are strength and agility, allied to gentleness and attachment to those it is protecting. This protecting dog has a propensity for independence and a sense of initiative which demand a certain degree of authority from its owner”
Quoted from FCI standard n°137. It describes the breed the registry recognises, not any individual animal.
Breed reference from The Dog API.
Characteristics
- Size
- Large
- Exercise needs
- —
- Easy to train
- —
- Amount of shedding
- 3 of 5
- Grooming needs
- 4 of 5
- Good with children
- —
- Cost to keep
- —
- Tolerates being alone
- —
- Intelligence
- —
- Health of breed
- Not researched yet
Pros & cons
Pros & cons for the Pyrenean Mountain Dog
What you get with the Pyrenean Mountain Dog
- Purpose stated in the standard: “Pastoral guardian in the mountains”
- The standard describes the breed as: “Used on its own to guarantee the protection of flocks from attacks by predators, its selection depended on its aptitude…”
What you are taking on
- High grooming needs — the standard’s own description is “Well-furnished, flat, quite long and supple, rather crisp on the shoulders and back,…”
Drawn from sources rather than written as an opinion — cited health research, the registry’s own standard, and peer-reviewed longevity. FCI breed standard. One breeder’s animals can differ from any of it, and an empty column means we hold nothing for that side rather than that there is nothing to say.
Characteristics
FCI standard · Pyrenean Mountain Dog
Coat and colour
As the FCI standard sets it out. Every line below is the standard’s own wording.
Coat
Well-furnished, flat, quite long and supple, rather crisp on the shoulders and back, longer on the tail and around the neck where it can be slightly wavy.
The trouser hair, finer and woollier, is very thick.
The undercoat is also thick
Colour
- Preferred
- Permissible
- Undesirable
- Disqualifying
Preferred, permissible, undesirable and disqualifying are FCI’s own words about the breed. They describe what the standard asks for — not an assessment of any individual dog, and not ours.
Shortened from FCI standard n°137 — each label is the standard’s own wording with the verdict lifted into the tag beside it. Read the full clause at source.
What the standard penalises
What a judge marks the Pyrenean Mountain Dog down for, and what puts one out of the ring, in the registry’s own words. This describes the breed standard — it is not a checklist for the animal in front of you, and a pet with a disqualifying fault is an unshowable dog rather than an unhealthy one.
Disqualifying faults
Puts an animal out of the ring altogether.
- Not completely black. Jaws:
- Over or undershot, or any malformation of the jaws. Eyes:
- Flesh colour on the eye-rims. Yellow eyes. Dewclaws:
- No dewclaws or single dewclaw or atrophied double dewclaws on hind feet. Colour:
- Any colour not specified in the standard. Size:
- Outside the limits
Breed-level information from The Dog API. It describes the Pyrenean Mountain Dog in general; any individual animal can differ.
Health guide
What to ask for in a Pyrenean Mountain Dog
No breed-specific health panel has been written up for the Pyrenean Mountain Dog on this platform yet. That is a gap in our records, not a clean bill of health — ask the breeder which hereditary conditions their lines are tested for, and ask to see the results for both parents, dated and from a named laboratory.
Gallery
No photographs yet
This is where Pyrenean Mountain Dog owners’ own photographs will go, from the pet profiles they keep here. Nobody has added one to a public page yet.
A photograph in a pet profile stays private to its owner. We will not put one here unless they ask us to.
Puppies
No puppies listed right now
No Pyrenean Mountain Dog breeder has a record on this platform yet, so there is nothing to list. That is a gap in our coverage, not a fact about the breed.