pyrless

I know, I like how detailed they are about their breedings and their guarantee and how they make it perfectly clear that this is not the dog for everyone. Flock guardians are similar in temperament, but the Pyr actually has the reputation of being the friendliest. (and keep in mind, compared to a labrador, the pyr is stone cold! :D ) And Pyr owners are in denial, we don't think of it as "lack of obedience", rather "Selective deafness".... 8) The main difference, and it is a big one, is a Pyr will not attack a human threat. They are a lot more likely to just "get in the way". But like they said on the site, if the dog is socialized and trained and knows "good people" from "bad people" you won't have a problem.

oooooh! what a face! :D

Hee hee! You mean, like a Pyr? :roll: I actually went to ThunderHawk's website yesterday (was this who you talked to?) after I posted this, and they do have a lot of temperament similarities to a pyr, but the pyr is softer and more tractable. They are soooo gorgeous though!!!!!!! :iloveyou:

Indifference is 100 times better than outright hostility. And the crate and rotate works if necessary, we have to do that with our girls. But you have a pretty good situation here-opposite sex, far apart in age, time at home. Let us know what you decide to do!

ok. jilld, i mentioned this before but I will say it again. A Pyr should never ever be aggressive towards people. You should really say "dog-aggressive", especially same-sex dogs. I also mentioned that the Pyr does not need room to run, he needs room to patrol. A city yard is fine, but you should distinguishe between city-living and apartment-dwelling. He only eats about 4 cups a day as his metabolism is slow. People often overestimate the weight because of the abundant coat, and should always ALWAYS be weighed before getting any kind of medication, but especially anasthesia. The pet Pyr should not have an outdoor lifestyle. A Pyr needs a flock, and if he is not an LGD his family is his flock and he needs to live indoors with them. Also the Pyr is not a "cross", it is a pure breed developed along the same lines as the other LGDs you mentioned. The Elkhound should be silver, not gray. Not to split hairs, but "Elkhound" is a misnomer, they were bred to hunt moose ("elg" in norwegian) and bear. And retrieving is definitely NOT in their MO! :wink: Anyway. I appreciate what you are trying to do.

:laugh2_2: The honest answer!

i would like a newfie, newfiemom! :wink: anything big and fluffy, a st. benard, berner, tibetan mastiff... If I could ever discipline myself and only have one pet I would get a Caucasian Ovtcharka, which is a large Russian flock guardian. Apparently they are a lot of work and not really good with other animals, but I would take on that challenge. They are gorgeous, too, like Pyrs but with a brown/black coat.

oooohhhhhhh! i love her! (i say that about everyone's dogs, don't i?) :wink:

i saw the end of animal cops detroit last nite and there was this sweet little shep x that i thought for sure would be adopted but he failed the food bowl test. they put him down. i have a food-aggressive dog (sash). we feed her in her crate, end of story. it made me mad because these two dumb chicks wouldn't even consider him an only-dog, special-needs adoption, or try to get him some rehab. he was so sweet, looked a little like taz in the face. i was in tears by the end. I would totally adopt a dog like that.

I would also like the link? :wink:

..to be? Not own, but live life as? I think I would be a Lhasa, I wouldn't mind hanging out at a Tibetan monastery... :wink:

oy. i can't even watch those shows any more. :cry:

cream cheese is usually a sure bet...

:lol: i know! our first dog, casey, used to up and leave the room, which was great. taz doesn't get growly, but he does kind of watch over the whole situation. we have to kick him out. sasha sleeps through the whole thing, of course...

i am 99% sure-greyhound.

it helps too to always keep his nails trimmed down nice so he can get at least some traction! :wink:

wow! :o that is one hell of a story! i am glad you got out of that ok. it doesn't matter what breed it is, they all have teeth, right?

oh wow, mutts, that is a godawful story. :cry:

CKCS is not a bad idea. They are small, but they are true to their hunting dog heritage. Also, the Alaskan Klee Kai is worth looking into-it is a miniaturized Husky (a UKC breed too, I believe).

irish wolfhounds are the tallest breed.

i always wonder about their sense of time, too. Mine sleep all day and when I come home after nine hours half the time they are stretching and yawning (lucky bastards! :D ). So I wonder if they think I just left?

Here's the thing, darling. You did not say that you had talked to your vet several times about this in your initial post, nor did you mention your experience with the breed, or even what breed she is. If you don't want so many questions asked, how about giving us more information out of the gate?

Lovely! :D

i was thinking a retired racer, too, maybe even a pair, they do get along together and then they would have company. you can always hire a dog-walker to come in once a day to let them out, too, if you want.

oooh, i just love them! what gorgeous coats! esp. vega, what a sweetie! he has that zen-like collie look...