Great Pyrenees - Breed Spotlight

High in the Pyrenees Mountains, where a natural border exists between France and Spain, humans have lived and raised livestock for thousands of years. During that time, large white dogs—such as the Great Pyrenees—were used to guard livestock from thieves and natural predators, such as Pyrenean brown bears. It is believed that these dogs and other large mountain flock guardian breeds, such as the Akbash, Kuvasz, Komondor, and Maremma, descended from large Asian dogs that were originally used to guard the horses, sheep, and goats of nomads.

View the full Great Pyrenees breed standards here.