Bernese Mountain Dog vs Great Pyrenees

Bernese Mountain Dogs have an affectionate temperament, making them great as a pet. Give your Berner lots of attention. This isn’t a dog who wants to be left alone in your yard outside. They might get bored and start barking at the birds to keep themselves entertained! Berners also love to explore, so take them with you on your adventures. And at the end of the day, they’ll love nothing more than to cuddle up with you, enjoying the quiet times as much as they enjoy playtime.

These dogs also are smart and eager to please. Bred to be working dogs, they thrive with structured games or sports. Although they’re not the high-energy type like a Border Collie or Jack Russell Terrier, they still need daily exercise to meet their energy level needs. They’ll love activities like carting, drafting, herding, agility sports or scent work.

Although the Bernese breed is a powerful, large dog, they’re also docile and sweet. They have a lot of patience and are known to be good with children. (As with any dog, children should be taught how to interact gently and respectfully with their furry friends.) Like many dogs, however, they might be cautious or shy around strangers or in new situations. That’s why it’s so important to socialize them as puppies. Because they’re big, they might forget their own strength, especially when they’re younger than 3 or 4 years old and feeling extra playful. So, it’s good to keep an eye on younger Berners when they’re with kids and babies or smaller pets like cats. But overall, they’re really quite calm and sweet-tempered.

The Great Pyrenees’ temperament exudes patience and affection. They’re generally friendly and well-suited to family life. Letting your Great Pyrenees play with kids is more than acceptable as long as the children aren’t too rough and rowdy. And as a former livestock guardian, Pyrs have close contact with various farm animals in their blood, which means they typically get along well with other dogs and even cats in the home.

Even though the Great Pyrenees is known to be a gentle pet, their history is rooted in serving as guard dogs. Because this dog was bred as a flock guardian, the breed can be strong-willed, so early socialization and training are essential.

Their characteristics also include a high level of competency thanks to their years of service as guard dogs atop snowy mountains. Neither cold weather nor boredom phase a Pyr—this pup is quite used to the slow pace of watching over sheep for hours.

Luckily for dog lovers, these serene Great Pyrenees traits transfer nicely to a quiet home life (maybe watching reality TV or hunkering down with a good novel?). Of course, getting outside is part of the plan with dogs, so pet parents who can offer moderate exercise will please both the Great Pyrenees’ personality and physicality.