Great Pyrenees vs Anatolian Shepherd

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.

The Anatolian Shepherd has the best characteristics and traits a farmer or rancher would look for in a livestock guardian dog. (Makes sense, because they were bred for the job.) They’re intelligent, competent, independent and able to decide what’s best for their flock. They’re also large and intimidating, incredibly graceful, and their speed is definitely something to write home about—they can run about 30 mph!

These pups sometimes aren’t overly friendly with people or pets they don’t know. But they are very loyal and loving to their family (other pets included!) who they may consider their flock. You’ll need to socialize your Anatolian Shepherd with other people and dogs while they’re young so they learn that it’s OK to have friends. And be sure to supervise all playtimes with children, ensuring that any kids in your dog’s life know how to respectfully interact with dogs. With their large size, these pups may accidentally knock over smaller kids. Also, if you have a visiting child, your pup may misinterpret their playful actions as aggressive and move to defend your child. Socialization and training are key to ensuring these dogs become comfortable around kids (and other types of people outside their immediate families).

If you adopt an older Anatolian Shepherd, make sure they’ve already received training and have been well-socialized. If not, they might be better suited to living as the only pet in a household without children or on a farm where they can roam and have their own space.

Here’s the bottom line: Your pup will be loyal to a fault and their one desire will be for you to be safe.