Hey, good for you on the individual research. I'm just gonna list your questins and then answer them to the best of my ability. Mind you my girl is still a puppy so some questions I'll probably skip.
1~How are they with children? I have a 4 year old son. I will never leave them unsupervised,and never let Shane (My son) tease the dog in any way, but I would like a dog that will get along with him and play with him. Okay, Naja is FANTASTIC with kids, I don't have any myself, but I do have 2 nefews, an 8 yr old and a 4 year old. The 8 yr old I don't really worry about so much, he kinda gets that Naja isn't really a high energy dog. But the 4 yr old is a Hellion. He doesn't quite get that although she is very large she is still delicate b/c she's a puppy. He'll run at her sacring her half to death, but I've never once seen her get aggresive or defencive with him. At most she'll run away and hide behind my legs. When it comes to strange children she's also great, she'll sit there and let herself he petted and rubbed for hours, she just doesn't like rough play.
2~How are they with other critters? I also live on a farm with lots and lots of cows, cats, farmers (They smell just like if not worse then the animals so they are also classified as critters in my books. lol
) We also have a Cairn Terrier named Moo. Naja likes to bark at just about anything she sees move, she won't attack it (unless it's a sniff attack. lol), she mostly likes to stay at a distance and bark. With Moo, she is again just wonderful, they are the bestest of best friends, at any time of the day (unless she is sleeping, which is most of the day... ha ha) you will see them chasing each other around the yard/porch/house. He is much more rough with her then she with him, although she knows she has the ability, she has never once hurt him even accidently. Oh yeah, and she LOVES kittens, she would spend hours snuggling and licking any of the many kittens that come around the house.
3~How much exersize a day do they need as adults?Dont' know yet, but I'll let you know when I find out! 2 yrs or so?
4~What aresome health problems Great Pyreneese can have? How do you prevent them,and/or how they are treatedGreat Pyrenees Health issues from what I've been told are pretty uniform with most other Giant Breeds. Hip/Shoulder?Elbow displacia, Bloat, HOV, Parvo, among others that I'm sure I'm forgetting. Having all your dogs shots on time is important to prevent many things such as Parvo, Rabies, Kennel Cough. Also keeping your Big Paw on low protein even adult premium quality food will help with the bone and joint problems, as well as Glucosamine supplements will go a long way. It may feel like you're spending alot of money now on food and supplements, but it's alot less then you would be spending on surgeries and frequent vet visits if you did not take these precautions as puppies)
5~What are some pros and cons?Cons- Lots and lots and lots of hair on carpets, furniture, clothes, or anything else hair might stick to. They have a bred in nature to wander and are never to be trusted off leash. Due to their breeding over hundreds of years, they will ALWAYS want to explore just a little bit further anything they find interesting. They bark ALOT!! At just about anything that moves or looks like it could move! "Low flying satelights, butterflies" - Catherine DeLe Cruz. They are stubborn, because they are so smart they often thing they know what's best for you, not the other way around.
Pros - They are one of the most loyal breeds I have ever come across. They are warm and loving, and if you are part of their family will watch over and protect you to the death. They bark at anything or one that could be a threat alerting you to possible danger, and warding off anybody or thing that thought they could get you alone. They are SUPER intelligent, they don't take long to train as long as you are consistant, a few sessions with Naja is all I usually need to teach her something new. Lot's and Lots of hair, the more to cuddle against, and to spend hours on end cathartically brushing. Sometimes I just zone out while brushing her, it is relaxing and theraputic for the both of us.
6~What sort of grooming and how often do they need? They need to be brushed at LEAST once a week to prevent matting. Their coat will blow a few times a year (I'm told, haven't experianced THAT yet
). Never really need to cut their hair, unless you want to I guess, but it's so pretty why would you want to? Nails especially dew claws need to be done every 2-3 weeks. I'm told doing the nails is terrible by most other ppl, but I personally have never had a problem, I actually think Naja likes it.
But for the hair thing, you could always make a nice hat or pair of mittens! There is a guy on here that did that with his Newfie a while back. It was before I joined but I was reading back and thought it was neat!
Good luck in your search!!
