Does anyone have a Bernese Mountain Dog?If so how do you like him/her? Would it be a good dog to have on a farm?

-- Stephanie Baker (Abaker02@maine.rr.com), September 09, 2001

Answers

they were originally butcher's dogs, later they were used for carting. in general they should be people friendly if you find the right one it should do okay as a general purpose guard. if you are really lucky you might find one that will still catch cattle. they probably won't be as good at guarding stock as well as an LGD but they might. they have alot of good tools but you will probably have to put the work in to get them to be what you want.

-- Pops (cindy556@devil-dog.com), September 09, 2001.

I don't have a purebred Bernese Mt. Dog, but I do have a 5 mos. old puppy that is a mix of Bernese Mt. & border collie. The BMD in her definitely tones down the hyper-ness of the collie. She is a sweet and very smart pup. Our cats, goats, sheep & even chickens adore her. She is great about announcing visitors, but is very gentle even with small children. I've talked to a few BMD owners and they all couldn't sing enough praises of the breed. However, they do grow into very large dogs, so they need to be trained as early as possible. (It's a lot easier training a 10 lb puppy than a 110 lb dog!)

-- Mary S. (1deal@quik.com), September 09, 2001.

Stephanie, Berners are big, beautiful, very gentle, my very favorite breed of dog. Their temperament is close to that of a golden retriever, only not as active (usually). A well bred berner is also expensive. Be sure to check bloodlines for cancer, as they have a higher than normal incidence. Berners were bred in Switzerland haul carts filled with milk cans to town. Since this was the children's job, gentleness was required. Although, at the moment I do not have a Berner, I want another one real bad!

-- vicki in NW OH (thga76@aol.com), September 09, 2001.

Funny that you should mention this breed. I was just doing some research on them for myself. I kind of decided to hold off on them. I found a lot of information about health problems with them, including show stoppers like cancer and hip displaysia. It also seemed that the life span wasn't all that long. One web site had a quote that went something like "three years young dog, three years good dog, and three years old dog". I'm looking for something with a lot more than three good years, especially at the cost for a BMD with good bloodlines. And we get really attached to our dogs, so I'd like something a little healthier that would be with us a while longer.

They are beautiful though. Most of the ones I've seen in person always look like they are smiling and have a great sense of humor.

-- Lori in SE Ohio (klnprice@yahoo.com), September 09, 2001.

Please be aware that you cannot use a BMD as a draft animal until it reaches the age of two. The breeds that grow to large sizes can suffer permanent joint/bone damage if they are not taken care early in their life. This is true for BMD, Greater Swiss and Irish Wolfhounds, etc. It is actually recommended that they do no "do" steps, jump in and out of cars or trucks, etc.

BMD are great dogs but they mature slowly and must be given that time. They can be a challenge to housebreak because of this immaturity. It can take over 6 months to get reliable housebreaking accomplished. This is particularly true when they are going through growth spirts.

They are fabuluous dogs - just read and learn what you are getting into.

-- Chris Menges (CLMngs@aol.com), September 10, 2001.

I HAVE A BMD. ACTUALLY, I DID NOT PURCHASE HIM. HE JUST SHOWED UP ON MY PORCH ONE DAY AND I FOUND OUT HE WAS HOMELESS SO I TOOK HIM IN NOT EVEN KNOWING WHAT KIND OF BREED HE IS. I THOUGHT HE WAS A ST. BERNARD AND ROTWEILER MIX UNTIL I TOOK HIM TO THE VET TO GET SHOTS AND THE VET SAID I HAD A VERY EXPENSIVE BREED. HE IS ONLY ABOUT 1 YEAR OLD AND VERY NICE. HE IS VERY GOOD WITH MY KIDS AND VERY WELL BEHAVED. I'VE HAD HIM NOW FOR 6 MONTHS AND I LOVE HIM TO DEATH. I WOULD RECOMMEND THIS BREED TO ANYONE. THEY ARE A VERY LOYAL BREED, BUT THEY DO GROW VERY BIG, BUT TO ME THE BIGGER THE BETTER. HIS NAME IS BUDDY AND THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT HE IS TO ME ---MY BUDDY. MY DOG IS A VERY GOOD HOUSE DOG BECAUSE HE IS NOT VERY ACTIVE BUT OTHER BREEDS MIGHT BE. SO TO ANSWER THE QUESTION IF HE WOULD BE A GOOD FARM DOG, I THINK THE BREED WOULD BE GOOD AT ANYTHING---IF THEY PUT THEIR MINDS TO IT!!!!! LAURA FISHER

-- laura fisher (laura6635@earthlink.net), February 04, 2002.