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Great Pyrenees

The Great Pyrenees is a livestock guardian breed from the French-Spanish Pyrenees mountains, historically working flocks of sheep and goats at elevation.

Calculate Great Pyrenees age
Lifespan10.9 yrrange 10–12
SizeGiantWorking Group
Weight85–140 lb38.6–63.5 kg
Senior at5 yrgeriatric at 8

Gallery (3)

About

About the Great Pyrenees

The Great Pyrenees is a livestock guardian breed from the French-Spanish Pyrenees mountains, historically working flocks of sheep and goats at elevation. The breed shares ancestry with the Maremma, Kuvasz, and Anatolian Shepherd.

Aging

How Great Pyreneess age

RVC VetCompass gives a median 10.9 years (n=388). Hip dysplasia and osteosarcoma are the defining late-life orthopedic-oncologic concerns in this giant-framed guardian; GDV is the acute life-threatening event owners should know to recognize.

Lifespan deep-diveAvg 10.9 yr · range 10–12Senior careSenior at 5 · geriatric at 8Common health issues9 tracked conditions
Physical

Physical characteristics

Weight
85–140 lb(38.6–63.5 kg)
Height
25–32 in(63.5–81.3 cm)
Coat type
Double
Colors
White
Temperament

Temperament

How Great Pyreneess tend to show up around their people, other dogs, and the world.

patientcalmgentlewatchful
  • Energy
  • Trainability
  • Good with kids
  • Good with other dogs
  • Shedding
Health

Common health issues

Full health profile
  • Moderatetypical onset ~7 yr

    Cataracts

    Description and veterinary guidance for Cataracts land in Phase 4. Prevalence and onset-age figures above are drawn from https://ofa.org/diseases/disease-statistics/.

  • Moderatetypical onset ~6 yr

    Adult-Onset Cardiac Disease (Echocardiogram)

    Description and veterinary guidance for Adult-Onset Cardiac Disease (Echocardiogram) land in Phase 4. Prevalence and onset-age figures above are drawn from https://ofa.org/diseases/disease-statistics/.

  • Low prevalencetypical onset ~2 yr

    Elbow Dysplasia

    Description and veterinary guidance for Elbow Dysplasia land in Phase 4. Prevalence and onset-age figures above are drawn from https://ofa.org/diseases/disease-statistics/.

Exercise
45min
per day

Great Pyreneess are satisfied by around 45 minutes of daily activity (energy level 3/5). Short, regular outings beat one long session.

Related

Related breeds

Breeds with a similar size and group profile, for readers comparing options.

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References

Sources

Lifespan and health figures on this page are drawn from the peer-reviewed and organizational sources below.

  1. AKC breed standardAmerican Kennel Club breed page

    Breed size, weight range, height, AKC group, origin, coat type, and temperament baseline.

  2. RVC VetCompassRoyal Veterinary College VetCompass life-table research (McMillan et al. 2024)

    UK primary-care records; source for the median-lifespan and mortality figures.