Breed Priorities – Greater Swiss Mountain Dog

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340 – June, 2021

By Nikki Riggsbee

The Greater Swiss Mountain Dog is one of four breeds from Switzerland sharing a black base coat with white and red markings. The Bernese Mountain Dog, recognized by AKC in 1937, is the only one with a longer coat. The smaller Entlebucher Mountain Dog, the only one in the herding group, was recognized in 2011. The next larger Appenzeller Sennenhund has been in the AKC Foundation Stock Service since 2007. In FCI, all four breeds’ names include the word “Sennenhund” (instead of Mountain Dog) which refers to people called Senn who were Swiss alpine herdsmen and dairymen.

The Greater Swiss Mountain Dog, who joined the AKC working group in 1995, is the largest of these four similarly colored dogs and is considered the oldest of the group. He was used as a multi-purpose farm dog, pulling carts, moving cattle, serving as a watch dog and family companion. The breed contributed to the early development of the Rottweiler and St. Bernard.

We collected names and email addresses of about forty Swissie breeder-judges and breed experts to ask to participate in a survey on their breed’s priorities. Thirty-two responded affirmatively, and we received nineteen completed surveys.

The experts have been in the breed for an average of twenty-two years, including some over thirty years. Those who judge have been doing so for more than eleven years on average. Several have judged regular classes or sweeps at their national specialties.

Greater Swiss Mountain Dog Virtues

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340 – June, 2021

Short URL: https://caninechronicle.com/?p=203225

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