On Thu, Dec 07, 2006 at 04:42:13PM -0500, Mark Roberts wrote: > Michael Chan wrote: > > >William's right. It's Bernese Mountain Dog, and it's frequently > >shortened to "Berner". Common mispronunciations include "Burmese" > >Mountain Dogs. On one occasion I ran with that gaffe and said they got > >their names from the fighting "Burmese" monks who trained them to guard > >Buddhist temples, and that they are the only breed known that could > >actually be trained to fight in Bando Tiger form. > > And was your explanation accepted? > Inquiring minds, and all that... > > >Berner Sennenhund is the original name. They are closely related to the > >Greater Swiss, as well as somewhat related to the St. Bernard, Great > >Pyrenees, and Newfoundland, all of whom trace their roots to the > >Molosser dogs of the Romans. The breed was developed in the canton of > >Berne, Switzerland and is named after the canton as well as the "senner" > >or cattleman he worked for, and "hund" (dog). The breed were originally > >working dogs, used principally as carters, herders/drovers, and watch > >dogs. > > My S.O. isn't much of a dog enthusiast, but when she met one of her > colleagues' Bernese Mountain Dog she fell instantly in love. Those dogs > have such sweet dispositions. If we ever get lifestyles that are slow > enough to permit dog ownership Lisa and I will likely look at a > "Berner".
A friend of mine back in the northeast raises (and shows) Berners. There's nothing quite like going round to visit and being enthusiastically greeted by half-a-dozen 25lb puppies scrabbling across a hardwood floor... One drawback is that, like most large purebreeds, they have a fairly short life expectancy. That means you lose friends far too quickly. -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net
