Breeders of Champions
Great Pyrenees English Toy Spaniel Japanese Chin
Home
Available
Rescues
Great Pyrenees
Great Pyrenees can be patient and protective of his own family’s kids and pets. They can also aggressively drive off people and animals that are not part of their “flock". Great Pyrenees work independent of man. They need a confident owner to handle them with respect.
Working Dog:
Great Pyrenees can have a strong work temperament, or a mellow easy
going
personality. Great Pyrenees are laid back, but serious. Great Pyrenees
can be a chronic barker warding off the predators while outside.
This can be kept under control by keeping them inside.
Exercise and Feeding:
Great Pyrenees requires moderate exercise.
They have a tendency to roam.
Even if you did master obedience they are still never trustworthy
off the lead without being in a secure fenced area.
If left alone for great periods of time, they will go over, under
or thru a fence.
Great Pyrenees can be food and/or same sex aggressive.
Grooming and Drooling:
Great Pyrenees can shed hair over your house like an artic blizzard.
Do you own a heavy-duty vacuum?
Are you willing to keep it in overdrive during "seasonal"
blows?
Great Pyrenees can slime and drool when excited. They also can sling this slime and drool everywhere when they shake their heads.
Health Concerns/Issues:
There are several health problems that can affect the great Pyrenees.
This list is not problems they will have, it is problems they can
have.
Hip dysplasia, bone cancer, cancer of the reproductive organs (mammary cancer, uterus, testes), thyroid deficiencies, allergies, elbow dysplasia, popping hocks, demodetic mange, entropion, ectropion, luxating patella (slipping kneecaps), dwarfism, heat stroke, epilepsy, heart malformations, liver and kidney failure, stroke, chronic arthritis, chronic urinary infections, pancreatitis, and anesthesia sensitivity.
Please keep in mind that even though a responsible breeder may do the proper genetic testing some of these problems can arise. Try to always talk to older breeders in this breed you will get a lot more correct information. Visit your breeder so you know how your puppy is raised. Beware of breeders that talk about other breeders and trash them. I find that most of the time it is jealously and lack of a life.
The English Toy is fairly quite dog. Outside they can run and chase the leaves, the squirrels, and birds, then come in the house and crash. Yet they make wonderful apartment dogs.
Temperament and Personality:
The English Toy do not particular care for strangers when they first
enter but do warm up to them. They can sometimes have a little shy personality.
English Toy can be overwhelmed with kids running and screaming in
the house. They can also be a little aggressive if frightened or mistreated.
English Toys are willing to please their owners although they can be very stubborn. English Toys are never trustworthy outside a fenced area off the lead. There is enough of the hunting instinct that if they get something on their mind off they go with it and develop deaf ears.
Grooming and Feeding:
English Toys do not require a lot of grooming.
An occasional bath and a brush once a week. If your English Toy
plays outside more often you may want to brush more.
English Toys can be picky eaters and do better with two meals a day. They would prefer to have food from the table but please don’t allow that. You may want to add a little canned food to dry kibble for a little better taste.
Health and Life Span:
The English Toy can have slipping patella's or kneecaps.
They can have heart problems, eye problems and with their flat
face, some breathing problems. There are some with fused toes. This
is not a health problem it is a breed trait. It is typical for most flat faced breeds to have umbilical
hernias. If it is somewhat
still open it can be easily fixed when your puppy is spayed or neutered.
The
average life span for the English Toy is 10 to 12 years.
This is just an average, it can be longer.
Breed Difference:
I am asked often about the difference in the English Toy Spaniel and the
Cavalier. The difference is the Cav is bigger and has a nose and a tail.
Colors and temperament are usually the same. The one difference I
do know is that the English Toy spaniel is a dog that likes to be close
to you. They are on you
when you sit down. They
want to sleep with you and not just with you right up against you.
If you had a zipper on your side they would love for you to unzip it so
they could ride forever.
When looking for an English Toy Buy from experienced, reputable breeder. Ask them how long they have been in this breed. There are a lot of people out there that think they are experts and have only had the breed a short time. Talk to lots of breeders and although everyone may have some different things to say learn from them. You will find that the experienced breeders will just about all have the same thing to say about the breed. I think this should be a clue for you as to who is reputable and who is not. Beware of breeders that talk about other breeders and trash them. Some even say that can prove how this or that breeder is bad thru newspaper articles. Go and visit your breeder so that you know where your puppy came from and how the dogs are treated and taken care of.
The Japanese Chin is a very intelligent little dog. They can be easily housetrained. The Japanese Chin is a quite dog. They will usually bark if someone comes up. They are not chronic barkers.
The Japanese Chin is very easy with grooming care. A brush about every week and a bath when they get a little dirty, if you let them play outside. They do not carry a doggy smell.
Japanese Chin are not usually very out going and friendly with strangers. They prefer their immediate family. Japanese Chin does not usually do well with smaller kids. Although, I have some that live with kids and love it. If your kids are rowdy kids, then this may not work. They are not the type of dog to run and play with kids, fetch the ball or go jogging with you. They are basically a lap dog.
Japanese Chin can be cat like. Not all of them are this way but they can be. Some would prefer to sit on the sofa or chair beside you; some will want to sit on your lap.
Japanese Chin love to be in their crate or den. Some can hate it. It is always suggested that you use the crate method to get their housetraining finished. Once they are trustworthy in the house then if they don’t want to use the crate then don’t. I always suggest you continue using the crate. My reason, for this, is so that if you go visiting you can take their house with them. In a crowd of people this provides security and comfort for you little one. Some people you visit may not be thrilled to have a little dog running lose in their house while you may be out shopping. Also you do not have to worry about what they are doing or not doing while you are out.
When I first started showing these guys we were classed seven pounds and over and seven pounds and under. You would get both sizes in a litter. Now with all the changes in the standard we are seeing Chins that are losing structure and bone.
It used to be that you would only see an occasional luxating patella and rarely any whelping problems. Now you see a lot of c-sections because they are so small. Heart problems are also on the rise with the smaller ones. A lot of the very tiny ones have pinched nostrils; this can present more breathing problems.
Cataracts still seem to be old age related. There can also be the problems of running eyes. The shape of the eye causes this and not having anywhere to go the tears will spill over on to the nose area. You can keep this clean with a cotton ball dipped in boric acid solution.
If you are buying a Chin for a companion please continue to do your research. Buy from experienced, reputable breeder. Ask them how long they have been in this breed. There are a lot of people out there that think they are experts and have only had the breed for two or three years. Talk to lots of breeders and although everyone may have some different things to say learn from them. You will find that the experienced breeders will just about all have the same thing to say about the breed. I think this should be a clue for you as to who is reputable and who is not. Beware of breeders that talk about other breeders it may be you they talk about next. Visit your breeder so you know where and how your puppy was raised.
Contact :
Sande Wheeler
Griffin, GA 30223
770-228-6638
bskys1@bellsouth.net