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Greater Swiss Mountain Dog: Breed Characteristics, Care & Exercise Needs

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About Greater Swiss Mountain Dog

Country of Origin, History of Greater Swiss Mountain Dogs

The Greater Swiss Mountain Dog comes to us from the farms and villages of the Swiss Alps. The Sennenhund breeds are thought to be descendants of Roman Mastiffs, brought to the area more than 2000 years ago.

Greater Swiss Mountain Dog Tools

Breed Selector Tool - is the Greater Swiss Mountain Dog the right breed for you?

Is the Greater Swiss Mountain Dog the right breed for you and your family?

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Check Your Greater Swiss Mountain Dog's Learning Style

Are you aware dogs also have a learning style that can greatly affect their ability to housetrain as well as be trained correctly. Evaluate your Greater Swiss Mountain Dog's learning style and personality using our free Learning Style tool so that you are better able to provide him with the proper Greater Swiss Mountain Dog training methods.

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Does your Greater Swiss Mountain Dog bark unnecessarily? Does your Greater Swiss Mountain Dog come to you when you call? Download a FREE Report on Dog Dominance for you and your Greater Swiss Mountain Dog and learn how to control your dog.

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Greater Swiss Mountain Dog Calorie Calculator

Do you know how many calories your Greater Swiss Mountain Dog needs every day and how many cups of food you should be giving it every day? Click here to use our Greater Swiss Mountain Dog Calorie Calculator.

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Description

The Greater Swiss Mountain Dog is a large, strong, muscular, draft dog. The body is slightly longer than it is tall. The front legs are straight and strong with rounded, compact feet. The chest is broad and deep. The head is large with a broad, flat skull and slight stop.

The color of the eyes may vary from hazel to chestnut. The muzzle is blunt, and the nose and lips must always be black. The pendant, medium-sized ears are triangular. The tip of the tail, a blaze on the muzzle and a large marking on the chest are white. A white collar or patches on the neck are permitted.

Coat

GSMD has a beautiful tri-color double coat (black with rich rust and white markings). The outer coat is lined with a dense undercoat. Rust markings include a spot over each eye, rust on the cheeks, and on either side of the chest.

Height: 23.5-28.5 (60-72cm.)

Weight: 130-135 pounds (59-61kg.)

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Greater Swiss Mountain Dog Personality Traits

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Temperament of the Dog

The Greater Swiss Mountain Dog is steady, willing, loyal, loving, eager to please, watchful and protective, but not aggressive. They are good with children and other pets and are not generally dog aggressive. The Swissy would quickly warm up to those the family accepts. An excellent, territorial, courageous, alert watchdog that will bark at strange noises and intruders. It prefers to be with his people all the time. They are slow to mature, both physically and mentally.

They will do okay in an apartment with a small yard if sufficiently exercised. They prefer cool climates.

Greater Swiss Mountain Dog Activity Level

Exercise Needs

The dog's need for moderate exercise can be met by long, daily walks.

Grooming

This average shedder is easy to groom. Regular brushing should suffice.

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Free Greater Swiss Mountain Dog Training Secrets

Free Course on Greater Swiss Mountain Dog Training & Obedience
Stop All Bad Behavior, Excessive Barking and Biting

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Health and Care

The GSMD is prone to bloat, epilepsy, digestive disorders, metabolic bone diseases and hip dysplasia. Many Greater Swiss Mountain Dogs have distichiasis, a condition in which extra eyelashes grow along the edge of the eyelid. These extra lashes can curl inward and scratch the eye. Though the condition may not pose any problem, it sometimes requires surgical correction.

Life Expectancy: About 10-11 years.

National Breed Clubs

Breed Club:  www.gsmdca.org/

Rescue Link:   www.gsmdca.org/Rescue.htm

Group: AKC Working Group

AKC Popularity Ranking:74

Also Known As: Großer Schweizer Sennenhund, Large Swiss Mountain Dog, Swissy, GSMD

Train Your Greater Swiss Mountain Dog To Listen To You

Get Instant Access to Your Training Now - For Free

Sign up for our Free Greater Swiss Mountain Dog Mini Course to have a housebroken, obedient dog that happily comes to you every time you call.

You'll learn new commands to obedience-train your dog as well as how to housebreak your dog in 6 days or less.

You'll also learn how to eliminate bad habits like barking, nipping or biting, jumping, or pulling on the leash.Here's just s small fraction of what else you'll learn in the course:

  • How to lead and think like a pack dog - the new psychology.

  • 3 dangerous mistakes that most Great Swiss Mountain Dog owners make when they are trying to potty train their dogs.

  • The 2 main reasons why your dog barks excessively and how to control its excessive barking.

  • How to obedience train your Greater Swiss Mountain Dog to permanently end behavioral problems like Jumping, Aggression, Pulling on Leash.

  • A surprisingly easy way to teach your dog cool new tricks.

  • How to improve your dog's lifespan and keep it from getting overly heavy with a healthy and nutritious diet.

  • Getting Pro help fast - how to get access to our expert trainers when you need them most.

  • One hidden psychological trigger that all Greater Swiss Mountain Dogs have... that practically allows you to "analyze" and "control" your dog's every action.

  • Priority access to the free online seminars conducted by our training experts.

Whereas other dog training related web sites and books offer generic information for dogs in general, ours is the ONLY web site that offers Great Swiss Mountain Dog information specifically, from a renowned panel of experts - because as you probably know, Great Swiss Mountain Dogs have their own special training requirements that other dogs don't have.

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Our Dog Experts

The Greater Swiss Mountain Dog training information you will read here was developed by a panel of renowned dog training experts whose combined wisdom represents nearly 100 years of specialist experience training dogs.

Here are a few of our experts:

What Other Dog Owners Say…

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