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Saint Bernard
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The St. Bernard Dog is a very large breed of dog, a working dog
from the Swiss Alps, originally bred for rescue. The breed has
become famous through tales of alpine rescues, as well as for its
enormous size.
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Description
Appearance
The St. Bernard is a very large dog with a large head. A full-grown
male can weigh between 160 and 260 lb (73–117 kg) or more and
the approximate height at the withers is 27½ inches to 35½ inches
(70 to 90 cm). The coat can be either smooth or rough, with the
smooth coat close and flat. The rough coat is dense but flat, and
more profuse around the neck and legs. The coat is typically a red
colour with white, or sometimes a mahogany brindle with white.
Black shading is usually found on the face and ears. The tail is
long and heavy, hanging low with the end turned up slightly. The
dark eyes should have naturally tight lids, with "haws only slightly
visible".
Temperament
St. Bernards, like all very large dogs, must be well socialized with
people and other dogs while young if they are to be safely kept as
a pet. A St. Bernard not properly introduced to and socialized with
children from a young age poses a threat, not having learned to
distinguish between a child and other, smaller animals.
Nonetheless, St. Bernards are very friendly.
Extremely loyal, the St. Bernard is eager to please its owners. Due
to its large adult size, it is essential that proper training and
socialization begin while the St. Bernard is still a puppy, so as to
avoid the difficulties that normally accompany training large
animals. An unruly St. Bernard may present problems for even a
strong adult, so control needs to be asserted from the beginning of
the dog's training. While generally not as aggressive as dogs bred
for protection, a St. Bernard will bark at strangers and their size
makes them good deterrents against possible intruders.
Health
The very fast growth rate and the weight of a St. Bernard can lead
to very serious deterioration of the bones if the dog does not get
proper food and exercise. Many dogs are affected by hip dysplasia
or elbow dysplasia. Osteosarcoma (bone cancer) has been shown
to be hereditary in the breed.
St. Bernards are susceptible to eye disorders called entropion and
ectropion, in which the eyelid turns in or out. The breed standard
indicates that this is a major fault.
The breed is also susceptible to epilepsy and seizures, a heart
disease called dilated cardiomyopathy, and eczema.
Due to the likelihood of heath problems in later years, the average
lifespan for a Saint Bernard is around 7–10 years.
History
The ancestors of the St. Bernard share a history with the
Sennenhunds, also called Swiss Mountain Dogs or Swiss Cattle
Dogs, the large farm dogs of the farmers and dairymen of the
Swiss Alps, which were livestock guardians, herding dogs, and
draft dogs as well as hunting dogs, search and rescue dogs and
watchdogs. These dogs are thought to be descendants of
molosser type dogs brought into the Alps by the ancient Romans,
and the St. Bernard is recognized internationally today as one of
the Molossoid breeds.
The earliest written records of the St. Bernard breed are from
monks at the hospice at the Great St. Bernard Pass in 1707, with
paintings and drawings of the dog dating even earlier.
The most famous St. Bernard to save people at the pass was Barry
(sometimes spelled Berry), who reportedly saved somewhere
between 40 and 100 lives. There is a monument to Barry in the
Cimetière des Chiens, and his body was preserved in the Natural
History Museum in Berne.
The classic Saint Bernard looked very different from the St.
Bernard of today, because avalanches killed off many of the dogs
used for breeding between 1816 and 1818. Severe weather during
this period led to an increased number of avalanches that killed
many St. Bernards while performing rescue work. In an attempt to
preserve the breed, the remaining St. Bernards were crossed with
Newfoundlands in the 1850s, and so lost much of their use as
rescue dogs in the snowy climate of the alps because the long fur
they inherited would freeze and weigh them down.
The Swiss St. Bernard Club was founded in Basel on March 15
1884. The St. Bernard was the very first breed entered into the
Swiss Stud Book in 1884, and the breed standard was finally
approved in 1888. "Since that time the St. Bernard has been a
Swiss national dog."
Naming
The name "St. Bernard" originates from traveler's hospice on the
often treacherous St. Bernard Pass in the Western Alps between
Switzerland and Italy, where the name was passed to the local
dogs. The pass, the lodge, and the dogs are named for Bernard of
Menthon, the 11th century monk who established the station.
"St. Bernard" wasn't in widespread use until the middle of the 19th
century. The dogs were called "Saint Dogs","Noble Steeds",
"Alpenmastiff", or "Barry Dogs".
Related Breeds
The breed is strikingly similar to that of the English Mastiff. This
can be attributed to a common shared ancestry with the Alpine
Mastiff. It is suspected that St. Bernards were used to redevelop
this breed to combat the threat of their extinction after World War II.
The four Sennenhund breeds, the Grosser Schweizer Sennenhund
(Greater Swiss Mountain Dog), the Berner Sennenhund, (Bernese
Mountain Dog), the Appenzeller Sennenhund, (Appenzeller), and
the Entlebucher Sennenhund (Entlebucher Mountain Dog) are
similar in appearance and share the same location and history, but
are tricolour rather than red and white.
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Saint Bernard
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Country of Origin
Switzerland / Italy
Weight
160-260 lb
Height
25-28 in
Coat
Smooth or rough which is longer
Color
White with tan, red, mahogany,
brindle, and black markings
Life span
7-10 years
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Dog Breed Test samples analyzed in about two weeks
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