Bernese Mountain Puppy :D

[Intoxication]

I might be getting a puppy
A Bernese Mountain Dog is pretty much the ideal one I found. I feel I could really benefit from having a loyal, fluffy companion of my own.
Basically what I posted here for was:

• Does anyone on TH own/know someone who owns a Bernese Mountain Dog? If so, what are the pros and cons of owning the puppy?
• What sort of requirements are... required... for having a puppy that will grow into a DOG.
• Slobber? Toys? Weather tolerance??

Any opinions are appreciated- and I will post pics

[Dark Horse]

Does anyone on TH own/know someone who owns a Bernese Mountain Dog? If so, what are the pros and cons of owning the puppy?
One of my friends used to have one (it died of old age and lived for [I think] about four or five years.) It was kind of feirce at times, but it was mostly really sweet and good-natured. (From what I experienced)

What sort of requirements are... required... for having a puppy that will grow into a dog? (lol )
Im not exactly sure what you mean here? But Im just going to say - attention; all dogs neeeeed attetion and love from their owners in order to be happy and healthy. I also know that my friend's dad used to walk the dog (Periwinkle ) every afternoon. I dont think it's a priority to walk it everyday, but I'd imagine that it will need a lot of exercise. Im not too sure about what type of food. I guess just normal "big dog" dog food.

Slobber? Toys? Weather tolerance??
I'm not sooo sure about slobber, but Periwinkle didn't really seem to be that slobber-ish! Just a normal amount of...slobbering Im sure any toys will do...something chewable maybe? And weather - I THINK my friend used to keep Periwinkle indoors at night....that's basically everything I know.

I also found this link on the net. I didn't really read it, but I'd imagine it gives a good amount of information:

http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/bernesemountain.htm

Hope I helped! Good luck for getting your new puppy
-Arabella.

[Intoxicated Brutality]

My great grandmas old neighbor had a bunch; she bred and showed them.

Wonderfully sweet dogs. But they get HUGE. so that's something to keep in mind. And they can slobber quite a bit. Plus, they do have a lot of upkeep in terms of grooming. All that fur can get matted easily if not taken care of properly.

Basically, some things to consider are:

Do you have enough room for the puppy/ adult dog to run and play?
Will you have enough time to brush it as needed?
Do you have the money to properly care for it, such as for vet bills, grooming, etc?

From what I could tell, they're pretty weather tolerant. Especially when it comes to cold weather(they LOVE the snow). Hot weather climates, you really just can't leave them outside for TOO long, because with their coats it'd be easy for them to get overheated.

If you get one, you should totally post pictures :-) Bernese mountain dogs (especially the puppies!!) are SO adorable.

Good luck, hope this helps! (:

[TheBabyEater]

I work at a dog kennel, day care, and dog grooming place, so I work with a lot of different dogs, including Bernese Mountain dogs Having worked with all sorts of dogs, the absolute biggest suggestion I have for you is training, training, training. I had always thought that big dogs were naturally nice dogs, and that small dogs were naturally barking, jumpy little shits. I was totally wrong. No dog is naturally calm, some are, but it's definitely not as decided by the breed like most people think. I've found that a lot of it is the owner, what they allow, ext. I can't count on two hands how many times I've been knocked over by huge dogs who hadn't been trained properly, and their owners allow all sorts of jumping and barking.

Anyway, just be sure that you train your new puppy, the sooner the better. I know it's hard to, because puppies are just so damn cute!!!

Bernese Mountain dogs are pretty awesome though, we've had a few stay. I also recommend regular grooming. It seems simple, but apparently not a lot of people get their fluffy puppies groomed. Definitely invest in a brush, and definitely use it. At least once a week, if not more often. It will not only help with shedding, but it will prevent mats which are not only ugly, but uncomfortable for the dog as well!

Big dogs tend to slobber quite a bit, but Bernese Mountain dogs aren't too bad. So I wouldn't worry about the slobbering too much. Then again, I'm pretty used to slobber...
And, each dog responds to toys differently. There are some big dogs that are fine with plush toys, but a lot (including mine, who are much smaller than your Bernese will be!) are really rough and just tear them up all over the place. My dogs have mostly rubber toys, a lot of bones, and a few stuffless toys that they absolutely love. A lot of times with a new dog it's just trial and error to see what does and doesn't work. This is why, until you know your new puppy better, I recommend the clearance section at Petsmart

As for weather, it's no secret that Bernese Mountain dogs are quite fluffy. That's what makes them so pretty! But, if you live in an area like I do where it gets into the 80s or 90s in the summer, you might want to consider shaving off that fluffiness for a nice, short summer coat. It will also help with shedding, your dog just might not be quite as fluffy. But, it grows back, I promise. Besides, just talk to your groomer about what you want. You don't always have to shave it ALL off, sometimes I just get half an inch or so off my fluffy dog, and he seems a LOT happier in the summer. Especially since he's black!

I think I've answered everything, along with quite a bit of rambling

[Intoxication]

Thanks, guys and what I meant by "requirements for a puppy that will grow into a DOG" is I know the dog, as an adult, will be much bigger - much bigger - then it was when it was a puppy. What would I need for such a big dog is what I meant by that
And I appreciate your advice/opinions. Pics will be up. But not for a while, because it'll be a while before I even get the puppy.

[minniemouseprincess]

Oh for toys, I wanted to add that you should get some soft stuffed animal like toys with squeekers in them. Both of my dogs LOVE those=) They don't play with the hard rubber ones at all.

[Audacious]

My mom's friend's brother had 3 bernese mountain dogs.

They are big dogs. You NEEEEEEEED to make sure you have space for one. You're going to need a kennel for it as a puppy if you don't want your house destroyed while you are out, and think about how big that dog is going to get by year 1, and if you're going to have that dog completely house trained by then.
My family has always owned big dogs, and something to think about is life expectancy. The bigger the dog, the shorter the life, as we have noticed with our experience, and what the vet has told us is typical. The guy's dogs I was talking about a second ago only lived to be about 5 or 6 years old. Our golden retriever just died and she was only 8...which is short for a golden but she had issues...so ya.

Another thing common with big dogs is hip displasia. Basically, their hips can get really crappy, and sometimes dislocate. You have to make sure their hips get checked every year at the vet.

Toys are expensive...it sucks haha. My family buys some squeeky toys, some frizzbees, but my dog LOVES the plastic coffee can we got him. When we were done with the coffee, we rinsed the can, put it in the dishwasher to make sure he didn't get any leftover caffine, and now he runs around all the time with it on his head and he LOVES it. Plastic water bottles are awesome as well, because they make the crackly sound and puppies love to play with them. No real bone until they're older

For feed, mike used to feed his dogs "BARF", and it was basically raw meat. It's some kind of weird mountain dog food, idk. I think normal food would be fine though haha.

Good luck