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Sheep herding dogs attacking tourists in the alps
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The Great Pyrenees, Pyrenean or Patou
As reported in the London Times, Pyrenean mountain dogs (known as Great Pyrenees in the United States) have been attacking tourists in the French Alps. The Pyrenean dogs, also known as Patous, were brought in to protect sheep in 1992 with the reapparance of the wolf in France. Pyreneans are known as sheep guarding dogs and are very good at their jobs. With the arrival of 1,000 Patous, the number of sheep deaths fell from 3,700 in 2005 to 2,500 in 2006.
The problems have been directed towards the tourists, however. There have been numerous attacks and mountain guides have been avoiding certain areas to avoid potential attacks. There also have been numerous Patou deaths from poisoning by mixing pork with antifreeze or slug repellant. The person responsible for the poisonings has not been caught.
This story is really unfortunate. I have met many Great Pyrenees. As with most dogs, they are gentle and friendly when socialized properly. I am not by any means an expert in working sheep guarding dogs, but I do not see why these dogs can't be socialized properly to avoid this problem. It would definitely take more work, and would require consistent socialization throughout the dog's life. The more desolate the area, the more difficult it would be to continue the socialization process.
I would imagine that high in the alps it would be challenging to keep up with the necessary socialization requirements.
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