I was wondering if you could tell me what bernese are really like to live with. I have read some bits and pieces on the internet but want to hear it from people who actually live with them. I know from experience that there is not such thing as a "text-book" dog and whilst books are useful, I like to hear it direct from those who live with them. I have children aged between 6 and 11, have had GSDs in the past and recently lost our last one to HD. Our children are very dog savvy and wouldnt dream of teasing a dog and are not intimidated at all by size, if anything they are not fond of the smaller breeds having only lived with big dogs.

Any help would be great

They are great dogs to live with.

Like all puppies they will bite and jump so you have to have your training plan in place and all members of the family must be aware of the routine and all stick to it rigidly.

They do not do well trained harshly ie: Yanking tugging or shouting you can change the tone of your voice but shouting can make them nervous. They are very food orientated so training for treats is good. Or a special toy.

They will make you laugh they may make you silently scream and possibly rock in a corner at times but they are worth every minute of it. But then any breed can do that I had a cross breed puppy 10 years ago and he was a total nightmare he grew into the most wonderful dog.

Once past all the naughty bits they make wonderful dogs to share your life with.

When young they need limited exercise so not for a family wo wants to take a young dog hiking for hours. They can have many health problems so doing research on breeders is a good way to go and possibly one that is a member of the breed club is good too. Visit breeders and their dogs if possible.

Mentally they do not mature till around 3.

I find this site very useful.

bmdinfo.org

Truman is our first Berner and he is the stereotypical Berner, BUT at 14 months he is still a handful (I say that with a ton of love). We went through the biting/mouthing stage for some time and he finally has grown out of that (for the most part). He makes us laugh and definitely thinks he is a lapdog. They have such amazing spirits and are so soulful. He is very protective of his house/territory, but not in an agressive manner, just can bark quite a bit. Loves being outside too. He does learn rather quickly, but has the tendency to make what he has learned optional at times. I think this is probably any dog though. Best of luck as even through the difficult times when you question your sanity, they are really a very special breed.

Thank you both for your replies. I was wondering if you could tell me what they are like in the house? I have read (somewhere!) that they are very calm and are happy to laze around in the hosue and was wondering if this was true.

I have read that they shed a lot but what would this be like in comparison to another dog? I have had GSDs so know how much they can shed, is a bernese anything like this amount or are the more/less of a shedder?

Yes,the shedding part is true. It's absolutely amazing how much fur they shed in a single day, but if you've already had dogs that do, there shouldn't be any surprises . Truman goes to daycare 3x/week and as from what I can tell, these guys thrive being with people & dogs. He has destroyed our wall, the side of our fireplace mantle and the ballister to our stairs But, we let him have too much freedom and think it was his way of letting us know. He hasn't touched anything since (we keep him in our kitchen when we are away & he has done very well). Dogs will be dogs and they definitely need boundaries, but this is really a phenomenol breed. I would definitely recommend going through a reputable breeder and plan on waiting some time as from what I can tell breeders of Berners are very protective & cautious. Best.

I think... it depends on the berner. Milo is calm at home, he played for a while and then sleeps his day off. Of course he is just 3 months old, so that might change later.

I don't know if it is also genetics or how he was raised by his mom... when I met the mom, she was calm, not barky but curious...

And I also asked the breeder for the calmest puppy in the litter.

He is not chewing anything forbidden (yet), not mouthy, not barky but I read a lot here but berner can be all of those... it's true dogs will always be dogs but you as the pack leader should set the boundaries.

One thing for sure, the first 3 weeks of having him was the hardest and then it gets better and better and you know you can't get a better dog!

I recommedn you go to the BMDCA.org site and check out the info series for the best and most accurate info. I also recommend you contact a Breed Steward near you, listed on the site...this is what they are for....questions re: the breed and guidance.

Berners shed three times what a GSD does for the record. This is a northern, cold weather working breed unlike a GSD and thereby "blows" coat each year in a heavy mass shed. Many are alarmed who are uneducated about the breed to see that amount of hair loss - hair in your fridge, in your drawers, and under your bed. I just replaced my mattress for example and when the mattress was removed my entire carpet was covered in a 1 inch thick layer of black berner coat, despite twice weekly vacumming!

Idon't think anyone can tell you about personality except all are different.... Just like any other breed. Someone metion chewong and destroying a few things.... My Gracie chewed a couple 99 cent rubber flip flops and never chewed anything else. Even outgrew her lust for rubber flip flops .

I can however say that ALL Berners shed MUCH MORE then you could even dream. Imagine taking a pillowcase of hair and spreading it all over your house.....EVERY DAY! If your not prepared to deal with hairballs everywhere, constant vacuuming and hair in even your food all the time..... Then you probably would not be happy

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Used to known as LYNN but now Forum doesn't recognize my sign in
LMAO... nevermind..... I WAS LIZA... no wonder I couldn't log in

Tumbleweed. You just think you have cleaned it up and out from under a cupboard or chair comes another ball of fur roiling around daring you to catch it.

Ollie our first Berner did some wall chewing not much and then was very good. Dillon our new berner is doing the same but as of yet has done no damage mainly because I am here most of the day all days.

He is left on his own for short periods now and is good and goes to sleep he does get his 15 minute walk before we go out.

He has his mad moments and is quite demanding but he is only 15 weeks old today so still is very much a puppy and on a learning curve.

Thank you all very much for the replies, they certainly make intersting reading and give me some food for thought.

As for the bmdcs.org link, unfortunately this is not much use to me as I live in the UK and not the USA. It will however be useful for information on the breed altho not on where to get one from.

Can I ask how much do bernese drool? I have tried to find out infor about this but most UK infor is scarce.

Thank you all again for your continued help