Browsing: Breed Information
Everything that helps you decide whether a Bernese Mountain Dog fits your life, and what to expect once one does.
Berners are big, slow-growing, intensely people-focused dogs with a thick tricolour double coat and a shorter life than most breeds their size. Males run roughly 25 to 27.5 inches and 80 to 115 pounds; females are smaller. They take about two years to reach skeletal maturity, which is why exercise stays restricted long after the dog looks fully grown.
This section covers temperament honestly, including the parts that put people off: the shedding, the heat sensitivity, the cost of everything at 100 pounds, and how poorly the breed handles being left alone all day. It also covers the practical comparisons owners actually search for – male versus female, Berner versus Golden Retriever, puppy versus adult rescue – and what a Bernese realistically costs to buy and to keep.
Start with the owner’s guide if you are new to the breed. If you have already decided, the puppy and health sections will be more use.
If you’ve booked a spay or neuter, you may have been offered a gastropexy as an add-on — a procedure…
Two things to know before you plan anything. Every dog entering or returning to the United States must be at…
There is one correct colour for a Bernese Mountain Dog, and every breed standard says the same thing: tri-coloured, with…
Most of the time, a limping large-breed puppy has either a minor soft-tissue strain from playing too hard, or panosteitis…
Both of these are symptoms, not diseases. That single distinction is the most useful thing on this page, and it’s…
Two things are worth knowing before anything else. The chews sold hardest for big dogs are the ones that break…
The single most useful thing to know about insuring this breed is a clause called a bilateral exclusion, and here’s…
Histiocytic sarcoma is rare in most dogs and common in this one. It’s diagnosed in somewhere between 15% and 25%…
Of all the breeds studied for fragmented medial coronoid process, the Bernese Mountain Dog carries the greatest predisposition. Not one…
A Bernedoodle is a Bernese Mountain Dog crossed with a Poodle. It is not a breed — there’s no standard,…