He fetches!

by Kim
(Northern California)

Harley at 4 months

After 12 years together, and three small mixed breed rescues, my husband (a devout non-dog person when we met LOL) finally agreed to a Pyr. We went looking for a rescue, but in our area of Northern California, most of the rescue Pyrs have been Family Farm Dogs and we need a dog to guard our couch and teenage girls.

We saw a little of pups for sale and without a word to me, my husband got the address and off we went. The pups were adorable and I loved that they were in the house, not kept in the yard. My youngest daughter picked the puppy, our oldest named him "Harley."

As my husband slowly but surely fell in love, he asked me if we could train him off leash, I said probably not. He asked if we could teach him to retrieve, again, I said probably not. Imagine my surprise when my husband called me excitedly and said watch this! Harley chased after, brought back and DROPPED every ball and toy that was thrown for him! He is the best retriever of any dog I have ever had.

A few weeks later, we were at the park and my husband decided to take Harley's leash off and let him run with one of our other dogs (also off leash). I held my breath, expecting a game of chase (the park is fenced but is still a good two acres of space), and Harley ran around with Baileys, then came back and got his leash on without complaint when it was time to go. Somehow he knew what my husband needed and has been just that dog for him. Of course, inside the house he comes when he is good and ready :)

He is insanely smart- I taught him not to bark at or go for the cat by putting him in a sit next to the cat and giving him treats for being calm and quiet by the cat. Now, he goes to the cat's food bowl, barks til he gets my attention, then promptly sits and waits for his treat. I have essentially trained him to bark until he gets a treat. Oops!