Thank you for visiting the website of Pioneer Bernese. The material at this website is intended to familiarize you with Bernese Mountain Dogs, our breeding program, and to help you develop discernment skills to use in selecting a purebred dog.

The goals of our breeding program are to improve our breeding stock through outcrossing and linebreeding, and to place each pup we produce and do not keep into a home where it can thrive for its lifetime as a devoted companion. We hope in a 25-30 year career to reliably produce entire litters, which possess the qualities we value most highly, good health, soundness of mind and body, intelligence and loyalty. We breed to please ourselves...not to conform to fashion or public need or demand.

 From our litters we keep two kinds of puppies--those who show potential to be the best pups we have ever produced and the rare "problem" puppies whom we raise ourselves, sometimes placing them in new homes when they are more mature.  Sometimes these dogs spend their lifetimes in our own family. We specifically do NOT want to pass along a problem to others who seek companions from us. Those pups that do not spend their lives past initial puppyhood here possess qualities of varying degrees, and similar genetic material to those we keep. We would not initiate a breeding we thought would not render pups possessing the qualities we value.

A quick thinking mind, agile and sound body and legs, good health and willingness to work are imperative to us in our broodstock. We seek to produce healthy, thrifty dogs that look and act like BMD’s. Our dogs require obedience training (preferably formal training) as youngsters, followed by fair and consistent training throughout their lives. Our dogs are very intelligent and bear the strong will necessary in a typical farm dog. If their Will to Serve is developed early using positive reinforcement, they are superior in loyalty and willingness to please. Our BMD’s seek to please their human leaders.

 Our dogs are not large BMD’s but tend to fall within the breed standard from the small to medium size category.  We prefer males for ourselves who are 25-25.5 inches and who weigh 95-105 pounds.  A typical dam in our program is 24 inches and weighs 80-90 pounds. Markings are typically medium to dark with the "well lit up" puppy the exception to the norm. Coats vary from straight to wavy typically and in more recent years a few dogs we’ve bred who have denser coats have had a little bit of curl to their coats over their rumps.

Families whose humans member are away all day at work, should think about the loneliness a pup suffers more or less 2/3 of its life...8 hrs of a work day, and 8 hrs of nighttime sleep for the humans in its family. Keeping a Berner in the house at night is an advantage for all. The dog gets to be near his/her people. This is the purpose of life from a Berner’s perspective. The family also benefits from the protection a large dog in the house provides.

 Bernese are intolerant of high temperatures in their environment and are particularly susceptible to the negative affects of high humidity on the respiration system.  We try to never stand in the sun with a Berner on leash. When transporting dogs in our air conditioned van, either the windows are covered or the dogs’ crates are covered to protect the dogs from sun glaring in through the windows. When the weather warms in the Spring, our dogs’ activity levels drop substantially and we subsequently adjust feeding and exercise times to the coolest parts of the day. With decreased activity, food consumption decreases as well. In hot climates, most dogs will "excavate" their yard in search of subterranean coolness. This may be objectionable to some owners. Training the dog to limit excavation to certain areas is a challenge but is possible. Our dogs seek the shelter of our air conditioned home when temperatures soar over 85 degrees.

 The Bernese has a soil resistant coat and little body odor. Frequent bathing is not usually necessary. We prefer combing to brushing our dogs and use a medium/coarse greyhound comb. For brushing, we recommend a rubber backed pin brush. Five minutes of one-on-one daily grooming time spent examining teeth, ears, and feet (with a few tummy rubs thrown in) on the living room floor are gratefully accepted by any Berner and are an important part of developing a working relationship. Lightly misting the coat daily with water helps maintain a healthy coat.

Each BMD is a unique individual. No two are exactly alike nor do they all respond to things in exactly the same way. It is important that before deciding to own one, a prospective owner do a bit of soul searching to decide if he/she can accept his/her new charge a year or two or three down the road for what the dog is, not what they’d hoped it would be. Disapproval crushes a Berner’s soul, as his greatest joy is lying at his master’s feet or otherwise pleasing his master.

Wishing a too shy dog would be brave does not improve his self-confidence. Giving dogs the responsibility to watch out for their owner's welfare and physical well being builds the dog's confidence. Helping them succeed and feel good about themselves is what all dogs need from their owners. Wishing one’s Berner would not growl when removing his food pan does not make the situation better. Working through behavioral problems rather than burying one’s head in the sand, hoping he behavior will go away, is the answer. Consultation in matters pertaining to the welfare of dogs from our program is an ongoing commitment we make to our buyers.

 BMD puppies need strong leaders in their humans. The concept of leadership should be fully understood before owning any dog. Berners are working dogs, not lap dog pussycats, although one might think so as one lounges with a Berner on the couch. Because the correct temperament for a Bernese is that of a true working dog, the Bernese should be assertive in some situations and aggressive if necessary. "Necessary" to a dog may be simply taking charge when no one else is clearly in charge.

 One’s ability to anticipate the day when one’s male Bernese will challenge him to the point of growling and even biting if self discipline is not developed as a youngster, is difficult for many novice owners. Though the Bernese is not typically thought of as a tough dog, some are. To do the work he did in his native Switzerland, the Bernese had to be protective. We find our dogs follow that inherited tradition of loyalty to hearth and family.  A Berner needs a job.  An unemployed Berner is often rude and mischievous.

 Pioneer puppies need formal obedience training the first year of life. They need consistency in the guidelines offered them in everyday life. Puppies typically experience a surge in their Will to be in Power at 4-6 months of age and again at around 9 months of age.  Formal obedience training using positive reinforcement methods builds the dog’s Will to Serve his master and usually keeps these surges in Will to Power in check during this critical developmental period. Formal training should continue at least through the dog’s first year of life. A working dog, the Bernese Mountain Dog needs a consistent and fair leader. Learning how to develop a proper relationship with your BMD should begin before your pup enters your life.
 

Exercise Management of Pioneer Puppies

The tackle games many Berners play can be very hard on their growing bones and joints, particularly when young, uncoordinated pups play with agile, stronger, and heavier dogs. Typically the larger breeds are rather fragile as growing youngsters partly because they often surpass their bodies’ limitations in the competition common amongst youngsters. Injuries sustained usually are soft tissue injuries and require long periods of confinement and restricted exercise on a leash. Prevention is in the dog’s and owners’ best interests. Exercise is important to a growing puppy---the right kind of exercise.

BMD’s need exercise...free exercise in which they initiate bursts of speed and turns. Walks in the park are good, but the BMD is intended to be a farm dog and needs the kind of exercise he gets from bursts of running. Forced (on leash) exercise is discouraged (jogging) with a puppy.

A fenced yard gives the dog some freedom and personal time away from the family. It offers this in the safety from traffic and the intrusions of other animals or people. It does not provide adequately for stimulation for adequate exercise. I highly discourage Berners indiscriminately running with other large dogs while they are growing pups--the first 18 months. Preferably a Berner will have a smaller playmate. Generally, Bernese love other living things. A smaller dog sometimes makes a good playmate for a growing Bernese.

Here on our farm, our houseyard provides ample area for daily romps. Our adult dogs are stimulated to run because they have other dog companions with whom to play chase and keep-away games. In addition to this, periodically during the week, our dogs are turned out into the front horse pasture--an area very stimulating with its animal smells. It is here that we observe our dogs’ bursts of running, stopping for a few sniffs, off at a gallop again, with an occasional plop into the grass for a mini-break.

Feeding and Nutritional Management of Pioneer Dogs

Over the years we have fed a variety of diets to our dogs from inexpensive kibble to homemade raw food and commercially prepared raw and/or dehydrated food.  What we have found is that there are many different ways to feed Berners with success.  We encourage our puppy buyers to feed a well balanced (overall) diet consisting of high quality ingredients. We encourage our buyers to invest more in their dogs’ nutrition and to select a diet comprised of ingredients which are of suitable quality for human consumption, and which contain no added chemical preservatives. Most commercial chows are made from ingredients which are unsuitable for human consumption.

Our contract specifies that pups we sell not be fed a food with protein content over 26%. The protein level would preferably be even lower past 5 months of age. Our pups are eating a large breed puppy formula food when weaned.

We strongly recommend twice daily feedings and discourage "free choice" feeding, as it often develops poor eating habits. We appreciate the opportunity to work with our puppy buyers in diet selections.

Rearing and Placing Puppies

Aptitude and physical evaluation along with developmental training of our pups begin at birth and continue until they leave for their new homes. Each day pups are exposed to a new mild "stress" or "challenge." Initially in their tiny neonate state, mere handling each day is a mild stress for the pups.  This kind of handling is a very important part of pup rearing.  As the days and weeks roll by, our pups are exposed to a variety of obstacles, sounds, and people. They walk on a variety of surfaces, eat from a variety of dishes, in a variety of locations and in general learn to cope with change. This helps them develop adaptability that benefits them throughout their lives. Their new families’ seeing to it they remain adaptable is of great value to the well being of dogs from our program.

We seek to prepare our buyers to continue developing their pups in keeping with their strong foundation. Matching pups with families based on the needs of each is our goal in the placement of each pup. Observing pups and actively listening to prospective owners helps us make outstanding matches. Some Bernese will fit in anywhere.  Some families have special needs and some Bernese have special needs as well.

One of our principal concerns as breeders is that our pups find their ways to homes and families with whom they will thrive for life. Through our work as dog obedience instructors, we have been exposed many times to the tragedies, which occur when forethought gives way to impulse in the addition of a pup to a family.

I want everyone who plans to share their life with a Bernese to get the right dog for them regardless if it is one of ours or from someone else.  For buyers, especially novice buyers, perhaps the most important criterion in obtaining a Bernese is being able to communicate freely and openly with the breeder. If you can’t do this, when you DO have a question in the future, and you will, who can help you?

 A Bit About Us

Tim Hewitt and Ruth Reynolds met in 1975 at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and married in 1982.  In 1984 we purchased a 38-acre farm in north Florida which we named Greenpeace Farm and moved there in 1987. We have owned BMD’s since 1983. Our climate here is mild with single digit winter temperatures (which the dogs love) only occurring at night. Tim is a sports enthusiast and referees several high school sports.  Additionally Tim runs between 12 and 16 commercial brood beef cows on our farm where we grow the hay, which feeds them through the winter. Ruth’s other interests include trail riding and camping with our Tennessee Walking horses year round.

Rearing and showing our Bernese is a hobby pursued with dedicated purpose. Tim is quite involved with care and training of the dogs. He contributes a remarkably observant "eye": to our breeding program. The study of pedigrees, health issues, and puppy placements fall into Ruth’s department.

Though the Bernese do not provide part of our livelihood, our breeding program is pursued with the diligence we would devote to any business interest. Ruth works part time for our veterinarian; works as a product rep for two companies; and in 1992 began Canine Behavioral Services, a telephone canine behavior counseling service. Her schedule is usually very full though much of her time is spent here on the farm working with our animals.

Tim’s work as a professor of agricultural economics with the University of Florida requires some travel. When he is not at work, officiating high school sports, or playing golf, his time at home is spent with our family of animals. We have no children and are amazed by the gentleness our Bernese exercises with children when they visit.

In our early years of involvement in dogs we studied dog obedience training and then studied to be instructors at a non-profit dog obedience training school 65 miles from our home. We are well aware of the sacrifices one must sometimes make to attend obedience classes. Though not completely concurrently, Ruth and Tim both taught group Basic and KPPT classes for 14 years. The study of animal behavior is a way of life for Ruth who now addresses others’ challenges with their animals through private consultations.  Her greatest pleasure in life is helping others develop working relationships with their companion animals. Both Ruth and Tim have attended clinics and seminars on dog behavior and dog obedience instruction and training and find the learning never ends.

Ruth is a member of the BMD Club of America. Her contributions to that organization include: published numerous articles in the Club’s publications; served as public education chairperson 1991-2003, health committee member 1999-2004, director 2002-2003, chairperson of a code of ethics task force 2002-03.  Ruth received the BMDCA’s outstanding service award in 2004.

Over the years we have owned, bred or co-bred twenty AKC champion Bernese.  Numerous dogs we bred and placed with others have earned titles in obedience, carting (draft), agility and tracking, among them several having earned top Club awards.  While it does take a dog of relatively sound mind and body to earn working titles and a good initial match up of owner to dog, we attribute the success of these owner/dog teams to the owners. 

Perhaps our greatest pride in our breeding program has come through the positive impact a number of dogs from our program have had on the lives of people outside their placement families.  These dogs have been trained and used by their owners in a variety of therapy programs including physical assisted therapy and visitation therapy. Championships and titles are great but they do not in and of themselves indicate that an animal possesses the qualities we seek in our own dogs. 

Procedures for Obtaining a Pioneer Puppy

We conduct our business of selling puppies somewhat differently from some breeders. We prefer to not maintain a long "waiting list" of individuals, nor do we take deposits before pups are born. Instead, we encourage prospective buyers to investigate the wide array of dogs available and prospective litters from a variety of breeding programs. The buyers who return to us after this search are typically the ones with whom we place puppies. In their query, they have come to value what we do here and feel the dogs we produce are typically suited to them.

Ruth receives inquires and requests for puppies from a variety of sources including this website.  She informs the inquirer that we either will not have pups for 6 months or more or that we have done a breeding and may have pups in less than six months.  Most people do not want to wait very long for a puppy.  We respect that and other priorities that may be different from our own.  If we are expecting to have pups available soon Ruth interviews prospective buyers to determine if what they are seeking is typically what we produce. Sometimes we are not a good match for what is likely a good owner.  In those cases Ruth recommends inquirers seek other programs than ours. For those prospective buyers who seem like potentially good matches for our puppies, Ruth sends a questionnaire, reviews it, and responds accordingly.  For those in whom we remain interested in placing a pup, she sees that they receive pedigrees, copies of health certifications of sire and dam of the litter photos of the sire and dam and family health history, as well as a sample sales contract.

We appreciate those inquirers who call to check in on the dam near whelping time and the puppies after they have arrived. Each time Ruth communicates with prospective puppy owners (PPO’s) she learns more about the prospective family that helps her in making better choices in placements.

With large litters, around 2-3 weeks of age, Ruth begins taking deposits from prospective buyers. The deposit is earnest money, which the buyer puts up to assure us of their sincerity to purchase a pup IF and only IF we have a suitable puppy. Our taking a deposit is NOT a guarantee that a puppy will be provided. In a situation where we select a puppy, which is unsatisfactory to the prospective buyer, the deposit is returned. In a situation where we offer a puppy to a buyer who has obtained one elsewhere meanwhile, the deposit is retained by us. This has never happened to us. Ruth did return a deposit once because the pup we offered was not acceptable to the buyer. She had a kink in her tail.

When our pups are about 5 weeks old, their personalities have developed to a point that Ruth starts thinking about potential matches of an individual pup with an interested buyer. Around 6 weeks we make further determinations, photograph the pups, send those photos to the prospective buyers. We are happy to refer prospective buyers to individuals who have purchased dogs from us. We do not want the purchase of a pup to be anything less than a confident decision for our buyers. If there is apprehension, the buyer is not educated adequately and that should be corrected prior to the puppy’s arrival in the buyer’s care.

The Sport of Dog Shows and Its Significance In Our Program

At AKC conformation dog shows, animals are judged subjectively against a standard of perfection for their breeds. We show our dogs and have completed championship requirements on a number of dogs, but still do not find the show ring measures adequately the characteristics we value in our brood stock. We are not enamored with champions in the family tree of our dogs. More so, we are pleased to present abundant health, longevity, and cause of death information. An AKC championship is not a measure of health or genetic quality and in many cases not an assurance that a dog has an acceptable temperament. Too many champions as well as non-champions die before their time. AKC dog shows do not measure joint quality, general health, intelligence nor level of Will to Serve, among other things which are important to us in our breeding decisions.

Ruth Reynolds 3-98, updated 10-04

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Bark at the owner: pioneer@twlakes.net