The two dogs shown to Professor Albert Heim at a 1908 anniversary show were thought to be short-haired Bernese Mountain Dogs. Heim recognised something else: the old large mountain or butcher’s dog, almost vanished. A year later, the Greater Swiss Mountain Dog (Grosser Schweizer Sennenhund) entered the stud book as a separate breed.
| FCI | Group 2 (Pinscher and Schnauzer, Molossoid and Swiss Mountain and Cattle Dogs), Section 3 Swiss Mountain and Cattle Dogs, Standard No. 58, without working trial |
|---|---|
| Country of origin | Switzerland |
| Size (height at the withers) | Males 65 to 72 cm, females 60 to 68 cm |
| Weight | not specified in the FCI standard |
| Life expectancy | no reliable study figure found (N/A) |
| Coat | double coat with dense, medium-length outer hair and dense undercoat, preferably dark grey to black |
| Colours in the standard | tricolour: black base with symmetrical reddish-brown tan and white markings on head, throat and chest, feet and tail tip |
The butcher’s dog returns
According to the standard, its ancestors were widespread in central Europe as butchers’ dogs, bred for guarding, pulling and cattle driving. The Swiss canine society entered the breed in 1909, the breed club formed in 1912, and the FCI published the first standard only in 1939. Its closest relatives are the Bernese, Appenzell and Entlebuch Mountain Dogs.
Good-natured, watchful and moderately spirited
Confident, attentive, watchful and fearless in everyday situations, good-natured and affectionate with familiar people, self-assured with strangers: that is the standard. Today, it is valued mainly as a family dog. It reliably announces strangers, and its strength calls for early, consistent training.
A retired draft dog
Originally a guard and draft dog, it enjoys pulling carts or sledges, tracking and calm hikes rather than constant running. During growth, protect the joints and avoid jumps and long staircases.
An easy-care double coat
The short, dense coat needs weekly brushing, more often during shedding. The standard requires dewclaw removal except where prohibited by law.
Take epilepsy seriously
A Swiss survey of 128 owners found idiopathic epilepsy in 20 dogs, or 15,6 per cent (Sauer-Delhées et al. 2020). Lasting seizure control was achieved in only 10 per cent of affected dogs. A German study of 94 affected dogs found frequent cluster seizures and status epilepticus, with a median age at death of 4 years (Ostermann et al. 2022). Ask whether seizures are known in the family.
Shoulders, clotting and lifespan
Swiss X-rays showed humeral-head osteochondrosis, a shoulder-joint cartilage disorder, in 14 per cent of dogs (Ohlerth et al. 2016). A P2Y12 receptor gene change was also found in one family, potentially causing severe postoperative bleeding (Boudreaux and Martin 2011). Tell your vet before any procedure. We found no reliable lifespan figure.
Who is a Greater Swiss Mountain Dog right for?
Families with a house and garden seeking a calm, watchful companion, with time for training and exercise and a budget for veterinary costs.
Who is it less suitable for?
Small city flats, people wanting a dog without a tendency to raise the alarm, and anyone unwilling to face epilepsy risk.
Our breed quiz shows whether it fits your daily life, with more detail in our book “Welcher Hund passt WIRKLICH zu dir?” (book in German). For the first weeks with a puppy, there is the free Puppy Starter Pack. Capture your Swissy as a dog portrait , perhaps a poster in a wooden frame or a magazine cover on canvas.
Further reading
- Bernese Mountain Dog: why time together is so short
- Dog pulling on the lead: 5 mistakes almost everyone makes
- The first 30 days with a puppy: a plan for weeks 1 to 4
Sources, accessed on 20.10.2026: FCI-Standard Nr. 58 Großer Schweizer Sennenhund (fci.be, German version dated 05.05.2003); Sauer-Delhées S et al., Clinical characteristics of Idiopathic Epilepsy in Greater Swiss Mountain Dogs in Switzerland, Schweizer Archiv für Tierheilkunde 2020; Ostermann TE et al., Phenotype of Idiopathic Epilepsy in Great Swiss Mountain Dogs in Germany, Frontiers in Veterinary Science 2022; Ohlerth S et al., Prevalence of humeral head osteochondrosis in the Greater Swiss Mountain dog and the Border Collie in Switzerland, Schweizer Archiv für Tierheilkunde 2016; Boudreaux MK, Martin M, P2Y12 receptor gene mutation associated with postoperative hemorrhage in a Greater Swiss Mountain dog, Veterinary Clinical Pathology 2011; McMillan KM et al., Scientific Reports 2024 (breed not analysed there).
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