ATLANTA — The nation has fallen in love with Casper the Great Pyrenees dog who fought off 11 coyotes – killing eight – to save a herd of sheep on his owner’s farm.
Casper is currently under the care of LifeLine Animal Project who said he is "good for a full recovery," however, not all dogs from this breed have the luckiest chance of survival.
President and founder of the nonprofit Great Pyrenees Rescue of Atlanta (GPRA), John Heldrich, told 11Alive this particular dog breed is at an increased risk of abandonment across the southeast.
“They're hard to maintain for some of these families, and they let them go, and they become strays and they show up at kill shelters throughout the southeast and some in very, very tough condition,” Heldrich said.
While Great Pyrenees breeds are one of the best dogs to protect livestock on farms, he explained many farmers tend to overbreed and sell them to unsuspecting families who in turn cannot properly care for the animal once they reach their full size at an average of 120lbs.
“They take these adorable puppies to mart parking lots and flea markets and these adorable puppies are purchased by people that many of which shouldn't have a dog, let alone a Pyr (Great Pyrenees),” Heldrich said.
Since 2010, Heldrich said GPRA has rescued over 2,500 Great Pyrenees. In the earlier years, the nonprofit was rescuing an average of 20-30 Great Pyrenees a year, but that has skyrocketed to around 300 as of today.
“Many come in in very tough shape. We average about $1700 on medical alone per rescue, about 25% of our rescues come in heartworm positive, which is expensive to treat, some need surgeries, but they're very resilient dogs,” he said.
The rescue center also fosters the dogs and hosts regular adoptions where rescues can find a loving furever home. Heldrich encourages anyone interested in adopting to learn more about the breed and fill out an online application.
“These are wonderful dogs,” he said. “They have a long lifespan and they're wonderful in the family and they're very loyal and they love their humans.”
GPRA’s next adoption day takes place on Dec 17. To learn more about fostering, adopting or volunteering with the nonprofit, visit their website at greatpyratlanta.com