Le chien suisse

The dogs here constantly amaze me. My friends always laugh at me for my love of dogs, but hey, they are (wo)man's best friend!  Thus, this will be a little exposition on dogs in Switzerland.

There are two dogs that are native to Switzerland, the Bernese Mountain Dog and the St. Bernard. These big mountain dogs are from the Alps (St. Bernard's specifically from the Italian Alps and Bernese Mountain dogs are from the canton of Bern, which is in central Switzerland). You will not see many of them in Geneva because it is a little too far from the Alps, and it's a city so having such big dogs in the city would be hard! But I did spot a Bernese Mountain dog in my neighborhood, and I saw a St. Bernard in Gruyere (yes, the town where they make the cheese!).

Even though these dogs are native to Switzerland, there are all types of dogs in Switzerland, from big golden retrievers to small chihuahuas. The big dogs hold a special place in my heart, and they are the ones that I am most fascinated with. No matter what the size of the dog, however, they go everywhere with their owner. Into stores, restaurants, and on the trains, it is a dog lover's paradise. Opposed to the dogs in the US, they fit right into Swiss society, incredibly orderly and rule abiding. They sit outside patiently waiting for their owner and sit quietly on the train. Here, I asked myself, "Why are these dogs so well behaved?" There is actually mandatory dog training if you acquired the dog after September 1, 2008. You are required to go with your dog to the trainings.

Now you know all about dogs in Switzerland (and probably more than you ever wanted to!). I will leave you with a picture of a dog on a tram! (I apologize for the quality of the pictures, but I feel weird taking pictures of people's dogs so I have to snap it really quickly!)

Dog on train to Champery