Patou

Do not be fooled.  I could not have continued down this path.  This beautiful dog is a patou or Pyrenean mountain dog that sleeps with the flock and guards it against attacks.  It is trained just to stand between you and the flock and will do you no harm if you keep your distance from the sheep. I encountered it on a lovely sunny walk high above the fortified garrison town of Villefranche (see extra) built by the french military architect, Vauban and strategically place to guard the junction of two valleys after the Treaty of the Pyrenees in 1659.