He should have grown up in the wilds of Asia.
But giant Central Asian Sheepdog Tzar is now loving life in his hopefully new permanent home high up on the moors of Huddersfield.
The imposing one-year-old pup is around six foot tall already, and has been taken in by his new 4”10 carer, Jean Thewlis, after growing up in “terrible” conditions.
It is a happy end for Tzar, whose breed was originally bred to hunt bears, guard livestock and kill wolves, who was handed into a pound after his previous owner realised he was growing too big.
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He was transferred to West Yorkshire Dog Rescue, whose owner Kathy Trout initially gave him to fearless and expert big dog owner Jean to foster, before deciding to let him stay with her due to her “ideal facility”.
He could grow to eventually weigh 15 stone.
“He was awful when we first got him a few months ago”, said Jean, who allows him to roam around with her on 12 acres of land. “I’ve got big dogs but he is doubly strong so it was a challenge and we didn’t know what we were getting in the beginning.
“Looking after and training him is a full time job.
“We believe he’d been kept in a yard with really high walls so he could only see the sky.
“So he was very afraid of all the things he had never seen before and chased everything to pretend to be tough.
“He was very subdued and had obviously been treated badly because if you raised your hand he thought you would smack him.”
But dedicated training has made a big difference already for both Tzar, Jean and her husband, who was initially weary of him.
“We’re getting over that very nicely now and he’s coming out of his shell he’s very happy and acts like other puppies.
“He loves to play with his ball and squeaky toys.
“Myself and our dog trainer, Alan Beaumont, train him in the mornings.
“It’s important that he’s calm and submissive before we do anything with him, including meeting new people.
“If he gets excited that’s when people get scared because he can jump up a bit.
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“But you’re more likely to get bitten by a small dog like a terrier because they’re feisty whereas big ones are generally more laid back.”
Despite Tzar’s size, Jean is determined to make him like any other dog.
“He only eats once a day and it’s not as much as you think because if he was in the wild he’d have only got scraps. We may give him eggs or sausages but we don’t give him too much protein.
“He’s allowed into my house– I feel at ease with him because he’s very loving and affectionate.
“We could one day take him into town but we’re talking years more training to get to that stage.
“He still technically belongs to the charity at the moment but I think we’re going to adopt him.”
