PyrSheps were just sorta "eh" to me when I first met them. At that time, I still didn't like anything scruffy looking and pretty much only liked the pointy look for dogs. So at when I happened to be at their first National, nothing really struck me about them (except that they were a lot more...quirky than I would guess such Benji looking dogs would be LOL).
Things change though LOL. I met some Laekens and wanted one bad. I then found myself being more and more attracted to scruffy looking dogs, which was a total turnaround for me. Then I started thinking about what I'd like after the GSDs. I realistically decided that GSDs didn't suit my lifestyle as much as I wanted them to. I wanted to venture outside of Belgians because I've never been a single breed sort, although I'm quite devoted to my involvement with the Belgians. I looked and looked for two years but just kept coming back to PyrSheps (which I had grown to find irresistibly adorable). The more I was around them, the more I wanted one.
I didn't pick Belgians out, it just sort of happened. I never was like "oh I want a Belgian" until one was living with me LOL And Jeff picked getting a Cardi, they're his favorite breed and suit me.
Weims and Viszlas are two breeds that I used to think seems neat until spending lots of time around them at daycare. Now it's like "OMG no...just no". Not that they can't be fine dogs for people who are the right sort of people for them, they just don't suit me in the least.
I always thought Pumis were ugly in pictures but they're really cool dogs and seeing them in person, I tend to find them to be cute. When picking my non-Belgian it sort of came down to a PyrShep, a Pumi, a Mudi or an Entlebucher. PyrSheps won cause nothing else I looked at was quite as crazy and wild as a PyrShep