LGD Selection?

[Alexz7272]

Hello,

We are in the process of deciding on whether to get an LGD or other type of guard animal. We have 4 lambs that currently are kept penned and free-range-ish when I am outside. I do not yet have their paddock finished but hope to in the next week or two. We thankfully do not have a high predator presence, but we do have some coyotes and foxes. The cows across from us keep them VERY busy. We live in a more rural area where there are not really any roaming dogs but we do have a relatively busy street in front of our property so there is the potential for dumped dogs. Our 5 acres is surrounded with a 5 wire fence (3 hot wire/electrical wire and 2-12 gauge none electric, it was left over from the previous owners). We will be using welded wire fencing for the lambs enclosure. Our concerns are that we have three dogs already, will an LGD still be safe around them? They are 'farm' dogs but not LGD. The two youngest are protective of the property and us and mostly the animals but they were never trained to be guardians. (They are catahoula & black mouth mountain currs.) Our neighbor who keeps a few sheep has suggested Great Pyrenees as they have two but they only have the two dogs and none more. If we did go with LGD, is Great Pyrenees really the best? We are just starting to explore the options, so sorry for any dumb questions. Thank you!

 

[Latestarter]

There's a section here on the site with a wealth of info, Q&A, and experiences... Under the main: Herds General, Section: Livestock Guardians.

 

[Baymule]

I have to let you know that welded wire is total crap. I would hate to see you buy it, spend your money and time to put up a welded wire fence. The welds break easily and the wire separates. We raised our chain link fence with 3' welded wire at a previous house to keep a dog in. She broke the welds by biting the wire and shaking it. (the neighbors son poked sticks through the fence which enraged the dog, and yes, we crawled all over him for it) If your sheep but it or paw at it, the welds can break and you will have a fence that does not make you happy.

Use either goat and sheep wire, or non climb horse wire. They are pricey, but you will only have to put it up ONE time. We used non climb horse wire because the holes are 2"x4" and not too many animals can get through holes that little. We have chickens and I didn't want them to get out.

non climb wire
http://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/non-climb-horse-fence-48-in-x-200-ft?cm_vc=-10005

goat and sheep wire
http://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/goat-fence-48-in-x-330-ft?cm_vc=IOPDP1


On the LGD's we have a male Great Pyrenees, Trip, that we got as an 11 week old puppy, he is now 1 1/2 years old. He gets along just fine with our other 2 dogs, an Australian Shepherd and a black Lab/Great Dane. I let him out of the sheep pasture daily for "play" time. Our female Great Pyrenees, Paris, was 11 months old when we got her, was a chicken killer, had other issues and is my problem child. She hates other dogs and considers it her job to attack them. BTW, I did turn her around on the chickens, she is now a fantastic chicken guard.

To make sure that your existing dogs get along with your LGD's, I would start with puppies. Be advised that they do not come on auto pilot, you can't toss them in a pasture and expect them to 100% do their job. They need your time and attention to teach them what you want them to do. At around 10 months, they get what I call "an attack of stupid" and will play with the livestock, chickens, and can hurt or kill them. Not all LGD's do this, but some do. Trip, who is now a fantastic sheep guard, is just in the last couple of months what I consider to be 100% trust worthy with the sheep 24-7. To be fair, we got him before we got sheep, so he had a learning curve. His parents were couch potato house dogs, but the instinct that these dogs have been bred for, for 1,000 years came shining through.

Go through the LGD forum and read. Read and study. Ask questions. We will certainly help you all we can.

 

[Southern by choice]

The breeds you have are excellent farmdogs and I would imagine would do a great job deterring threats. The only real issue is the nature of the breeds you have are complete opposite of what you would want in a LGD... there fore during the learning stage your LGD pup could easily pick up undesirable traits.

Establishing your field and making the field the LGD's territory is very important. Other dogs, including your housedogs really should not be allowed in the livestock field. Respect the LGD. ALWAYS.

The LGD breeds do NOT care for other dogs in their field. Yes, on occasion a few will have their other dogs raised together... usually however there will come a time where this will end up being a nightmare. The power, tenacity, and sheer strength of a LGD will win.

Yes, there are always exceptions but this holds true 90+% of the time for actual REAL working LGD's.

There will be a moment where the housedog or herding dog etc does something that disturbs the herd or is interpreted by the LGD as upsetting the herd and then it is on. As much as I have warned of this over the years to people over and over I will still get that call at whatever hour with the person crying, upset, mad at themselves for what eventually happens and they just didn't believe it.

Now, having said that I do believe the LGD's should get along with the pets etc OUTSIDE of their field.