# training a great pyrenees



## dixiegal62 (Aug 18, 2007)

we got a great pyrenees puppy and want to train him to be a goat protector. We put a kennel in the goat pasture since hes too young to be turned lose with the goats without getting hurt. 

We figured this way he was still with the goats but protected, but its driving me nuts leaving him in the kennel. I have had local people tell me not to let him outside of the goat pasture or Ill ruin him, but it seems like even though he's going to be a working dog he still needs to have time to run and play. 

It just doesnt feel right to me but then Iv only had dogs as family pets. Would those of you who have raised one as a pupppy for protection please share how you trained him? Would letting him out to play with the grandkids and run around the yard really ruin him as a guard dog?


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## Zookeeper (Sep 7, 2006)

Huh?

I don't know why anyone would say that. Maybe I have had exceptional Great Pyrenees...but ours are family pets AND guard all our animals and property...they come in the house occasionally (although of course they don't really like being inside), they walk the kids to the bus, they hang out with us and come to greet us when we come home, they very much interact with the family and are not confined.

My dogs have never had to be "taught" to guard animals, they just knew to do it. The only thing I've had to teach them is commands (come when called, heel, etc.) and the boundaries of our property (both accomplished with e-collars).

Good luck with your new puppy...we just got one too!


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## dixiegal62 (Aug 18, 2007)

Zookeeper said:


> Huh?
> 
> I don't know why anyone would say that. Maybe I have had exceptional Great Pyrenees...but ours are family pets AND guard all our animals and property...they come in the house occasionally (although of course they don't really like being inside), they walk the kids to the bus, they hang out with us and come to greet us when we come home, they very much interact with the family and are not confined.
> 
> ...


Conrats on the new puppy! I was told that they have to bond with whatever you want them to guard. That if they bonded with the family that is what they would end up guarding, so if we wanted him to guard the goats raise him with the goats.


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## ozark_jewels (Oct 7, 2005)

He needs to be in with the goats now. From birth is the best. Does he come from working parents??
Make an area that only he can get into if the goats try to get rough with him. Put him in it and let him find his way out with the goats. They need to teach him his place now rather than later. Whatever you do, don't *save* him from the goats.:angel: They will eventually learn to appreciate each other and depend on him.
Congrats on the new Pyr! Pyrs are wonderful.
Oh, also feed him in his hidey-hole so he doesn't have to fight the goats for his dogfood. Most goats will eat dogfood and some will just about kill for it.


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## ginnie5 (Jul 15, 2003)

Zookeeper said:


> Huh?
> 
> I don't know why anyone would say that. Maybe I have had exceptional Great Pyrenees...but ours are family pets AND guard all our animals and property...they come in the house occasionally (although of course they don't really like being inside), they walk the kids to the bus, they hang out with us and come to greet us when we come home, they very much interact with the family and are not confined.
> 
> ...



This is how Bandit is. He spends his days guarding the kids, the chickens, and now the rabbits. At night he is inside (dh works nights) and sleeps in front of the door to the kids room when he's not patrolling the house. Last night the kids were outside playing just after dark and the youngest got scared of something...it took Bandit about a split second to be over to ds and "protecting" him till his sister got to him. I'm also not having problems with neighbor dogs anymore. So he does double duty..he takes care of the kids and the animals. When we first got the rabbits he was curious about them and I was afraid he wouldn't watch them but see them as something to play with. Our little dog came over and started growling at them and Bandit immediately put him in his place.


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## zant (Dec 1, 2005)

I owned 2 GP,both were natural protectors of any other creature I owned..Zuzu once growled at me when I picked the hermit crab out of my sons aquarium,I showed her it and petted(?)it and she was cool but kept an eye on me.Calley(150lbs)saw my beagle go after a chicken and ran over and bowled him over and was ready to rip his throat out.It was all I could do to wrestle her off him..He NEVER LOOKED at one of our chickens again..I loved those girls but had to put them down at age 11,as their hips were going and movement was difficult.If you live in snow country,wait till you see a snow drift move after a storm and they've been outside.They loved snow.


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## bigfoot2you (Oct 3, 2007)

You say he was protecting your ds, can you explain the dogs actions while doing this? I have a 2 yr old Pyr and a 3 yr old granddaughter that lives with us. I was hoping Emma, the dog, would be a protector for her but haven't really noticed much of any protecting.....of course nothing has really bothered GD ..........Emma is a housedog, we have no animals right now.

Bigfoot


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## Lisa in WA (Oct 11, 2004)

We put our Pyr pups in a big kennel with lambs and goat kids, when we didn;t have them out playing with them. It worked perfectly for us. They guard all of the property and when one of us goes off into the woods or for a walk, one Pyr always accompanies us. When the kids were smaller and would take off in different directions, one Pyr would accompany each child. I always wondered how they decided which dog would follow which child.:shrug:


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## dixiegal62 (Aug 18, 2007)

well we let him out of the kennel today so he would be in with the goats and he crawled under fence and ran to dh who happened to be on the riding lawn mower, so untill we fix the hole he found hes back in the kennel to keep him from getting ran over.


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## busterschickens (Jun 2, 2008)

i just recently got a pyrenees pup at 8 week. she's about 11 weeks now. i'm wondering if i have "ruined" her also. i didn't know i was suppose to leave her with my flock of chickens and we played with her a lot. my other dogs play with her also. she now stays in the chicken pen with my older hens and is let out twice a day. i've noticed, though, that she is starting to "wrestle" with the hens at night and has almost killed three of them. should i put her in the pen but in a closed cage until she's older? i have no idea what to do.  i have 4 other dogs and none of them are chicken killers and i'd hate to think i just got me a dog that, instead of protecting my flock, is going to kill my flock.

she won't be living in their pen when she's older. i would like her to protect my 3 acre property, which several chicken pens sit on and i hope to have free ranging turkeys.

thanks for any advice.


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## Maura (Jun 6, 2004)

busterschickens said:


> i just recently got a pyrenees pup at 8 week. she's about 11 weeks now. i'm wondering if i have "ruined" her also. i didn't know i was suppose to leave her with my flock of chickens and we played with her a lot. my other dogs play with her also. she now stays in the chicken pen with my older hens and is let out twice a day. i've noticed, though, that she is starting to "wrestle" with the hens at night and has almost killed three of them. should i put her in the pen but in a closed cage until she's older? i have no idea what to do.  i have 4 other dogs and none of them are chicken killers and i'd hate to think i just got me a dog that, instead of protecting my flock, is going to kill my flock.
> 
> she won't be living in their pen when she's older. i would like her to protect my 3 acre property, which several chicken pens sit on and i hope to have free ranging turkeys.
> 
> thanks for any advice.




Just because she is a farm dog doesn't mean she doesn't need training. Right now she is bonding to your family and the animals on your homestead. She is too rough to play with chickens. She needs to learn sit, down, come, and leave it. Put her on a leash, walk by something interesting, tell her "leave it" in a normal voice, then pull her away from the object. Praise. Also, put treat in your hand, tell her "leave it" and close your hand around the treat. She'll try to get the treat, the second she gives up, tell her "take" and open your hand. Repeat repeat repeat. She'll learn "take" and "leave it", but you have to also work her outside on various objects, then use it on the chickens. As soon as she looks like she's going to get playful with them, call her off. She should be allowed to be near them, just don't let her start to play with them.


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