# What kind of a LGD do you have & why.



## ONG2 (Sep 22, 2010)

I am trying to do some home work here and I would be very interested in your opinion.

We will have about 20 acres in pasture when we have completed all the fencing, however this will be several years away unless we hit the lottery. Right now we are at 10 acres/w 6 paddocks. We have 27 ewes counting the youngsters which we intend to keep & 1 ram. 

We also have 14 American Guinea Hogs that we plan to run on the pasture with the sheep.

In the near future I would like to add LGD's to the mix and sell pups down the road. 

ONG2


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## Goatress (Feb 4, 2011)

I have Spanish Mastifafs, Pyrenean Mastiffs, Turkish Kangals, Great Pyrenees and LGD crosses of Anatolian/Maremma and Great Pyrenees/Polish Tatra.

I raise them that is why so many. But I got them specifically for temperament and working styles.

What I would do if I were you, is assess your layout, which you have, and know your predator issues. Predator type is important in making your choices too. Then, research breeds. Find out which ones match your needs best and fit your likes (temperaments, looks, ablities, etc.). 

Unfortunately there is more mis-information out there in books and especially on LGD groups on the Internet,sometimes than there are useful facts. Sometimes contacting breeders is the best way to go, both here and abroad. Ask them about their dogs how they work, etc.

SM's are very slow to mature. They are huge, can have health issues, but are formidable guardians that usually put a quick stop to anything tresspassing or coming into your stock. Pyrenean Mastiffs are notorious huge eaters but amazingly cheerful and trustworthy temperaments and quick learners. Kangals are extremely devoted to owners but intensely protective and not trusting with anyone not 'approved' by you. Anatolians can leap over or climb short fences without even blinking an eye. Pyrs can be roamers but are loving and kind. Every breed has its pluses and minus'es.

Take your time researching and make sure you're honest about your capacity to keep an LGD and what breed really might be best for your situation. No LGD breeds are 'push button' and easy to train, they all seem to have varying degrees of obedience to owners, remember, they are guardians by instinct not by training so much.

I love all mine, would't own any other kind of dog!

Raising pups is a lot of work. Are you prepared to deworm regularly, vaccinate, possibly cull if need be, and deal with all the calls and queries from potential buyers? Will you spend time with pups and stock like you should, to get them going? I'm telling you from a breeder's experience, it is a ton of work when done right. It is my main focus here, I only have goats for my dogs, not the other way around. That's what I do, raise LGD's. It is a huge amount of work. And then there is heartbreak of losing pups, look at the sadness our other poster on here has had losing pups when mamma laid on them. You have to deal with that kind of tragedy as well. Just saying.....

Do your homework first....take your time and you'll decide some breed will really appeal to you. They are like no other breeds in their instinct and drive to guard, so know that too; previous experience raising typical breeds still won't prepare you! If your history with dogs is minimal frankly you'd probably be better of just having an LGD or two and leave the raising of them to others who do it professionally, or at least just start out with some of your own and see how it goes first. Just my opinion.....good luck in your endeavor and let us know how you fare.


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## ONG2 (Sep 22, 2010)

Well Goatress,

Looks like some sage advice there. We are both currently working off the farm & don't plan on retiring for at least another 5 years maybe 10. Between the day job and taking care of our current stock there isn't a lot of time left in the day.

As a kid I helped my folks raise beagles and **** dog pups for sale and as an adult have had a doberman around most of the time. We currently (as stated in an other post) have a doberman & a Rhodesian Ridge back in our pack. My wife and I are the alpha male and female so everyone understands their place in the pack. 

I am starting to reevaluate my "breeder" plan, at least for now and am thinking that we should perhaps get our feet wet and run a couple of LGD's with our sheep and see how we like the breed. 

Although I have never met one (which is a fact I will change) I am sort of leaning towards the Maremma's.


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## westbrook (May 10, 2002)

Locate dog shows in your area... even if you have to drive a couple of hours! make sure they have LGD showing... meet the owners or handlers (the ones that show the dogs but don't own them - inserted for those new to dogs)

What and why....

I would have loved a GP! name one Clondyke! or a Kommadork named Bob after Bob Marley!

But......... because of my environment, I chose an Anatolian. Hot desert in the summer, cold snow in the winter. Fox tail stickers http://rubyglen.com/pets/foxtails.htm , and ticks... there is no way anything but a short hair dog would survive here.

The sheep herders that graze in the spring run GP but long before the 100+ degree summers are here, they are gone.

One of the differences in a GP and an ASD (anatolian) is the way they guard. that was also a factor for me.

A GP guards from inside the flock where as the ASD guards from outside the flock. Looking at the Mountains and canyons I have, I needed them to guard from outside the flock.


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## Wolf Flower (Dec 21, 2005)

I looked at Pyrs keenly, but chose an Akbash because of the short hair. Our climate is mild in winter and intensely hot in summer; a Pyr would suffer here.


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## Fowler (Jul 8, 2008)

Maremma's it took me 3 yrs of research...and I decided on Maremmano-Abruzzese quite possibly the best decission I've ever made.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maremma_Sheepdog


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## Bearfootfarm (Jul 13, 2006)

I have Maremmas because they are the BEST 

http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/maremmasheepdog.htm

Their intimidating looks alone can deter threats:





























They keep themselves spotlessly clean:




















And also because they are highly alert, and ready to attack at a moments notice:


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## Nyx (May 13, 2006)

Bearfootfarm said:


> I have Maremmas because they are the BEST


:smiley-laughing013: The photos, oh the photos! LOL.


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## Goatress (Feb 4, 2011)

ONG2 said:


> Well Goatress,
> 
> Looks like some sage advice there. We are both currently working off the farm & don't plan on retiring for at least another 5 years maybe 10. Between the day job and taking care of our current stock there isn't a lot of time left in the day.
> 
> ...


I think that's a great idea....I love maremmas...only have two 1/2 Maremmas (other half is anatolian) but can't say enough good about them both, and can only imagine a purebred one would be just as great!

Bearfootfarm: that photo scared me to death!!! LOL!!! So precious!!! YOur dogs look wonderful.

Breeding dogs is a lot of work! I have two litters right now, I go dark to dark...just the clean up alone is a job unto itself, grin......


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## Sanza (Sep 8, 2008)

Bearfoot those are great pictures! 
Here's mine that I got about 6 months ago when he was a year old and he certainly acts like he's going to become a great guard dog.


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## Kshobbit (May 14, 2002)

If there are Maremmas in Kansas, it is a closely guarded secret as I have not seen even one. I love the Maremma puppy pictures!. They are so adorable! 
I am a big Anatolian Shepard fan, since I have a small acreage. I bond the dog with the entire little farm. That's humans, rabbits, chickens, cats, dogs and goats, of course. I have one older 11 y/o male and got a Anatolian/Pyr cross puppy to learn the ropes from the old guy.


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## CaliannG (Apr 29, 2005)

I have an Anatolian.

He was chosen because we were going to move to Texas. He was a young rescue. He has a shorter coat even than an Akbash and does well in the hot summers here.

He is my first LGD, and if all Anatolians are like him, I will never need another breed. He is intelligent, was (to my mind) easy to train.... HOWEVER....

I am accustomed to large breeds....and I know that all of them have this puppy-stupidity, and somewhere around 18 months old, it is like a lightbulb goes off and they suddenly get some sense in their brains. I did NOT trust him to do his job until he passed that point and got serious.

My Anatolian is currently safe around anything but a predator. Goat kids use him for a trampoline. Birds cuddle up to him. If the chickens get out, he patiently and slowly herds them back into their coop. Cats and kitten bat at his nose. Toddlers grab his fur and use it to pull themselves up.

He never blinks.

But don't be a coyote around him. It would be very bad for you if you were a coyote around him. Trust me on this; it is not pretty.

**********************************

I do not recommend raising puppies of any kind unless you are an experienced handler and breeder or can apprentice yourself under an experienced handler and breeder. LGDs are not like any other class of dog (toy, sporting, working, etc), they need someone knowledgeable who is competent at classifying them at a very early age. Not ALL pups of working dogs are suitable to being working dogs. I know of three dairies that have "working dogs" that have to be kept completely separate from the stock because they are stock killers.

If these had been assessed as pups by competent people, they would have gone to pet homes. They were not. 

Become a good worker of stock dogs, then a good trainer of stock dogs. When you are competent in both of these areas, you can then become a good breeder of stock dogs.

Unlike breeding most other dogs, such as Dobies (whom I think should be re-classified as a "hound". There are elk-hounds, wolf-hounds, deer-hounds....Dobies should be called "attention-hounds".  ), if you sell someone an unsuitable puppy, you could interfere with their *livelihood*. Ask in the goat forum about stock losses due to unsuitable pups sold as LGDs, you will get an earful.

Anyway, I wub my Anatolian, and he has been perfect on our 10 acres.


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## Judy in IN (Nov 28, 2003)

I have Anatolians. I have had Pyrs in the past, but my personal experience has been that Anatolians have bonded closer to the flock, don't travel the neighborhood, don't lie in the road, and are sharper with varmits. They also have a lower maintenance coat.

There haven't been that many in the Midwest, but the numbers are increasing finally.


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## ONG2 (Sep 22, 2010)

CaliannG you said Dobies should be called "attention-hounds"

You certainly know your dog breeds. LOL


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## Mrs. Mucket (Apr 22, 2010)

Two Maremmas watch over humans and chickens at our place. We decided to get livestock guardian dogs because we have coyotes, bears and cougars around. We looked at Maremmas, Great Pyrs, and Anatolians, the most readily available LGDs in the U.S. at the time. For our situation (three fenced acres, two people, a bunch of chickens, visiting children) we wanted dogs that would bond to people and to stock at the same time, be great with small children, not tend to jump fences or wander too much, and be bold against unwelcome visitors. We found a breeder (Windance Farm) that raised Maremmas that meet all our specs, and we've been totally amazed at how versatile and what a good fit they are. We have watched them in action many times and have not seen a sign of any predator inside our fences.


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