# New Pyr



## longhorngal (Aug 4, 2005)

For years my Lab and Collie have done an admirable job of keeping coyotes away. But at 12 and 10 they have pooped out. Imagine that! I guess I should have planned for this earlier but didn't. Now I have found a 6 month old female pyr that I'm getting this week. I need to know (having never had a pyr) how soon I can trust her off leash. I have a 4 foot fence which I understand a pyr will get right over though my dogs have never tried to. I'm on about 200 acres with barbed wire fencing. I have a coyote or two coming up at dawn and dusk. 
I just really want them run off. I have a heeler mix that's trying to do the job but they're pretty much flicking cigarette butts at her saying "yea, right" and I don't want her to get hurt.
If I let this pup take off after her what is she likely to do. She's a big ol thing at 6 months. I sure don't want to lose her and will be keeping her in the sunroom or the house when she's not directly supervised.
Any advice would be appreciated!
Cara


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## peteyfoozer (Nov 23, 2012)

She will be a puppy and not totally dependable with livestock on her own until she is closer to 2 years old. I would get on some of the LGD boards so you can pick up tips and ask questions of folks with lots of experience with these dogs to insure her success. They are well worth the time it takes to bring them up right!
What livestock is she going to be protecting? I would keep her in a kennel next to the livestock rather than in the house, but spend lots of time with her and socialize her well. My 2 Maremmas visit in the house each day for an hour or two so I can go over their coats and feet to check for foxtails etc, but otherwise they are out with the stock and they are happy to be there


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## Bret4207 (May 31, 2008)

Shes a puppy. She needs to learn where home is first. She may stay in the fence or not. The barb wire will not even slow her down. They say you can walk the perimeter with her daily and she'll learn what her territory is, but I don't buy that. I use electronet to keep mine where I want them.​


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## BackfourtyMI. (Sep 3, 2007)

I also would keep her in a kennel with your livestock until you feel she can be trusted alone with them.
I don' agree you have to wait 2 years before your LGD's can live with your livestock 24/7 but I am also new to LGD's as of this last April. We bought 2 puppies now 6 & 8 months old. They now live with our goats 24/7 unsepervised unless we are out doing chores, etc. 
They are great with the goats.
I believe an LGD needs t bond with THEIR animals not live in the house with their humans. I think that is too confusing for the dog.
Our dogs are very friendly, seem to know their jobs & I trust them completely. Hopefully that will not turn around to bite me in the butt!
The 1 breeder we got our female from already had her in a pasture with some of her yearling goats so they started out with training from the breeders & mom & dad.

I don't think I would give her free roam for awhile until like Bret said she knows where home is since GP are known to wander anyways.


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## longhorngal (Aug 4, 2005)

Thanks for the replies! I think I'm wanting something different than the typical livestock guardian. I just want her to do what my other dogs are getting too old to do-when they see a coyote-run it off. I don't have many goats and they are almost always behind panel fencing and close to the house so I'm not worried about them. 
The coyote came up today and the other dogs took after him. She went too but being only 6 months old she wasn't sure what was up. In days past my collie would have tackled any coyote that came up-now he just barks. I'm hoping she'll get the idea though. 
She sure is a picky eater though-are most pyrs? I'm giving her the wheat and corn free food my other dogs get buy she's not too enthusiastic where as they all love it.


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## krebolj (Feb 23, 2013)

My pyr was raised in the house until we bought a farm after my husband separated from the military. She was two at that point and we simply let her do her job and come back inside as she pleased until she decided that she would rather stay outside with the goats...that was fine with us. A pyr will run off a coyote, but I would think about different fencing- barb wire will not keep her in, even when she is a mature adult who knows where her territory is. If she sees it she will do her best to get to it, despite all the talk that pyrs prefer to stay with the herd and will not leave them.


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## CAjerseychick (Aug 11, 2013)

We have a 13 week old Pyr/anatolian cross pup- he just doesnot seem to be as much of a chow hound as my others are at feeding time- we have 2 other dogs as well-- I put the bowls down (and I usually mix in leftover gravy and a raw whole egg from our hens) -- and Puppy gets so excited he goes from bowl to bowl eats alittle then runs off-- problem is then the big dogs vaccum down all the food (they are a Bernese mt dog and giant schnauzer)--
what I do is I have a seperate puppy area -its gated off with a little gap just big enough for puppy to enter and after pup runs off I just move his bowl behind into that area....

They get raw chicken parts like a neck or two or duck wings in the Am though and puppy usu is pretty good about wolfing those down....


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