# One for Zero



## Tango (Aug 19, 2002)

Zero is my boy. He's a Catahoula Leopard Dog, 6 months young. Today he took his first opossum. An opossum that happened to show up in the chicken coop just when my hens have started to lay. I wouldn't even have known about it. He didn't bark. When I went outside he came out where I coul see him. I hadn't even called him. He didn't come to me. He growled and went back to the barn. Naturally I went to see what was up. I feel bad for the oppossum. It is Zero's first experience with a predator. But I know how opossums can decimate a flock for no good reason. They kill just to eat a heart or a gizzard. My boy at 6 months has started to earn his keep.


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## jolly rabbit (Apr 30, 2012)

that's awesome, a good pat on the head and a tasty treat is in order. My Anatolian hasn't gone against a predator, but caught some meth-head stealing the neighbors ATV. He is such a good boy! Sounds like you got yourself a keeper.


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## Tango (Aug 19, 2002)

thanks  He's all houligan and teaches me patience daily but his first kill clicked for him. It was an hours long rocess becuase he was playing. Would take turns with the possum, a stick, and one of his stuffed toys and parade all over the place with it, shake it, put it down, go get something else. A really bad experience for the possum. It seems like Zero now wants to be outside more. He has taken more interest in the hens and doesn't like the roosters going after the hens (had to separate the two roos yesterday and will offer one for sale today to see if that changes) and he is even listening to me, which he hasn't cared to do in the past. He clicked!  And congrats on your crime busting Anatolian! A great start on his guardian dog path. I have been studying the Anatolian x Pyr as a possible LGD in a couple of years. For now when I bring goats home, they will be fenced off with my Ab and 'houligan outside the fence.


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## motdaugrnds (Jul 3, 2002)

Congratulations to both of you. It is so very nice to see our LGDs doing their job!

I must share what my Karakachan did. She just turned 9 months of age the last of December. A few nights ago I heard this mad rush of dog steps as Valentina ran down the back steps with a loud growl that I've come to recognize as her getting serious. I ran to the back door with my flashlight and saw her rush past the goats who were heading for the barn. Valentina's growl got more ferocious as she continued down to where the goats had just come from. Then a short time later I heard her bark several times with that long howl she does and I knew the situation was taken care of and now she was sending out her warning signals to keep whatever it was away. (I did not see what the predator was but have seen foxes as well as a skunk just outside our fencing in times past; so it was probably one of those.) This was Valentina's FIRST real charge toward a predator! (I've noticed since then she is circling the parameter more often and last night she was making those sounds of hers that I can only call "wierd" while looking off down toward a forestry corner of our homestead. Twice she charged in that direction, then stopped to make those wierd sounds again. I never saw any predator.)

Wierd sound: I'm sure you all are aware by now how your dogs sound when they are alerted. Valentina is my first LGD so I'm wondering if all such dogs have a similar sound. She growls then follows that growl with what I can only describe as a moan with another growl at the end of it. The growl will get louder, then the there is often a bark followed quickly by another growl and long moan. During this moan she is apparently moving her mouth around because it sounds like she is actually trying to form words! When she charges it is with a very loud, vicious sounding growl; then when she stops there is this 3-part speech pattern described above. Would be real interested in how other LGDs sound when confrontng a would-be predator if anyone cares to make an attempt to describe it.


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## Tango (Aug 19, 2002)

Yay for Valentina!  Zero is a Catahoula Leopard Dog  but he's as close to a livestock guardian as I have right now. My AB is still very young. Zero does that conversational warning you describe. He is saying that he's pretty sure that thing isn't supposed to be there


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## GraceAlice (Jun 7, 2013)

Oh, good doggies! I love good dog stories when I can get em.  I noticed you mentioned the anatolianXpyrenees mix... well, I have one and he is the best dog I have met in my life. So sweet, very attached to 'his herd', loves all things tiny, doesn't jump, doesn't lick, oh my goodness. I just love him. All of those things and he isn't even neutered. Here is a picture of him I took yesterday. He's the fluffball. And then one with Annie (anatolian) photo bombing a picture! Silas is just a year old. I haven't weighed him as I don't have a scale, but I would say he is very easily at least 105 lbs. He turned a year old on Jan. 6th.


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## Buckhuntr (Oct 4, 2012)

We resisted getting dogs for over a year after getting chickens and goats, but got fed up with the local wildlife and stray dogs treating our pens as a feeding ground. So we got Nala, a 3-yo Great Pyr, and three African geese from the same sellers. Nala has a house across the driveway from our front porch, and that is her home base when she isn't making her rounds. 

Then we got Roscoe and Abner at 8-weeks old. They are 1/2 Anatolian, 1/2 GP. For the past 6 months they have been living with the sheep and goats, but they have become well-mannered enough around the poultry that we can trust them to not eat chase the birds to make them fly. 

They can be playing, then all of a sudden get this alert look, start barking and take off running at something they have heard. Nala is the same way. We have not lost a single bird to anything but an owl since we got the dogs. :clap:

Just got the pups neutered and chipped yesterday, and the vet weighed them at 86 & 85 pounds at just under 8 months.


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## Tango (Aug 19, 2002)

GraceAlice said:


> Oh, good doggies! I love good dog stories when I can get em.  I noticed you mentioned the anatolianXpyrenees mix... well, I have one and he is the best dog I have met in my life. So sweet, very attached to 'his herd', loves all things tiny, doesn't jump, doesn't lick, oh my goodness. I just love him. All of those things and he isn't even neutered. Here is a picture of him I took yesterday. He's the fluffball. And then one with Annie (anatolian) photo bombing a picture! Silas is just a year old. I haven't weighed him as I don't have a scale, but I would say he is very easily at least 105 lbs. He turned a year old on Jan. 6th.


Thanks for the pics. Both are are very sweet looking. I've had two Great Pyrs and though they were both excellent dogs, neither worked out - most of that was my fault. The first, a female named Jazz, preferred the house to the goats. She would go out with the goats and hang out but preferred to be in the house with the other dogs. I didn't start her correctly. She went to a pet home. The second was Bo, a male, who was excellent guarding the goats but was a roamer and I had a long fenceline by the road that needed replacing. He took after cars and taught my other dogs to take after cars. I found him a goat home with a secure fence. My third one will be an Anatolian x GP, I think. But it won't be until the fencing is up in the back acreage where I really need a lgd. Fort he first couple of years when I get them, the goats will be in the front part of the property until I get the fencing up little by little.


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## Tango (Aug 19, 2002)

Buckhuntr said:


> We resisted getting dogs for over a year after getting chickens and goats, but got fed up with the local wildlife and stray dogs treating our pens as a feeding ground. So we got Nala, a 3-yo Great Pyr, and three African geese from the same sellers. Nala has a house across the driveway from our front porch, and that is her home base when she isn't making her rounds.
> 
> Then we got Roscoe and Abner at 8-weeks old. They are 1/2 Anatolian, 1/2 GP. For the past 6 months they have been living with the sheep and goats, but they have become well-mannered enough around the poultry that we can trust them to not eat chase the birds to make them fly.
> 
> ...


Thanks for the photos. Nala's set up sounds like what I have been planning for my goats, a milk shed/ goat shed/ dog house across the driveway from the house. And your boys are very good looking . Congrats!


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## GraceAlice (Jun 7, 2013)

I don't know why, but my dogs don't roam unless you intentionally (okay, maybe not so intentionally) let them out. They have pretty flimsy fencing right now in some places, but they have never even attempted a jump. They also only bark when needed (we are surrounded by howling coyotes so at night they do bark quite a lot. Can't blame them!) and I love that about them. I also like the idea of a pair, because they got to learn and do things together as puppies, and now they are two peas in a pod and watch over their animals as a team. Si will "tell" Annie if she is doing something bad like getting a little rough or something. It's pretty cute! 

It's honestly like having two well behaved litter mates. Except we won't be linebreeding when they have puppies. It's nice, because they are completely unrelated but act like they are brother and sister. They never leave each others side unless there's a real reason, but if they are planning on doing something bad (i.e. running away because the gate was left open, that's never happening again!), they always go together! I can't wait to see how their puppies act. And look. It will be interesting.


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## Tango (Aug 19, 2002)

Will be nice to see how they progress on their guardian duties. 3/4 Anatolian sounds like a really sweet working pup


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