# So I must be kinda nuts..



## spinandslide (Jun 6, 2008)

But I am looking for a pup now. Many remember my quest to get my Angel late last year..well, she is 8 this year and I've decided I need to get a pup for her to train before she gets to old or..God forbid..passes away. I know 8 is not super old, but she is a pyr and her care was alittle questionable.

Anyway, so I have found a potential pup..Pyr/Anatolian..I admit, I am partial to Pyr's..not big on Anatolians..

my friend has this cross and he is a great great dog..looking for thoughts on this cross.


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## BarbadosSheep (Jun 27, 2011)

If you are nuts, than I am too. My pups will be a year old in May so I am starting to think about getting a female pup. I ADORE my Anatolians!! They are awesome dogs.


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## wendle (Feb 22, 2006)

Welcome to the nut club lol. I have a 7 year old 3/4 pyr 1/4 anatolian. For the same reason as you , I decided to add another to start this year. I was very lucky to find a pup 5/8 pyr and 3/8 anatolian. So similar to the cross I already have. Over the years I've been adding fencing, dividing up fields for rotational grazing, so he just can't cover all the fields by himself. I have to keep the sheep in one group, which doesn't always work well with my plans. The other thing is what if something happened to him with nobody to guard the sheep.


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## spinandslide (Jun 6, 2008)

I was kinda led to have the impression the Anatolians are better on a range situation..my pasture isnt huge..and that they could be abit more aggressive with people and other dogs...Angel is not(at least with her "Family"), so I am hoping the pup may emulate her.

I keep debating about the proper time to get a pup..I am petrified I'll wait to long..so I probably need to just do it..


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## Goatress (Feb 4, 2011)

Me, I would have had two pups already up and going by now. 8 is an aged dog for a hard working LGD. I have proven cross pups out of working parents, but really not wanting to ship them someplace, prefer they stayed closer in the West. Don't buy one you need two. Soon.


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## BarbadosSheep (Jun 27, 2011)

spinandslide said:


> I was kinda led to have the impression the Anatolians are better on a range situation..my pasture isnt huge..and that they could be abit more aggressive with people and other dogs...Angel is not(at least with her "Family"), so I am hoping the pup may emulate her.
> 
> I keep debating about the proper time to get a pup..I am petrified I'll wait to long..so I probably need to just do it..


my pups are in 3 acres right now. It's crossed fenced with 3 strands of hot wire so they are actually only on 1 1/2 acres. They learned early about hot wire so they do not challange my fences and are very content on that pasture. Isaac goes with me to Tractor supply and loves everyone. When I take him to the farmer's market, he loves everyone he sees and all the dogs. At home, he is a fantastic watch dog and does not tolerate other dogs on our place. Eli is a bit more standoffish towards strangers. Neither of them is mean or people aggressive. A lot of it has to do with how you raise them.


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## spinandslide (Jun 6, 2008)

Well, I am waiting for hubby to voice his opinion..its alittle drive (about 2 hours), but all my sheep friends have said she looks to be perfect for what Im wanting. I dont have more then 10 sheep normally..so I felt one was sufficent to protect the flock, but my current girl's age worries me..she is such a sage, I hope she will teach the pup well..I wish I could copy my Pyr, Angel, she is absolutely perfect.


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## BarbadosSheep (Jun 27, 2011)

One thing I really like about Anatolians is the shorter coat. I live in South Carolina and have seen many miserable Great Pyrs here during the summer. My Anatolians did well this past summer.....never digging the huge excavations that many Pyrs are known for.


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## spinandslide (Jun 6, 2008)

Are pyr's known to dig? obviously, we are in winter..it hasnt been warm here..50-60 average..Angel LOVES to dig..but not in the sense of digging to cool herself..I gave her afew bones, which I half thought was the reason for her digging (hiding)..but she has little dug up areas in a certain part of the pasture..I dont know what she is hiding or digging for!


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## BarbadosSheep (Jun 27, 2011)

Oh yeah....most Pyrs LOVE to dig. At least all the ones I know of around here do. They dig huge excavations so they can stay cool in the summer. You haven't had Angel over the summer yet? You may need to shave her belly to help her keep cool. Give her a kiddy pool too. Many people LOVE the Anatolian/pyr cross. Kind of the best of both worlds.


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## spinandslide (Jun 6, 2008)

good to know..I've noticed on warmer days, she looks alittle hot, definantly prefers cold weather.

I am planning to go and get the new addition this weekend, provided my horseback riding lessons are a no go due to the rain we got last night.


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## Laurie J (Mar 9, 2005)

Our first Great Pyrenees (Bailey) will be 8 in April. We got her as a 6 week old pup. She was born in a lambing pen, and we brought her home and put her in a pen with our bottle lambs. We limited contact with her to feeding so that she could bond with the lambs before she bonded with us. Very difficult to do, but she turned out to be the best GP ever! She is very loving and has been a great guardian dog. We have 50 acres that is partially wooded and we have cougar and coyotes in the area. We noticed that she was up all night barking at coyotes and slept a great deal during the day. That summer we lost our first lambs during the day when Bailey was sound asleep. Being 7 years old, we figured it was time to get some help, so last March we brought home another female...a 6 week old pup named Heidi. We expected Bailey to be as excited to meet a puppy as she was about any other critter we'd introduced....cats, newly hatched chicks, newborn lambs, etc. Wrong! She knew this was a dog, and she had her nose bent out of joint for a month or so before she decided this cute little critter wasn't something to be jealous of! We put Heidi in a pen with bottle lambs, and Bailey was able to see her and come up next to the pen. Now that Heidi is full-grown, they seem to hang out in separate parts of the pasture, and double-duty the sheep guarding. It is more work having two GP's, however.....twice the barking at night, and they've both begun to roam into the neighbor's pasture and not staying solely in ours. I would never get two the same age....this age difference seems to be the time to do it. I also wouldn't get two dogs solely so they can play and keep each other company, as I've read on another post on here. Livestock guardians have a job to do, and playing really isn't part of the deal. Playing leads to trouble, especially when there is a job to do and vulnerable critters that can turn into playthings!

Good luck!

~Laurie


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## Rogo (Jan 1, 2006)

I brought home a 2 month old pup for ME. Had just received an order of 25 day-old chicks and they were in a 10 foot x 10 foot area in my kitchen. I opened the chick's gate and the pup followed me in. I sat on the floor and the pup sat next to me. I was a bit surprised that the pup didn't chase the balls of fluff running around, since the pup wasn't on the list of livestock guardians.

I sat there petting the pup and telling her that those were my birds and she was not to hurt them. She stood up and sniffed a few of them and then came back and sat down next to me.

Okay, seemed to pass the first test. Time to go outside to the free roaming adults. I told the pup that the rules were the same; don't hurt my birds.

Well, the unexpected happened. The pup went around and met all the livestock and chose to be a guardian. She's never chased any of the poultry or other critters. She's been on the job for years with no training and this fabulous dog has done a fabulous job. I don't keep the large amount of critters that I used to, so the dog's job has become easier. The dog checks out each chick as it hatches, each piglet that's farrowed. She gets along with my mule. She'll be 10 years old in a few days, so even tho she hasn't slowed down at all yet and I wish she could live forever, I'm picking up 2 puppies.

The only breed I keep is the American Pit Bull Terrier. 

All my critters roam free on the acreage within the perimeter fence.


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## spinandslide (Jun 6, 2008)

Very interesting Rogo..if I remember right APBT's were, years ago, bred as kind of "Babysitter" type dogs for children..so I can imagine what your girl does is kind of in the same area..very neat.

This pup is 4 months old and both her parents and brother, whom she lives with, are goat guardians. 

The reason I did decide to go and do this is due to Angel's age..I know it usually is said a LGD isnt "fully functioning" til they are about 2 years old. I hope Angel trains her well. If this new pup becomes half the dog Angel is, I will be tickled.

I consider myself so lucky to have found Angel, she is perfect...I hope she "rubs off" on the pup and teaches her alot.

I am going to go and get new pup tomorrow..a 2 hour drive, but worth it to get a nice pup out of working parents who has been raised with critters. Ill post pictures..The pics Ive seen of her..my gosh she is a cute, fluffy thing.....she also has a very serene, serious look to her face, but very aware of whats going on around her..


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