# How many?



## GriffinRidgeFarm (Oct 1, 2012)

Well, right now we have a Great Pyrenees male (If it matters, he is not fixed) for guarding our 2 acres. (We have ducks, geese, chickens, and goats) We are probably going to move to 20 acres in the next 6 months. The chickens and ducks will be in moveable coops. The goats and geese will have 1/4 acre at a time, with portable electric netting moved every couple weeks. Do you think we need another LGD? Or will Zeus be enough?


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## ksalvagno (Oct 1, 2012)

How old is he? What is the predator rate at your new place? Is he expected to protect everyone?


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## Straw Hat Kikos (Oct 1, 2012)

LGD's do work better in teams and they also keep each other occupied. Just one may end up getting bored and could become destructive, as I'm sure you know having an older dog. With just a 1/4 acre he may be able to work be himself but imo two or more is best.


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## GriffinRidgeFarm (Oct 1, 2012)

ksalvagno said:
			
		

> How old is he? What is the predator rate at your new place? Is he expected to protect everyone?


He is 1.5. They're should be a good many raccoons, a few foxes, and coyotes are very common. Not really any hawks or eagles though. The chickens and ducks are going to have a safe house, covered in hardware cloth and a tarp, so they won't need him. The 10 goats and 2 geese are the main thing he will be guarding. He has kept everything safe here so far, he has even kept eagles and hawks away. (our neighbors still have hawks preying on their chickens, but we haven't had any problems with them since we got Zeus.)


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## GriffinRidgeFarm (Oct 1, 2012)

Do ya'll think we should get an Antiolian (SP?) or a Pyrenees? (It will be a spayed girl most likely)


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## Straw Hat Kikos (Oct 1, 2012)

theeggboxtoo said:
			
		

> Do ya'll think we should get an Antiolian (SP?) or a Pyrenees? (It will be a spayed girl most likely)


I love Anatolians so I will be to biased to give you a valid answer.  I love mine with every fiber I have.

I just saw that you live in Alabama. You have a GP all the way down there??!! Wow. How does he do with the heat?


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## bonbean01 (Oct 1, 2012)

We know people here that have two of these dogs and we're in Northeast Mississippi and our summers are HOT!!!!  I saw that they have a large size kiddie pool with water and they do go cool off in there on and off.

Just curious...just how many bags of feed do you go through with such large dogs?


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## Southern by choice (Oct 1, 2012)

We have both and both are awesome. M/F teams work very well together. Anatolians can be ultra sensitive to anesthesia, you will need that kind of info from the breeder. They also need a different vaccine schedule.  I do know someone who has a great 2 yr old girl(Anatolian) he has been trying to place for awhile. We would take her but we already have 2 teams for the fields and 2 other family dogs. Nothing wrong with her, he just doesn't have a lot of livestock anymore and too many dogs. You really can't go wrong with either. I'll be posting our Pyrs and Anatolian tonight, they are all still pups!

If they were going to have to guard the whole 20 acres I don't think 2 would be enough. For a 1/4 acre at a time 1 should be fine but LGD's do work well as a team. Our Anatolian does bark at everything at night   (beyond what's reasonable). My Pyrs do not, they are relatively quiet unless there really is something to bark about. Many people say Pyrs bark all night but ours don't. The Pyrs have a deep husky woof,woof,woof sound where the Anatolian is higher in pitch,louder and (to me )kind of annoying at times      . I do think the Anatolian is a bit more alert and quicker to detect a threat, yet this could also be just how the teams co-ordinate. I have watchers and patrollers. My pyr female is the youngest pup yet very fierce, dominant, and takes no crap from the other dogs that outweigh her by 15,40, and 45 lbs. We knew she was going to be an alpha when she was 6-8 weeks old. 

Hope some of this info helps.  
Straw Hat is my farm partner(it's his anatolian-) and he is biased! LOL
BTW- My 1 male pyr HATES geese! The geese HATE him too! we're still working on the poultry thing. The anatolian and 1 m pyr still think it's fun to catch baby chicks in their mouths and play with them. UGH


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## Karma (Oct 1, 2012)

I agree that 2 or more is best. We have 3- 2 are neutered males, 1 is a young year old intact male.None of mine fight right with each other though the youngest does occasionally get in scuffles with the girls(non-lgd breeds) because he does not know how to lay off and is a humping fiend. 

As far as which sex/neutering/etc, I would neuter your current male and get another male and either leave him intact or neuter him once he is grown. It's probably the best if you don't want to worry about fighting issues, if you don't want to have to mess with making a secure area to keep a female in season away from the males, or keep track of heat cycles to prevent breeding too early/too much.


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## GriffinRidgeFarm (Oct 1, 2012)

Southern by choice said:
			
		

> We have both and both are awesome. M/F teams work very well together. Anatolians can be ultra sensitive to anesthesia, you will need that kind of info from the breeder. They also need a different vaccine schedule.  I do know someone who has a great 2 yr old girl(Anatolian) he has been trying to place for awhile. We would take her but we already have 2 teams for the fields and 2 other family dogs. Nothing wrong with her, he just doesn't have a lot of livestock anymore and too many dogs. You really can't go wrong with either. I'll be posting our Pyrs and Anatolian tonight, they are all still pups!
> 
> If they were going to have to guard the whole 20 acres I don't think 2 would be enough. For a 1/4 acre at a time 1 should be fine but LGD's do work well as a team. Our Anatolian does bark at everything at night   (beyond what's reasonable). My Pyrs do not, they are relatively quiet unless there really is something to bark about. Many people say Pyrs bark all night but ours don't. The Pyrs have a deep husky woof,woof,woof sound where the Anatolian is higher in pitch,louder and (to me )kind of annoying at times      . I do think the Anatolian is a bit more alert and quicker to detect a threat, yet this could also be just how the teams co-ordinate. I have watchers and patrollers. My pyr female is the youngest pup yet very fierce, dominant, and takes no crap from the other dogs that outweigh her by 15,40, and 45 lbs. We knew she was going to be an alpha when she was 6-8 weeks old.
> 
> ...


Thank you for your help! Our Pyr LOVES the geese, they sleep together, bark/honk together and the geese pick stuff out of his fur


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## GriffinRidgeFarm (Oct 1, 2012)

bonbean01 said:
			
		

> We know people here that have two of these dogs and we're in Northeast Mississippi and our summers are HOT!!!!  I saw that they have a large size kiddie pool with water and they do go cool off in there on and off.
> 
> Just curious...just how many bags of feed do you go through with such large dogs?


We go through about 50 lbs a month, he seems to eat more now that it's colder though...


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## GriffinRidgeFarm (Oct 1, 2012)

Straw Hat Kikos said:
			
		

> theeggboxtoo said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


He did just fine when it was hot! He got into our goose/duck pool when it was really hot and at other times he dug a hole in the goat barn and slept there  He also got a bath about once a week when it was hot.


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## GriffinRidgeFarm (Oct 1, 2012)

Karma said:
			
		

> I agree that 2 or more is best. We have 3- 2 are neutered males, 1 is a young year old intact male.None of mine fight right with each other though the youngest does occasionally get in scuffles with the girls(non-lgd breeds) because he does not know how to lay off and is a humping fiend.
> 
> As far as which sex/neutering/etc, I would neuter your current male and get another male and either leave him intact or neuter him once he is grown. It's probably the best if you don't want to worry about fighting issues, if you don't want to have to mess with making a secure area to keep a female in season away from the males, or keep track of heat cycles to prevent breeding too early/too much.


We want to keep our current GP intact, but we'll be spaying the new one (probably a girl).


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## GriffinRidgeFarm (Oct 2, 2012)

I looked and found this one on craigsist, http://bham.craigslist.org/grd/3306449100.html What do ya'll think?


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## Grazer (Oct 2, 2012)

I think your dog will really appreciate you adding a new dog and I also think it's good to have 2 dogs patrolling with so many coyotes around.
Getting the female spayed and leaving the male intact is something I would do too, because I have noticed that fixed females will not lose their guarding abilities but some (not all) fixed males do get a little slower/lazier. 
I would however wait with spaying until the female is 2 years (if you end up getting that GP puppy from craigslist), just to avoid any issues with joints later in her life. 
Giant breeds really benefit from waiting until they are fully grown.

Speaking of food, a 32 lbs (grain free) bag lasts a month with our 2 Caucasian shepherds. But then again we do add (grain free) canned food to their kibble.


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## Stubbornhillfarm (Oct 2, 2012)

Sorry jumping off track a bit, but have to ask.  

I have two, brother and sister LGDs.  How would I go about protecting from unwanted pregnancy while allowing her to reach 2 years before having her spayed?  I actually have an appointment to have her spayed soon, but don't want to risk harming her growth.  

To get back on track:  Personally, I think that giving Zeus a partner would be a wise choice.  Not only will he actually have a partner which is in my opinion a good idea.  But you will also perhaps be trainning up a younger dog and it should be much easier having an adult LGD around to show the ropes.


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## Stubbornhillfarm (Oct 2, 2012)

theeggboxtoo said:
			
		

> I looked and found this one on craigsist, http://bham.craigslist.org/grd/3306449100.html What do ya'll think?


I would call on this pup and at least talk to the owners.  The price sounds good.  I would see what they have for animals currently that the pup has been around and go visit if the answers are what you are expecting.


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## Alice Acres (Oct 2, 2012)

Stubbornhillfarm said:
			
		

> Sorry jumping off track a bit, but have to ask.
> 
> I have two, brother and sister LGDs.  How would I go about protecting from unwanted pregnancy while allowing her to reach 2 years before having her spayed?  I actually have an appointment to have her spayed soon, but don't want to risk harming her growth.
> 
> To get back on track:  Personally, I think that giving Zeus a partner would be a wise choice.  Not only will he actually have a partner which is in my opinion a good idea.  But you will also perhaps be trainning up a younger dog and it should be much easier having an adult LGD around to show the ropes.


Your female is going to have to be safely contained for the 2-3 weeks that she's in heat every 6 months. Kudos to you for letting her reach maturity before spaying!


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## Alice Acres (Oct 2, 2012)

I found the answers to the number of dogs needed quite interesting - I would have thought they could handle more space/animals. 
I show and do lots of dog sports (obedience, rally, weight pull, agility, back packing, conformation, dog sledding /carting, and also have been an obedience instructor and judge for over 30 yrs...dogs are my main interest).
We have 6 dogs - but all are for various sports except LGD. 
We have a llama for that, and she cares for all our sheep, free range chickens in pasture area of about 10 acres, with our total acreage being a hair under 25 acres. We have coyotes, loose dogs (they get dumped and form packs periodically), bald eagles and other raptors in large quantity. (breeding pair of bald eagles less than 5 miles away) and in August there was a cougar sighting just a couple miles away  (that scares me) ...makes me glad one economical llama is working well for us.


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## Grazer (Oct 2, 2012)

Stubbornhillfarm said:
			
		

> Sorry jumping off track a bit, but have to ask.
> 
> I have two, brother and sister LGDs.  How would I go about protecting from unwanted pregnancy while allowing her to reach 2 years before having her spayed?  I actually have an appointment to have her spayed soon, but don't want to risk harming her growth.


The people I know (usually breeders) keep their females separated in kennels for about a month starting from when their females show any signs of being in heat. It's also a good idea to write that date down, usually a female is in heat for 21 days.
Some LGD breeds only come in heat once every 8 to 11 months, so hopefully that will be the case with your female as well (and ours! LOL).
I have to say I really am not looking forward to this event lol, it's the first time for my husband and me to own an unfixed male & female at the same time. So I just hope they won't howl and act crazy too much


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## GriffinRidgeFarm (Oct 2, 2012)

Grazer said:
			
		

> I think your dog will really appreciate you adding a new dog and I also think it's good to have 2 dogs patrolling with so many coyotes around.
> Getting the female spayed and leaving the male intact is something I would do too, because I have noticed that fixed females will not lose their guarding abilities but some (not all) fixed males do get a little slower/lazier. .


That is the main reason we want another one, sometimes he gets bored, and he starts chewing on stuff and trying to play with the big goats.



> I would however wait with spaying until the female is 2 years (if you end up getting that GP puppy from craigslist), just to avoid any issues with joints later in her life.
> Giant breeds really benefit from waiting until they are fully grown.


This is why we didn't fix Zeus when he was a puppy, we read that males especially have problems.


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## GriffinRidgeFarm (Oct 2, 2012)

Alice Acres said:
			
		

> breeding pair of bald eagles less than 5 miles away


We have one of those too :/


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## RemudaOne (Oct 2, 2012)

I have to say that I feel a lot better about having recently spayed both of my pyr mix girls. I didn't know about the waiting thing and thought I was being a bad owner . They'll be two Jan 9, so while it was a little early I'm glad that I did wait as long as I did. 

My dogs eat a lot less than I was anticipating. I buy the grain free kibble and give them either raw eggs or a bit of canned food with it. Total, they get between 3.5 and 4 cups each per day. One of them is very easy keeper and will pretty much eat everything every day. The other, I wish I could get her to eat more. She's more high energy/strung.

It was interesting hearing the differences in the breeds as one of mine is more laid back and doesn't bark at night unless its for real. She has a HUGE, deep bark. The other tends to bark more with the higher pitched, more annoying bark. I guess they each inherited the different traits .


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## Stubbornhillfarm (Oct 3, 2012)

Thanks Grazer and Alice Acres.  I guess I will have to do some searching on how to keep her contained.  Currently, there is no way.  And they are both free at night to patrol.  Looks like more $$$$ to me.    Thanks again for the info!


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