# New LGD Question



## Ropada (Aug 14, 2013)

Hello all
First of all I want to say that I have been reading this forum for a while and appreciate all the great information and general welcoming tone of most posts. We are fairly new to livestock and have 11 Alpacas , 5 angora goats (3 female, 2 wethers) and 1 great pyrenees. My question is about the dog. He is 18 weeks and in with alpacas and goats. He is wonderful in most respects, accept (you knew that was coming) he continues to chase the female goats (and sometimes the males). We spend as much time as we can in the area so we can help break this habit and we have made progress but it continues. He's a puppy and wants to play, he's not causing any physical harm to the goats. Do I really need to worry about this and stop this behavior now or will the goats survive and he'll just outgrow this phase?

Thanks for the help
Pictures to come when I can upload


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## Four Winds Ranch (Aug 14, 2013)

Welcome to the forum!!!!!   
As for your question, "YES", you need to stop the chasing behavior as soon as possible!!!! I know from experience, if the puppy play, chasing is not nipped in the bud, as they grow up, the not causing physical harm, turns into physical harm fast, and things do not go well!!!  
Good luck!! LGD are smart dogs!!


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## Baymule (Aug 15, 2013)

I would add to only allow supervised time in with your herd, so that bad behavior like this gets under control. A puppy is a puppy is a puppy. My GP was free, because her owners let her loose on 3 acres with chickens and then wondered why they kept finding slobbered on dead chickens. DUH! It took me 2 years to correct their mistakes, but she is now a chicken GUARD, not a killer. Stop leaving your puppy in with the other animals full time and only let him in with them when you can be there to guide and correct him. It takes time to do it right, but is well worth it. I am by no means any kind of LGD expert, there are many on this forum much better than I will ever be. They will be here to further help you with your puppy. I wish you the best with your livestock and your dog! And welcome to the forum!


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## Ropada (Aug 15, 2013)

Thank you both for your input. Looks like we'll have to keep a closer eye on things


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## Southern by choice (Aug 15, 2013)

haven't had much tme to post lately... but saw this and thought you may benefit from this...
I apologize it is a copy / paste from my website due to lack of time....  this is an excerpt for our training program... highlighted sections are key to your situation.

_ From 8-12 weeks they are with the livestock in a supervised setting. After 3 months the dogs are with the livestock throughout the day with periods of separation. Those separation periods are for "house" time with their human family, and *playtime outside of the livestock *areas.

*When our dogs are 4 months we begin basic obedience skills*. Walking on lead, heal, sit/stay, and a short "down" with the "come" command. Our LGD's are not "over trained" but taught simple basic commands. The Great Pyrenees as well as the Anatolian do very well with the down command as they think it means it's belly rub time. The command "come" is often more of a suggestion to the LGD, leaning always toward what they deem to be in their best interest. We will often refresh our dogs on these skills. *From 16-20 weeks pups are in with livestock fulltime with their training and playtime outside of the livestock area daily.*

*Allowing daily playtime outside of the livestock areas prevents bored puppies from developing undesirable behaviors with the livestock, such as chasing, or rough playing. It promotes the desire to please their human masters while building confidence, good social skills, and the development of their guarding skills. *_

Also- the unspoken rule is... you must post a pic of your LGD!(IT FEEDS US LGD JUNKIES)


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## Southern by choice (Aug 15, 2013)

oops... forgot to finish... if necessary put a long lead on your pup and when chasing or mouthing begins correct firmly. NEVER allow your dog to do anything you don't want them doing in the future.  Sharp firm NO, and Bad Dog is usually sufficient with many LGD's.


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