# Badger & New Buckling



## Southern by choice (Feb 17, 2014)

Today I happen to go out and The "baby" buckling was jumping all over Badger. Badger LOVES the babies. Of course I run into get my camera... come out and they both see me and come running. Missed all the good shots. 
A few minutes later I peeked out the door and saw this... so I zoomed in... not the best shots and not as cute as before but still wanted to share.

Badger and our 2 weeks old Lamancha Buckling




 

"I wanna play"


 

Determined


 

Maybe I should jump on you


 

Badger the kind patient babysitter 


 

How about a nuzzle at least


 

Of course wherever the "baby" is Badger follows him... he is THE baby daddy. He loves the baby goats so much and he is so good with them. The kid can resist Badger... he is a baby magnet.


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## Pearce Pastures (Feb 17, 2014)

Awww how cute is that!  What a good boy.


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## Womwotai (Feb 17, 2014)

Love that story!  My dog (border collie/lab x) is besotted with our new little lamb too.  Every morning while mum is eating her grain, I catch the little lamb and hold her. I want her to be a little more handleable when she is older so I'm making her submit to handling now in the hopes she will be.  Anyway, Sammie, the dog, has been beside herself since the day the lamb was born, so each morning I let her come in with me and while I'm holding the lamb, I squat down and let Sammie sniff her all over. She is so gentle with the lamb and stays right there as long as I can stay squatted down.


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## Southern by choice (Feb 17, 2014)

@Womwotai I love that ... rare too in a bordie collie/lab mix.

My old GSD was the guardian of EVERYTHING. When we started our farm she was very old but we told her... these are my babies... she would love and guard anything that was a "baby". 
As she grew up with my children they were her "flock" and stayed with them every second... One time we had a neighbor with a baby about 24months... they were playing with her and kinda lifting her in the air and swooping her down, she was squealing with happiness but the squealing did not go over with my 2 GSD's (my old girl being one) and they were freaking out to protect the baby, they thought the "adult" was harming the baby. Had to pull them from the fenceline and put them in the house.

There is nothing like a great dog.


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## Womwotai (Feb 18, 2014)

I agree!  I didn't realize the BC/Lab combo was not likely to produce a dog good around baby animals.  We adopted this dog at 8-9 months of age, and she is now 3 ½.  The only other baby animals she's had exposure to since we've had her are the poultry and she is so good with them - she will lie still and let chicks crawl all over her.  She would never deliberately harm them, though I could see it accidentally happening because she is all retriever and ball obsessed.  If someone were to throw a ball - or even a stick - in the vicinity of the poultry, she would be so focused on retrieving it, she might incidentally hurt a bird.  For that reason we have a rule about no throwing sticks or balls around the birds  

I've considered trying to train her as a LGD to some extent, because she already acts in lieu of one around here.  She and our other (also poultry safe) dog sleep in a dog igloo in the chicken yard at night, effectively deterring predators just by their presence.  The other dog is more of a patroller, and I've seen her get into the sheep pasture and go trotting around the perimeter fence, stopping now and then to smell things.  I let her do this, figuring that having her scent around the perimeter is something I want.

Unfortunately, neither is a big dog - around 40lb.  The BC/Lab (Sammie) is the size and physique of a BC, but with lab coloring and fur (and a retriever, not a herder). 

Interestingly, while Sammie has never shown an inkling of threat towards any of the animals here, when a wild rabbit makes its way onto the property, it is fair game.  I'll never forget watching her chase a rabbit around last summer.  As the rabbit zigzagged through my free-ranging flock, so did Sammie, in hot pursuit.  Birds were flapping and scattering in all directions but Sammie remained focused on the rabbit.  I figure if anything was going to swing her towards chasing birds, that was it, so if she didn't then, she probably never will.  She also goes after squirrels that come into our yard.  And, when we go to our barn to ride the horses, she has many times chased deer and - more to the point - when we flush a coyote, she will take off after it in hot pursuit.  She has chased numerous coyotes off the barn property.  My concern there is that she is roughly the same size they are.  One on one, she chases and they run, but I'm concerned if she encountered a pack of them and they ganged up on her, she would be vulnerable.  However she has the speed of a greyhound too, so maybe she could outrun them?  I dunno….

In any case, it is sweet to see how excited she is by the lamb.  And this morning she will get to meet a new one.  I looked out the window and minute ago and another ewe has lambed.  I have yet to go down and see this one - my coffee was still hot after all - but I will head down there soon to check it out.[/user]


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## babsbag (Feb 18, 2014)

A BC/lab combo that is ok with poultry is amazing. BCs are just so active and into herding things and the lab, well, they are BIRD dogs, I am surprised that she doesn't constantly bring you the chickens totally proud of herself. Good dogs !!!!


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## Womwotai (Feb 18, 2014)

We had a new lamb born overnight and this morning DH took pics of me introducing the lamb to the dogs.  Sammie is the black one who wants to accompany me every time I go to the see the lambs.  The tri color is less enamored but was willing to sniff the new arrival this morning anyway.  I was in the nursery pen holding the lamb while his mother ate her grain, and the dogs were just outside it.


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## babsbag (Feb 18, 2014)

What an adorable baby, I love those spotted lambs. And look at those good dogs.


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## jodief100 (Feb 21, 2014)

What a sweet lamb!  Pretty baby!

Both of my male Pyrs I have had always let the babies crawl and bounce all over them.  I always thought  it was a male Pyr thing. Is it common?  Do you see it happen with females?


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## bcnewe2 (Feb 21, 2014)

I'm not referring to  your dog Sammie but thought I'd mention a few things I've found over the years of owning and training border collies. Which btw are totally different than an LGD. Not even close to the same type of anything.

My border collies are trained to work livestock. It is something that is born in them that I harness not teach. Same with the respect they have for new born anything, a good border collie is born with it.  You can see in my avatar that Dew, one of my border collies is letting a lamb sniff all over her.  But this is not love for Dew. It is respect for babies and something she can't help herself with.
There comes a time when the lambs grow up and they become just another sheep to be moved. 

My dogs aren't mean to the sheep, they harbor no ill will but they have a firm need to control them.  Some will bite as youngsters not knowing anything else to do but normally border collies aren't really all that grippy to livestock. 

I do wonder a bit if your Sammie is really just watching the lamb like my dogs watch lambs. I'm sure I could confuse the behavior with love, if I didn't know them so well and train livestock work in the manner that I do. They will also lick lamb bums, tasty stuff comes from there. But, it's not kisses, it's hoping for a tidbit of poop.

I hope your dog stays as loving as you say, but watch as your livestock grows, things might change.

My dogs also don't see poultry, or not all of them do. It's just something they were born with. They will work them if I tell them to but in day to day life my chickens can walk over my dogs and the dogs don't do anything. I didn't teach it. it's the same thing as "not seeing" lambs as something to work. 

Ducks however bring out a different instinct compared to chickens.  Ducks flock and move differently so they will work them quicker than chickens but again they won't work any thing that's a baby.

Hope that makes since. just wanted to put that out there so you are aware to keep watch as your lambs grow. And a personal warning to not count your labXbc cross to be a reliable LGD. Only a true LGD can be trusted to guard your animals in a manner that is what we all are looking for.


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## Womwotai (Feb 21, 2014)

Thanks bcnewe2!  We've had the sheep going on a year so Sammie has been exposed to them for quite awhile, but apparently although she is supposedly half BC, she got NONE of the BC tendency to work animals.  She is all retriever - ball obsessed but will fetch a stick if that's all that is available.  When it comes to the sheep (and goats), she had never shown much interest.  She would follow me into the pasture when I went to do chores, but mostly go off and do her own thing, completely ignoring the movement of the sheep.  It wasn't until the first lamb was born that we saw any interest, and then she was beside herself to get closer to it.  I don't know what her thought process is - I never considered "love" since I don't think most animals "love" in the way that humans experience the emotion.  So far she has only met them through the livestock panel but while she is generally an energetic dog, her energy changes when she gets close to the lambs and she gets very still and quiet and gentle.  She sniffs them all over (quite sure she'd lick their butts if they offered the opportunity) but doesn't make any sudden moves that might scare them.

The first few days the mother ewes were very suspicious and would charge the panel at the dog unless they were eating their grain.  But yesterday, the ewe whose lamb is now 10 days old, seems to have relaxed and stuck her head through the panel to sniff noses with Sammie.  The lamb, copying everything her mother does, stuck her head through the panel as well.  Having both sniffed noses with Sammie, they moved off.  Then the ewe whose lamb is only 2 days old saw the dog and charged the panel.    I'm guessing she will relax in a few more days too.

But you're right - I don't know the first thing about how to train a guardian so I gave up that notion almost as soon as I written it down.  Sammie does serve an inadvertent purpose keeping predators away by her presence at night in the chicken yard (along with our other dog) but other than that, a ball-obsessed pet she will remain.


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## Sweetened (Feb 21, 2014)

Oh I just love him Southern.  What is your LGD?


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## Southern by choice (Feb 21, 2014)

jodief100 said:


> What a sweet lamb!  Pretty baby!
> 
> Both of my male Pyrs I have had always let the babies crawl and bounce all over them.  I always thought  it was a male Pyr thing. Is it common?  Do you see it happen with females?



I find the males to be much more nurturing and loving and patient with the kids. Females tend to tolerate but not always "bond" with babies. I think the females are the ultra guardians.  Females are always first on the line to defend and protect. LOL I know Badger and "D" both  let the girls do all the real work... they get up if "needed".


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## Southern by choice (Feb 21, 2014)

Sweetened said:


> Oh I just love him Southern.  What is your LGD?



The one pictured here is Badger ... he is a Great Pyrenees. 
We have 3 Great Pyrenees and 1 Anatolian Shepherd... and 1 pup GP. 
Thank You sweetened... I love these dogs more than almost anything. 
Badger is 160lb mush! He is "the" baby daddy! He looks out for all new additions and keeps them safe from the bully goats.. he always helps them to adjust and they in turn follow him everywhere. It is a beautiful site.


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## Sweetened (Feb 21, 2014)

Ah indeed!  Our Pyr is a yard guard, never bonded with livestock which is why the owner sold her.  She's very respectful of them, would just rather do other things.  You're very lucky!


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