# MINIS as Guards???



## GaiaGrowers137 (Oct 4, 2021)

Hey all- first question

Are Mini Donkeys, Llamas or Alpacas still a good "guard animal" like their full sized counterparts?

I have Mini Alpine dairy herd and KuneKunes, which are none too large and I wondered if a mini sentry would fit in better 😂 But I worried they might be roo docile? I have only ever seen them in petting zoo's and most the breeders I can find seem to breed them for pets and "sweet temperaments" which doesnt sound effective as a guard 🙃
Thoughts? Opinions? Experiences? I'll take any, I am new to all of this lol


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## Mini Horses (Oct 5, 2021)

I raised them and they can have same tendencies as full sized.    Look at old posts as donkeys CAN go either way with their "protection" efforts.....from fantastic to dangerous.   New additions to their group are often more of a trigger than those they are raised with.  It IS DIFFERENT between each individual donkey...personality and their concept of danger, plus their own response to it, a single vs a group, male or female.

Yeah, know what to watch for.


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## Baymule (Oct 5, 2021)

Not only that, but you named off prey animals. They might be ok for some situations, but are still prey animals. Alpacas are ONLY a prey animal and should never be used as a guard animal. Mini donkeys can be brought down by a pack of neighborhood dogs out to have a good time. Llamas have size going for them and can be intimidating, but against an apex predator, they will run for their life.

3 years ago, we had a cougar in the area. A neighbor 2 miles away lost her entire goat herd because she had guard donkeys. Standard size, so bigger than a mini, but still prey animals. Those donkeys only had to be faster than the goats to survive. We had and have, Livestock Guard Dogs. That cougar was screaming one night on the 8 wooded acres right next to us one night and our dogs were going absolutely bonkers. They BARKED and made lots of noise. Guess what? That cougar did not step foot on our place. That was repeated quite a few times over a couple of months before the cougar moved on. 

Want to know why? Because that cougar would have had a fight on it's attempt to attack and it knew it. When our dogs have an injury, they go to the vet to get medical attention. Predatory animals do not get taken to the vet. They are laid up. When our dogs are laid up, they get TLC and never miss a meal. Predatory animals don't get fed. Injury equals no hunting. No hunting equals not eating. They instinctively know this and move on for an easier kill. 

I live in east Texas in a rural area. Cougars are not common, but they are out there and show up sometimes. It is hard to answer questions sometimes without knowing your location. For example, we don't have bears, but people in other locations do. Can you please put your general location in your avatar? Thanks.


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## Thefarmofdreams (Oct 5, 2021)

What Bay said!

A bit more on donkeys (I recently did a ton of research on this)... The reason they're troublesome in mixed herds is a couple things.  1) a lot of people try to keep them in a mixed herd as the sole donkey. Donkeys need another donkey.  They are very herd driven, and don't see the other animals as herd.  They need a donkey friend. And without one they can be cranky, and aggressive... Or they can just be too rough trying to play like a donkey with animals who can't handle it.
2) also, they don't see the other animals as herd mates. So they sometimes just decide this random creature doesn't belong in their territory, regardless of how long it has been there. This is especially true of newborns (seen as invaders) and when they come in heat. 

So donkeys aren't recommended as protectors. Especially with smaller critters.


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