# Official Poll: What breed of Livestock Guardian Dog do you prefer?



## Support

Taking care of a herd means feeding them, giving them shelter, keeping them clean, and the most important of them all, protecting them. There are many ways to protect your herd and one popular way to do it is by getting a LGD, or a Livestock Guardian Dog. However, with the countless number of LGD breeds out there, which breed do the BYH members prefer?

Please take a minute to complete this poll and tell us what breed of Livestock Guardian Dog you prefer. After voting, you can reply to this thread and expand on your reason.

If your answer isn't listed, you can vote for "Others" and reply to this thread with your answers.


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## Southern by choice

Many listed are not available in the US, some listed have not been utilized as LG for many years and have become more personal protection dog breeds.

The Anatolians, and Great Pyrenees are easily available and their temperaments are excellent for small farm, family farm, little land, all the way up to large territories. Easy adaptability, training, loyal and generally not extremely human aggressive. Pyrenees being more so than the Anatolians as far as human aggression.

The Kuvasz is a wonderful guardian, although not easy to find breeders in the US that utilize them as LGD. Love this breed! Will be my next LGD.

The new trend in LGD's is to get something "rare" something "different".  I go back to my first statement...

These dogs are a handful and many new to LGD's foolishly take on dogs they cannot handle.


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## purplequeenvt

Why aren't Maremmas on the list? They are one of the most common LGDs (at least in New England) than most of the others on there.


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## Southern by choice

purplequeenvt said:


> Why aren't Maremmas on the list? They are one of the most common LGDs (at least in New England) than most of the others on there.



I was wondering the same thing as well as the patented "Kangal"


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## Bella's Nana

Aussie


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## Devonviolet

purplequeenvt said:


> Why aren't Maremmas on the list? They are one of the most common LGDs (at least in New England) than most of the others on there.


I was wondering the same thing too.  We are getting our Maremma puppy 5 weeks old right now) in January or February - depending on driving conditions on Winter roads.


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## jodief100

My Karakachans are not on the list either.  Of course my preferred breed of LGD is a Jack, my Great Pyr.  He is in a class by himself.  He isn't like any Pyr or LGP I have every met.


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## Mike CHS

We're planning on getting an Anatolian pretty soon. I can't imagine an Aussie being a good guard dog due to their herding instinct.  Our Aussie is still a pup but well started on herding.  A few weeks ago she spent several minutes nipping and barking at a dead deer to make it get up and move. 

Having said that OFA has a Border Collie mix (I think) that he's happy with.


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## Southern by choice

Mike CHS said:


> We're planning on getting an Anatolian pretty soon. .



YAY!


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## Mike CHS

I still don't have a firm date on when we physically occupy our place (still have to build a shop & barn).  My date keeps sliding but the folks that bred our Aussie also has Anatolians so they are working with us.


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## secuono

Any breed that gets the job done!


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## dragonlord483

I have a red heeler (Australian cattle dog)


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## Honest Omnivore

I've been drooling over the Spanish Mastiff.  I know I need to find one from working stock and I probably can't afford one, but they remind me of my dear house dog, Mrs. Figg, a Neapolitan Mastiff.  Pictured below is our previous Neo mastiff, the poorly named "Hagrid's Opus"


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## Ridgetop

Southern by choice said:


> I was wondering the same thing as well as the patented "Kangal"


Kangal dogs are a color variety of Anatolians so are probably included in Anatolians.


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## Southern by choice

Ridgetop said:


> Kangal dogs are a color variety of Anatolians so are probably included in Anatolians.



LOL don't tell anyone in the US that a Kangal is an Anatolian.
They might string ya up.


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## Goat Whisperer

Ain't that the truth!


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## Ridgetop

Southern by choice said:


> LOL don't tell anyone in the US that a Kangal is an Anatolian.
> They might string ya up.


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## Ridgetop

Not with my Anatolian around!  LOL


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## samssimonsays

Collie.... my girl came from working dogs and the lady has had zero issues with the nasty critters she had issues with before getting them.
 
and my 1/2 great pyr, 1/4 maremma and 1/4 bernard boy-all 11 of his siblings are AMAZING LGD's... him, not so much. But both parents are amazing at what they do! (yes... he NEEDS his blankie to sleep... go ahead and ask me how I know)


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## Ridgetop

He may be better than you think.  An LGD should not sleep inside the house at night, which it looks like he may do (his blankie LOL).  However the measure of a good LGD is in the number of animals you lose to predators.  If you never see the dog work, but all your animals are accounted for, he is doing his job.  Our Anatolian stays with the sheep all day and patrols at night.  However, once she brings the sheep into the barn at night, she is off duty for a while.  She comes inside for some bonding time.  After a few hours she asks to go out and starts her patrols.  We like the visits, and so does she.  If she is on patrol at the end of the acreage, and the house dogs identify a stranger, she is at the spot in under 2 minutes!  Great dog!  Our Pyrs were great too, but hated being inside and would not come in willingly even in the worst storms.  Rika is the best of both worlds.  If your dog works for your livestock needs, that is all that is required!  The old days of never touching or bonding with your LGD are past, now we know that you should bond with your dog and train him somewhat to make living with him easier.  If he is properly bonded to the livestock, bonding to your family will not ruin him.


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## samssimonsays

Ridgetop said:


> He may be better than you think.  An LGD should not sleep inside the house at night, which it looks like he may do (his blankie LOL).  However the measure of a good LGD is in the number of animals you lose to predators.  If you never see the dog work, but all your animals are accounted for, he is doing his job.  Our Anatolian stays with the sheep all day and patrols at night.  However, once she brings the sheep into the barn at night, she is off duty for a while.  She comes inside for some bonding time.  After a few hours she asks to go out and starts her patrols.  We like the visits, and so does she.  If she is on patrol at the end of the acreage, and the house dogs identify a stranger, she is at the spot in under 2 minutes!  Great dog!  Our Pyrs were great too, but hated being inside and would not come in willingly even in the worst storms.  Rika is the best of both worlds.  If your dog works for your livestock needs, that is all that is required!  The old days of never touching or bonding with your LGD are past, now we know that you should bond with your dog and train him somewhat to make living with him easier.  If he is properly bonded to the livestock, bonding to your family will not ruin him.


I completely agree. We do not have any outdoor livestock yet nor would We be able to let our boy stay outside...  he's too spoiled. But if something scares him he will go potty out of control Lol!  our collie is a fierce protector.


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## Southern by choice

Ridgetop said:


> The old days of never touching or bonding with your LGD are past



Sadly this practice is still going strong and still preached everywhere.

Our pyrs like their visits but I think they get hot in the house so quickly ... that or once they have eaten half the food on the counter or fridge they are just done and want to go back out. USERS! 



Samantha drawz said:


> But if something scares him he will go potty out of control



Now that is just too funny!


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## Ridgetop

Many old timers may still believe not to get too familiar with your guardian dog.  Unfortunately it means that unsocialized LGDs can be hard to handle and work with.  Most of us here have small flocks and acreage and our dogs are both protectors and family - even if they never come inside.  It can be hard for a new LGD owner to realize the balance between a working dog and turning a cute fluff ball into a house dog that wants to bond with family instead of the flock.  Training makes the difference between the mediocre, good and great LGDs.  A great LGD can still be a great family dog!  A great family dog doesn't always make a great LGD.  We all have different needs for our ranches - hopefully everyone has the dog they need and enjoy.  We have had many good LGDs but our current one (Rika - Anatolian) is above and beyond the best.  Good luck to all of you and your LGDs.  The laborer is worthy of his hire - don't forget to give them a thank you pat every day!


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## samssimonsays

Yes... it is very funny! excited, scared, you name it. Cat swats at him and he will lose all control   But we love him!

 ButasI said before, we had no livestock we wanted him to protect, only to bring us some happy after our pyr was hit and killed by a car. Our collie was right behind him when it happened and took it extremely hard as they were very close. We were losing her so we brought home this mix since we definitely wanted another pyr but were not ready for another pure white or full pyr yet. (only a few weeks post loss). He was a lump o' poop then as well  but has only turned into a BIGGER baby. We don't mind. After he was brought home to be a family pet we would never be able to turn him lose to sleep at night. Our pyr never spent a night outside, neither will the collie or this boy. IF we got an LGD it would be purchased for that and knowingly would be a working dog and trained as such not babied the way we will baby our pets but loved dearly and bonded with as well. It would just be known it would be a working dog not only a pet and WE would be prepared for it to be a mostly outside pup. Not brought into bed with us each night like our collie...    I mean... did I admit to that?   Ok, ok, ok! It would be spoiled freakin rotten but would be out with the goats and penned in with them at night where it is warm and safe because even though I would have it to protect the goats I would not want anything to happen to it and so on because I am a softy and ... BUT it would be trained properly LOL so that is all that matters... right?


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## Southern by choice

Samantha drawz said:


> but would be out with the goats and penned in with them at night where it is warm and safe because even though I would have it to protect the goats I would not want anything to happen to it



That would be a dis-service to a LGD and there would be no purpose in  having one if it cannot do it's job ... you would make it sad. 



Samantha drawz said:


> BUT it would be trained properly LOL so that is all that matters... right?



That would not be training it properly.


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## samssimonsays

Sigh... I knnnnoooooowwwwwww.... UGH! This is why I want a donkey !!!   My husband will not let me bring said donkey into the home and he wont beg to bring a donkey in either. But we do want another Pyr, just one who would have a job. My boy is too far gone and he never really had the instinct to be tough... he can't exactly think like  a pyr either... he got ALL the bernard size, personality and BRAIN. Yep... complete mush physically and mentally. BUT I would get another from the people in a heart beat as they do train them and have amazing LGD's on site. He just didn't cut it obviously because she wanted to keep him but couldn't because he is as ambitious as a rock.


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## Southern by choice

He sounds like a big lovable lug.

I wish I could make one of mine a housedog. 

They like coming in for a visit but no way no how will they live in... they start freaking to  get out. They love their jobs.

One day I will get a "dud" and it will be perfect!


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## samssimonsays

When we got our first pyr he was highly capable of being an excellent LGD but he was just as content with being on the couch with US as his flock. He also adopted the neighbors as his flock as well... He enjoyed visiting to play with neighbor dogs and make sure their property was all ok. but inside her would go ad be totally fine  We got him at 8 weeks old, well day before then, and just kept him in the house. At first both he and our mixed boy overheated but we laid ice packs down for them Yep... they would sleep like rocks then! We also had nothing outside for them to want to protect... Makes a difference.

Our full pyr was VERY independent and hard headed , strong willed and very smart and made his own decisions (Lots of dominance issues that an experienced breeder would have picked up on and not sold him to first time pyr owners as a pet!) that ... New boy... not so much  But as someone who has been around bernards I know he FITS with them perfectly.


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## BlessedWithGoats

Aww! @Southern by choice and @Samantha drawz! I love Great Pyrs! I got my first one last Spring; he is a great dog! I am glad to see that people don't necessarily follow the rule that you shouldn't bond with your LGD, (thanks @Ridgetop!); he _is_ my buddy and protector, but he's also got to do his job, which is to patrol our property and protect our flocks/herds. I'm working on boundary training him, so hopefully he can run loose soon!  He does a good job of barking at coyotes, neighbor dogs, and such!


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## samssimonsays

BlessedWithGoats said:


> Aww! @Southern by choice and @Samantha drawz! I love Great Pyrs! I got my first one last Spring; he is a great dog! I am glad to see that people don't necessarily follow the rule that you shouldn't bond with your LGD, (thanks @Ridgetop!); he _is_ my buddy and protector, but he's also got to do his job, which is to patrol our property and protect our flocks/herds. I'm working on boundary training him, so hopefully he can run loose soon!  He does a good job of barking at coyotes, neighbor dogs, and such!


They really are one of the best dogs IMHO Definitely not for an inexperienced dog owner! I would love to have some and have litters and train them right fo rothers to enjoy. seems most want to ditch em at 8 weeks instead of put in the extra time with them... so sad.


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## BlessedWithGoats

Samantha drawz said:


> They really are one of the best dogs IMHO Definitely not for an inexperienced dog owner! I would love to have some and have litters and train them right fo rothers to enjoy. seems most want to ditch em at 8 weeks instead of put in the extra time with them... so sad.


That would be neat! I might like to raise them someday, but I would need a lot more LGD experience to make sure I trained them right... 
Aww, that's sad.  How old should they be before you let them go to a new home?


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## Southern by choice

I can tell you why most send them off at 8 weeks and it has nothing to do with bonding with the livestock or anything like that.

*They get very expensive after 8 weeks*.

Example- 
our feed bill for the pups was $800 last month. That is just the feed!
That did not include the dewormer that I have to give each dog- each pup gets 3days in a row of the dewormer... the bigger the dog the more dewormer... that adds up quick...
Shots... more shots...
in two weeks all pups will then get their rabies.... 
then add in heartworm preventative

For our pups and the fact that they are very large 45#- 50# at 14wks  that adds up. 

The other side is the few that do keep them longer for so called "training" do not do a darn thing with them. 

Leaving them with parent  is not the same thing and actually does a disservice to the pup. Best to move them in with older other stock, not the momma dog.

There are many things that a breeder should do and work on if they are keeping the dog longer.

The majority of the pups we have are staying til 20 weeks, some less and the others longer than that.


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## BlessedWithGoats

Southern by choice said:


> I can tell you why most send them off at 8 weeks and it has nothing to do with bonding with the livestock or anything like that.
> 
> *They get very expensive after 8 weeks*.
> 
> Example-
> our feed bill for the pups was $800 last month. That is just the feed!
> That did not include the dewormer that I have to give each dog- each pup gets 3days in a row of the dewormer... the bigger the dog the more dewormer... that adds up quick...
> Shots... more shots...
> in two weeks all pups will then get their rabies....
> then add in heartworm preventative
> 
> For our pups and the fact that they are very large 45#- 50# at 14wks  that adds up.
> 
> The other side is the few that do keep them longer for so called "training" do not do a darn thing with them.
> 
> Leaving them with parent  is not the same thing and actually does a disservice to the pup. Best to move them in with older other stock, not the momma dog.
> 
> There are many things that a breeder should do and work on if they are keeping the dog longer.
> 
> The majority of the pups we have are staying til 20 weeks, some less and the others longer than that.


 Wow! That sure is a lot, but it's worth it to have a well trained dog! I can tell you really care about your pups! (And the older LGD's too!)  Thanks for the helpful info! Learning a lot on here from you all...


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## Ridgetop

Pyrs can be very sweet natured - that is why we chose Pyrs as our first guardian dogs.  Being a 4-H leader and having young kids who brought their friends home to play with the baby goats, etc. we wanted an LGD that was sweet with people and hard on predators.  We had 5 of them, all good dogs but they liked to roam.  Their idea of protecting our (then) 1 1/2 acres was to patrol the entire 100 acres surrounding it!  While they kept predators away, now our neighborhood has less livestock people and more city people, thus our change to an Anatolian.  I called dozens of breeders and owners to check out whether they roam like Pyrs first.  Her breeder is Erick Conard and he trains all his pups.  His website is Lucky Hit Farms and he has some incredible articles on it about choosing an LGD, training them, etc., as well as what to look for in breeding.  He has been breeding and training Anatolians for 30 years and is a fountain of info, wonderful to talk to and just an all around great guy.  He started showing his dogs because the show people said that guardians could not be successfully shown.  His dogs won the first time out and have continued to win big all over the country.  His website is worth a visit just for the articles.  He is adamant about placing his dogs in livestock homes.  Rika was 18 months when we got her, he had 2 he was keeping for breeding and finally decided to part with her.  We couldn't take a puppy because the predators that were killing our sheep would have eaten a little pup!  Rika bonded to us on the car trip from Texas to California.  She was never around small children and after only 3 introductions she was protecting our 5 grandchildren, ages 1 to 7, from everything including rabbits and crows! LOL  She does sometimes try to sneak inside during the day but a stern reminder to "Go to your sheep" sends her back to her job.  She is totally allowed to come in at night after the sheep are locked in the barn.  She enjoys socializing with us for several hours but always wants to go back outside to continue her guardian duties during the night.  Some people can't sleep at night because of barking dogs but for me, my barking LGD is like a sleeping pill!  I know she is working and keeping us safe from predators.  Rika is the best LGD we have ever had.  I don't know whether it is the breed, Erick's bloodlines, or his training, but we sure got lucky when we were referred to him.  He is well known by all the Anatolian breeders, and is renowned for his honesty and knowledge of the breed.  Even if you don't have one of his dogs, he will help with any training or behavior problems you have.  When Rika gets older and needs help, we will totally get another of Erick's dogs.  Check out the articles on his website - they are fascinating.  Just a warning though - his website is huge so scroll down past all the Anatolian pix to the end and you will find the link to Articles.  I still get lost sometimes when on his site!  If you have LGDs now, you will recognize a lot of the behaviors, and if you don't, you may not believe that these dogs can act the way they do.  If you have sheep and goats, a rabbitry or poultry yard, an LGD is a must!  Everyone has their favorite breed, but there is no wrong LGD!


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## Ridgetop

Southern by choice said:


> I can tell you why most send them off at 8 weeks and it has nothing to do with bonding with the livestock or anything like that.
> 
> *They get very expensive after 8 weeks*.
> 
> Example-
> our feed bill for the pups was $800 last month. That is just the feed!
> That did not include the dewormer that I have to give each dog- each pup gets 3days in a row of the dewormer... the bigger the dog the more dewormer... that adds up quick...
> Shots... more shots...
> in two weeks all pups will then get their rabies....
> then add in heartworm preventative
> 
> For our pups and the fact that they are very large 45#- 50# at 14wks  that adds up.
> 
> The other side is the few that do keep them longer for so called "training" do not do a darn thing with them.
> 
> Leaving them with parent  is not the same thing and actually does a disservice to the pup. Best to move them in with older other stock, not the momma dog.
> 
> There are many things that a breeder should do and work on if they are keeping the dog longer.
> 
> The majority of the pups we have are staying til 20 weeks, some less and the others longer than that.



Southern by choice:
You are sooo right!  Breeders don't dump their pups at 8 weeks, most people don't realize hos big they get by 12 weeks!  You have to feed them 3 x a day and shots and worming costs even when you vaccinate them yourself.  We bred one litter of Pyrs and they cost a fortune.  We had them till 12 weeks.  Most were spoken for before birth, and we sold the last 2 at a livestock show.  All but one went to livestock homes, and that one I took back from the non-livestock home because she said the dog barked too much and her landlord complained.  I placed her in a livestock home where she became an incredible guardian.  I stopped breeding after that litter because I worried I wouldn't find livestock homes for the next pups.  The first litter was a labor of love - there is no money in it!   LGD pups are adorable but it is like having a litter of horses!  They grow huge by 10 and 12 weeks!  Training the puppy takes an incredible amount of time.  You are right about most people just keeping them with mom and thinking she will train them.  There are all kinds of puppy play behaviors that need to be watched for and eradicated to make a good guardian.  See my previous post referring to Lucky Hit website - Erick trains his puppies carefully, but the resulting dog is not cheap!  A properly trained LGD is worth thousands of dollars and that is what you pay for a good one.  Not all breeders are honest about what they sell either.  LGDs are not like any other dogs - they are almost impossible to obedience train  because they think for themselves.  After all that is why you have them.  If you could smell the predator in the bushes you wouldn't need one.  and you can't wait till you see the predator to tell the dog to protect!  That can also make them dangerous in the hands of people who don't understand their temperament and what they are bred for.  Samantha drawz is right about not all LGDs being for first time owners.  When we got our first LGDs I had been training dogs for almost 20 years.  It was still hard training our first LGD puppy and he probably became an good guardian in spite of, rather than because of my attempts!  LOL


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## OneFineAcre

Ridgetop said:


> Pyrs can be very sweet natured - that is why we chose Pyrs as our first guardian dogs.  Being a 4-H leader and having young kids who brought their friends home to play with the baby goats, etc. we wanted an LGD that was sweet with people and hard on predators.  We had 5 of them, all good dogs but they liked to roam.  Their idea of protecting our (then) 1 1/2 acres was to patrol the entire 100 acres surrounding it!  While they kept predators away, now our neighborhood has less livestock people and more city people, thus our change to an Anatolian.  I called dozens of breeders and owners to check out whether they roam like Pyrs first.  Her breeder is Erick Conard and he trains all his pups.  His website is Lucky Hit Farms and he has some incredible articles on it about choosing an LGD, training them, etc., as well as what to look for in breeding.  He has been breeding and training Anatolians for 30 years and is a fountain of info, wonderful to talk to and just an all around great guy.  He started showing his dogs because the show people said that guardians could not be successfully shown.  His dogs won the first time out and have continued to win big all over the country.  His website is worth a visit just for the articles.  He is adamant about placing his dogs in livestock homes.  Rika was 18 months when we got her, he had 2 he was keeping for breeding and finally decided to part with her.  We couldn't take a puppy because the predators that were killing our sheep would have eaten a little pup!  Rika bonded to us on the car trip from Texas to California.  She was never around small children and after only 3 introductions she was protecting our 5 grandchildren, ages 1 to 7, from everything including rabbits and crows! LOL  She does sometimes try to sneak inside during the day but a stern reminder to "Go to your sheep" sends her back to her job.  She is totally allowed to come in at night after the sheep are locked in the barn.  She enjoys socializing with us for several hours but always wants to go back outside to continue her guardian duties during the night.  Some people can't sleep at night because of barking dogs but for me, my barking LGD is like a sleeping pill!  I know she is working and keeping us safe from predators.  Rika is the best LGD we have ever had.  I don't know whether it is the breed, Erick's bloodlines, or his training, but we sure got lucky when we were referred to him.  He is well known by all the Anatolian breeders, and is renowned for his honesty and knowledge of the breed.  Even if you don't have one of his dogs, he will help with any training or behavior problems you have.  When Rika gets older and needs help, we will totally get another of Erick's dogs.  Check out the articles on his website - they are fascinating.  Just a warning though - his website is huge so scroll down past all the Anatolian pix to the end and you will find the link to Articles.  I still get lost sometimes when on his site!  If you have LGDs now, you will recognize a lot of the behaviors, and if you don't, you may not believe that these dogs can act the way they do.  If you have sheep and goats, a rabbitry or poultry yard, an LGD is a must!  Everyone has their favorite breed, but there is no wrong LGD!


We know some local people here in NC who have Pyrs and they have a friend in VA with a male Lucky Hit Ranch Anatolian they have bred their Pyrs too
We know a few people with animals from that crossing that think they are are very good


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## BantammChick

Great Pyrenees. That is what my dog Bolt is.


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## TheCuteOrpington

Great Pyrenees- very sweet, and loyal to me.


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## Show Sebright

I want an Australian shepherd for my animals.


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## Ridgetop

Aussies are great family farm dogs, but are NOT livestock guardian dogs.  Livestock guardian dogs are specific to living with and guarding small livestock like sheep and goats.  Some can be trained (with effort) to guard poultry.  They are not particularly good guardians for cattle or horses for several reasons.  They have different ways of guarding depending on breed.  They also have different types of breed specific personalities.  These breed personalities should not be confused with the different personalities you can find between individual dogs.  

Aussies are good family dogs, and also are very good obedience dogs.  They can be trained to herd sheep and poultry.  They will run off some predators as well as trespassers.  They are good watch dogs.  They are not good LGDs.


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## Show Sebright

Y’all think a poodle can be trained as a livestock dog? They are very smart. I want a assiedoodle or a poodle when I grow up


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## Mini Horses

Predator load is a huge consideration.  Some farm dogs are enough for the occasional possum, deer, etc.  But if you need dogs that will and can handle more, it's a whole different ballgame.  A team of good LGDs will move the animals, guard and warn off but if more is needed, they will fight!  Just a really different attitude and devotion to duty.  They WILL protect, without backing down.

No. The doodles will do little more than daylight scare offs.   Mindset is not there for true putting it all on the line "guard duty".   BUT poodles (& some doodles😁) are very smart.  Great service types.


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## Ridgetop

Anatolians every time.  My Pyrs were good but roamers, every last one.  My Anatolians are fantastic.  Stay on the property with the sheep, work all night, good with the family, suspicious of strangers, wonderful with injured or lambing ewes, quiet and laid bsck in the house for family bonding time.  

We only have 6 acres in the San Fernando Valley but have a tremendous coyote problem. We have 100 open acres behind us and easy access to the wash and Angeles National Forest.  It takes all 3 Anatolians working to keep the flock safe.  We have found several coyote bodies on the property over the last year or so.  We also have cougar annually.  Between Thanksgiving and March is usually when they come down from the Angeles National Forest and cross the wash into the neighborhoods looking for prey.

Anatolians definitely!


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## Baymule

Another vote for Anatolians! My one remaining Pyr jumps any fence and is a problem child. My 2 Anatolians are devoted to their flock. Moving to a smaller place on a highway, going to have to build Fort Knox to keep the Pyr from becoming a white furry pancake on the road.


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## frustratedearthmother

Anatolians!  Also have Anatolian/Pyrs that do the job.  But, the Anatolian is absolutely devoted to his goats with special emphasis on loving the kids!


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## Legamin

Mike CHS said:


> We're planning on getting an Anatolian pretty soon. I can't imagine an Aussie being a good guard dog due to their herding instinct.  Our Aussie is still a pup but well started on herding.  A few weeks ago she spent several minutes nipping and barking at a dead deer to make it get up and move.
> 
> Having said that OFA has a Border Collie mix (I think) that he's happy with.


we got out border collie ‘basically trained for herding’….she is 2 years old and she has not one singe herding instinct.  She is terrified of her shadow and sheep mystify  and terrify her simultaneously.  (Never listen to a cowboy bragging on his dog!). What she IS….is the most incredibly obedient fastest command learning dog I have every known!  She has learned all the commands for herding in just a few months.  Command, “lie down” and she will drop like an incredibly alert stone even if she is in the middle of her ‘personal business’.  She is so eager to please.  But she also seeks approval from the sheep…she wants to join the flock.  She is the most useless and expensive piece of equipment on the farm.  BUT…I see hope in the future!  The newest craze for sheep herding dogs in this part of the woods is a Border Collie / Golden Retriever….Golden Border Collie or Border Retriever….the debate has not been settled.  They have thee stamens, the intelligence, the grace and boldness necessary and they are willing to curl up in the corner at night after working all day…the energy that seems endless in the daytime abates.  That….and their not just a fuzzy ball of needy.
My thought is to take our healthy but useless Border Collie bitch to someone with an athletic Golden Retriever of known genetics and breed her.  One thing for sure in this area each of those puppies, with a little boot camp training will sell for $2,000 after just a four month training investment.  Of course the pick of the litter stays and is kept from mom’s bad influences.


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## Legamin

Baymule said:


> Another vote for Anatolians! My one remaining Pyr jumps any fence and is a problem child. My 2 Anatolians are devoted to their flock. Moving to a smaller place on a highway, going to have to build Fort Knox to keep the Pyr from becoming a white furry pancake on the road.


This is something we have been researching for over a year.  Anatolian seems to be the best option for us but you can find Pyr pure bred dogs plentiful and cheap…I’m not going cheap this time…I do NOT need another pet dog!
we keep a pure bred flock and a meat hybrid flock so we are considering two dogs.  The rams have demonstrated they can care for their own interests.  They set a mountain lion on his heels when he had the bad sense to wander into their pen.  They are polled and they love their loving head scratches like big teddy bears but if you don’t belong in their pen…..Woe! Are you!


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## Baymule

Legamin said:


> This is something we have been researching for over a year.  Anatolian seems to be the best option for us but you can find Pyr pure bred dogs plentiful and cheap…I’m not going cheap this time…I do NOT need another pet dog!
> we keep a pure bred flock and a meat hybrid flock so we are considering two dogs.  The rams have demonstrated they can care for their own interests.  They set a mountain lion on his heels when he had the bad sense to wander into their pen.  They are polled and they love their loving head scratches like big teddy bears but if you don’t belong in their pen…..Woe! Are you!


Find a reputable breeder. I bought a beautiful male puppy, half Anatolian, 1/4 Pyrenees, 1/4 Akbash. Brilliant smart, awesome dog. At 9 months old, he was limping. A vet exam revealed hip dysplasia, the vet called him a train wreck. We elected for surgery, femoral head ostectomy. It was a heart breaking experience. Today, you'd never know it. he recovered, runs, plays and is a exceptional guard dog. But for the money spent, I could have had a registered dog from the best breeder. Lesson learned. There are good dogs out there from people who have a farm and a few good dogs. But there are also people out there with a few dogs that should never be bred.


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