A Breed Mixup/Less than truthful

[AmberRaif]

That really sucks. Is the father of the pup a Pyr/Anatolian cross or did the breeder lie about that too? I think I would call him and confront him, politely, for lying to you. It wouldn't change anything, but it would make me feel better.

Prepare for bedlam, if it comes, then you are expecting it, and you know what to do. If this dog actually makes a decent LGD, take it as a nice surprise. He might be better as a farm dog.

Also, I have seen photos of both parents and the father certainly looks Anatolian/Pyr, as he was claimed to be. I should have realized from the photos that the mother wasn't (she doesn't look it), but he assured me that she was just "red fawn", and the pup was so gorgeous I wanted to believe him. I have asked him about the untruth...and he admitted to not knowing what the mother was. He claims that they got her full grown, then bought the Anatolian Pyr male later because they loved what they assumed she was, an anatolian mix, and wanted another Anatolian. The parents aren't working dogs. They are pets in a subdivison, so the fact that Caspian is so good out here on our land and has integrated with the goats so completely...I'm just waiting for it to all fall apart when the lab or whatever clicks into being. And praying it doesn't. Because we only need two LGD's. Not enough land for more (three acres, fenced, but not crossfenced). So if he fails as an LGD...we will probably have to rehome him. We have bad coyote problems during certain seasons and need two LGD's during the daytime, nightime everybody goes in the barn. And we can't afford to keep three responsibly. So...fingers crossed and training continues.

 

[Baymule]

We have a Lab/Great Dane cross along with our 2 Great Pyrenees. I don't see the Lab as a drawback here, it may compliment the Pyr/Anatolian of your pup's father. He just might turn out to be a fine LGD. I sure hope so.

 

[Ridgetop]

At 5 months Caspian is still a young puppy. The larger the breed the longer to maturity. I would not be worried about him trying to play with the goats occasionally as long as he responds to warnings from you, the Pyr and the herd queen. The herd queen has taught him respect by knocking him around, and the Pyr grabbing him and punishing him when he tries to get rough with the goats is excellent training. Keep watching him and even if he does not become great LGD, hopefully he will learn to be a good farm dog. A good farm dog is different than a livestock guardian, but they also will go after predators that come onto the property after the livestock. Having the Pyr to train him, he should become a good dog. Definitely start him in basic obedience since he is a mix breed.

What did the mother look like? The black and tan dog in the photo looks like he has more herding dog in him than Pyr or Anatolian. Are the breeders sure that the male was a Pyr/Anatolian cross? However, just because he is not a pureblood LGD does not mean he cannot be trained to leave the goats alone and protect the farmyard and pasture. It may mean that he will not chase off other dogs, some of our farm dogs did not chase off neighborhood stray dogs but would attack the coyotes. Our LGDs drive off the stray dogs as well.

Look for blood on the goats' or sheeps' legs and ears and watch him to see if he is trying to play with them. From the sound of it, your Pyr is disciplining him very well. Our Anatolian puppy was raised with livestock, but drew blood when she tried to play with our lambs and our ewes were too soft to discipline her We moved her into a pen with our rams and they taught her not to try to nip at them in play. Our rams are pretty gentle too so they did not go after her hard. He is a baby still, so be prepared for mistakes. One caveat is that Anatolians can be very dominant so put some obedience training into him and hopefully his LGD heritage will triumph.