Misfitmorgan's Journal - That Summer Dust

[Sara Ranch]

Wow - just catching up on all the challenges you've experienced since end of November!

*hugs*

Congrats on Rose!

 

[misfitmorgan]

Yes, very small.
More than likely whoever bred her had no clue as far as proper nutrition and deworming.
The other factor is the breeding of inferior animals. Pisses me off when people breed little pyrs.
This is how these dogs are being ruined. The dogs may be sweet and wonderful but doesn't mean they should be bred.

Rant over.

Since she is 2 she will not grow much more, maybe another inch on the height and weight will depend on your care from here.
Please have a vet run a HW test on her, check for tick borne illnesses and start deworming her.

On the flip side- I will refer to my signature line (big or small)
"Pyr's... they simply make life better"

The people we got her from were the ones who bred her, the parents didnt seem really huge either but were bigger then Rose for sure. They said she was eating Proplan and Pedigree mixed 50/50, we have her on Diamond Naturals Large Breed and venison for protein. Hopefully that's a good diet for a GP, I had planned on giving her large breed puppy but she is a bit old for puppy i think. I don't mind your rants @Southern by choice I agree 100%, i feel the same about anyone breeding anything just because they can. Rose is already fixed but even if she wasnt I wouldnt breed her because of being small sized.

We will get HW run though we do use Ivermectin for worming our dogs(per our vet its ok since we dont have shepards and no one has shown adverse reactions) which also treats for heartworm. My vet as with most vets has never seen a case of heartworm in a live dog in his life. We have the added benefit being in the cold that we only have to treat for heartworm twice a year, her first dose will be a HW dose though which will also take care of any worms. I was going to wait until it warmed up to worry about HW but if she was never treated before better to be safe then sorry. I also ordered shots for her as she has apparently never had them. She is getting a 5-way because we do not have lepto here and i already gave her a rabies shot.

My female Pyrenees is only 67 pounds. She is small for the breed, but her heart is big and she does a great job. So don't let Rose's size worry you. She will still be an awesome poultry protector.

But I have to agree with SBC, people breed dogs that don't meet the standard.

I'm more worried I won't feed her right of give her what she needs to the actual size she ends up. She just seemed small so I thought maybe I'm just thinking Pyrs should be bigger. Rose is a great girl and already tried to protect the flock...from DH.

DH went into the workshop the day after we had got her home...he was met at the door by Rose or as he puts it "a white ball of teeth and growling" she did not hurt him at all. DH simply looked down at her and told her to "knock it off" as he walked into the shop, she stopped immediately and went and hid. DH coaxed her out and reassured her she was being a good girl but he wasnt going to hurt any of her poultry. He said it is really important she keeps her confidence so re-assurance that yes she is doing the right thing is important. After that she has been happy to see DH in the shop. DH told me to not go in the shop for a few days on my own just until he can be sure she is adjusted well and knows we are alright to be in "her" shop.

Playing catch-up. I'm really sad for you that you lost Mocha, it's never ever easy when this stuff happens. I lost one of my Toggs a few years ago like that too, just went out and she was dead. It hurts.

Rose is going to be a great dog. She has found good people and she knows it.

It really sucks Thank you Babs.

Congrats on Rose! I see that smile through all her fear and concern. She's gonna be your bestest friend in no time at all. Very pretty girl even being small. They are so eager to please. So sorry about Mocha... sad, unexpected, unexplained loss.

I already love her! There is just something about her that tugs on my heart strings. I don't know if it is the calm she seems to have or what she also seems calm, wise, and patient all at once...something i've rarely seen from dogs. I do see it in my other dogs but only generally around small children and it isnt aimed at me, if that makes any sense. It's entirely different when it is towards you.

YYour rant is justified.
(preface by stating I don't know much at all about this breed of dog..but..)
This, is something we are seeing more and more of, across a wide range of species and orders..canine, bovine, plant/animal etc, and others. There is a reason so many of us now look for heirloom seeds..we came close to forever losing taste, nutrition and texture in many fruits and vegs, and I'm seeing lots of discussion now about damage being done by selcting for single traits in livestock production, but the real damage comes from inadvertent breeding and poor culling practices. It's one thing to create a composite breed for any particular purpose, but another altogether to screw up what nature did pretty perfectly over many generations in relation to working animals.
I wonder sometime, (again, across a wide spectrum) if some of the breeds and species we are all familiar with today will be completely gone in a few hundred years.
There's something to be said for breeding the best to the best and the truest to the truest.

I agree and I hope people will one day learn you need to breed to make a better animal not just breed to say oh look i did this and this was the result, isnt it great.....umm no you idiot.

 

[misfitmorgan]

Wow - just catching up on all the challenges you've experienced since end of November!

*hugs*

Congrats on Rose!

Thank you!

 

[misfitmorgan]

So nothing new really happened over the weekend.

Rose did meet our one wether though, he ran into the shop when DH had opened the door and he ran up to Rose and did the classic head tuck. You know the i'm big and bad and will ram you head tuck, right n Rose's face. Rose sniffed towards him and gave one very loud bark into his face and the wether decided that was ok. Then DH kicked the wether back outside.

On a side note..... our net fence has stopped working because the snow has gotten to deep. While we have the warm weather this week DH and i will be working on digging out the fence and lifting it up 6 inches off the ground on T-posts so it will stay working until we have a foot or more of snow. Ideally we would buy fencing but it isnt in the budget because our utility bills got crazy high before we winterized the house(plastic windows, seal up air gaps around doors, etc) so lifting the fence will have to do for another month at least. So for the past week the sheep and goats have been hoping the now shorter die to snow build up fence and helping themselves to the hay bales we have stacked outside as a windbreak in front of the shop...and anything else they think they should eat. They have stayed in the back by their pen the entire time except one morning we saw hoofprints around the front of the garage but thats the farthest they have gone.

We have been mulling over a new name for the farm. Possibly....Stone's Folly Farm

 

[Bruce]

and I'm seeing lots of discussion now about damage being done by selcting for single traits in livestock production

That sort of thing always gets me back to English Bulldogs. Bred for 2 traits, narrow hips, broad shoulders. They would cease to exist as a breed if not for veterinarians and C-sections. Just stupid.

My vet as with most vets has never seen a case of heart worm in a live dog in his life.

Not surprising given where you live. I might have Rose tested "just because" and ignore HW for the future. At best, there is likely only a slim chance during the summer where the overnight low doesn't go below the 57°F lower limit for the mosquito borne stage to survive. And that < 57°F only has to happen ONCE in a 45 day period. According to Accuweather for Saginaw last summer, there was not even a 30 day period where the temp didn't drop down closer to 50°F than 57°F.

Like here, the only animal that will have heart worm is one that is taken to and returned from or brought from a much warmer climate.

 

[Baymule]

DH went into the workshop the day after we had got her home...he was met at the door by Rose or as he puts it "a white ball of teeth and growling" she did not hurt him at all. DH simply looked down at her and told her to "knock it off" as he walked into the shop, she stopped immediately and went and hid. DH coaxed her out and reassured her she was being a good girl but he wasnt going to hurt any of her poultry. He said it is really important she keeps her confidence so re-assurance that yes she is doing the right thing is important. After that she has been happy to see DH in the shop. DH told me to not go in the shop for a few days on my own just until he can be sure she is adjusted well and knows we are alright to be in "her" shop.

This is good! It means that she has already staked her claim and as you said, the shop is "hers." It is amazing what tender feelings GP's have. Mine are crushed if I scold them. Then I go love on them and everything is right in their world again. It sounds like Rose is going to be an awesome dog for y'all.

 

[misfitmorgan]

She does seem like she gets her feelings hurt easily. She also recovers fast with a bit of reassurance that she is indeed a good girl. We love her and she is already making us laugh.

Yesterday when we went into the shop, Rose barked at us again though only one bark and no meeting at the door. No meeting at the door because she had taken the "high ground"...she was on top of one of the hay stacks and laying up in the rafters.

I have no idea how she managed to get up there since the shortest bale on the stack edge was 4 bales tall but she did and liked it up there it seems. DH called her down, then he moved the stack around so it is easier for her to get up and down the hay. DH left the door open so Rose could go outside, she went outside and went to investigate the goats/sheep. They took off sure she was going to murder them all and ran back in their pasture. Rose stayed pretty close to the shop and decided she had enough outside time so went back in the shop. She was using the hay bed i made for her but might be using just the hay bales now.

 

[Wehner Homestead]

I loved my Pyrs! There was just something about those white, furry dogs and the hugs that they love. Mine always tried to get on my lap and they weighed more than I do! The last breeder we got one from has a litter currently and keeps asking if I want one (she's an enabler lol as she doesn't have trouble selling them, she just wants us to have one.) DH wants to wait a little longer...I want a sidekick for Queenie. We shall see how it turns out...love your Rose girl! What I wouldn't give to give her a Pyr hug!!!!

 

[Baymule]

For your GP viewing pleasure.

Livestock is not all they guard.

Taking care of the sheep.

This one was a tear jerker. Our Australian Shepard died in my arms and we were digging her grave, bawling like babies. This is Trip guarding his friend after trying so hard to wake her up. He laid on her grave for hours.

Paris killing a snake.

A full body Pyrenees hug.

@Wehner Homestead have you reserved your pup yet? LOL

 

[Wehner Homestead]

Tentatively! The breeder knows that my DH is the one that needs convincing. I haven't ever just brought a dog home though I did in a round about way being home 8 kittens last year - thats another story - and I only got "the look" and an eyeroll! I haven't decided if I want to push the issue or not. I have a few medical tests pending and that will tell me if I have the time to put in or not. Queenie's breeder will have pups from a different sire this summer too...decisions!

I'd prefer one of each! I'll be the crazy dog lady! ​