We have gotten a lot of questions about our fencing and how we keep our dogs contained. We have 47″ tall woven wire steel field fence that makes up our pens. The fence is perfectly adequate for our Kunekune pigs, hair sheep, Jersey cow, and puppies. However, our older livestock guardian dogs could easily hop out of our fences at […]
READ MOREWith all the noise online today, it can be tough to remember to start at the basics… I want to address our responsibilities and expectations as LGD owners, since the opinion extremes flow so freely elsewhere. Let’s just start with some simple facts, shall we? When you purchase an animal, you as the human owner take on certain responsibilities to […]
READ MOREAlright, let’s do this. Why do people crossbreed LGD x LGD? (Because outcrossing is a whole different topic for another day. Maybe later in the day. Past 5 PM when drinking is socially acceptable.) 1. “Availability” This was more of an issue 10 years ago when I was searching for a working line LGD around Montana and simply couldn’t find […]
READ MOREWe have received multiple inquiries from our clients and friends in the last few days regarding the DNA panels our dogs participate in. Many of the same questions and concerns repeated by multiple parties. This post will serve as our official position statement on Health Testing (DNA and beyond) in canines so it is all in one convenient place going […]
READ MORELivestock Guardian Dogs Predators
Please read the first post, Born to be Wild: Predator where I gave my take on an adult LGD and her puppies being killed by wolves. Today, let’s look at preventative measures that producers can use to mitigate our losses and set our animals up for success. I mentioned the two primary characteristics that govern a wolf’s behavior: Opportunistic and Territorial. […]
READ MORELivestock Guardian Dogs Predators
A 3 year-old post has resurfaced in the livestock guardian dog circles across the internet recently. Normally, this is something I don’t even notice, much less give a second thought to. Who cares if something that happened a few years ago is being brought up? It’s probably still relevant… right? Not always. So you can read it for yourself, here […]
READ MOREAKA: Illyrian Shepherd, Macedonian ShepherdNicknames: Shar, Sar, Sarpla The Šarplaninac land race/breed originates in the Balkans, dating well before the Holy Roman Empire. Back when the region was called “Illyria,” these dogs roamed with their owners and their flocks of sheep. Traditional shepherd’s dogs, the Shars were selectively bred to perform guardian work integral to the lifestyle of their shepherds. […]
READ MOREIcelandic Chickens Kunekune pigs Livestock Guardian Dogs
Not everyone has a large spread to ranch on. Many families starting their ranching lifestyle are moving to 20 or less acres of land. How do we succeed? When we have small acreage to work with, we cannot operate in the same fashion as a rancher with hundreds of acres available. Rather than running 300 commercial ewes or does for […]
READ MOREBreed matters! Livestock guardian dogs have been selected for type and performance over centuries in multiple regions around the world. This study is scratching the surface of which genes correlate with predictable behaviors in a given breed, noting that breeds are unique in these various loci. While they are anthropomorphic in this article, the principle is sound. A Border Collie, […]
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