Your
Livestock Guardian Dog:
Liability or Asset?
Brenda M. Negri
Copyright 2015 Brenda M. Negri
and sheep! MAGAZINE
Published May/June 2015
Do you own a Livestock Guardian Dog
that was brought up “hands off”, and can’t be handled, caught or touched?
When it comes time for annual
vaccinations and periodic de-wormings, are you amongst the number of Livestock
Guardian Dog (LGD) owners who must resort to creative means in order to catch,
hold or contain their flock guardians in order to work on them?
Once the accepted norm, rearing LGDs in
a “hands off”, “don’t socialize or touch” manner is steadily falling out of
favor in an age of increased public lands use by recreationalists, urbanization
of farm and ranch lands and the rapid subdividing of once rural areas. LGDs who can’t be handled or touched safely,
and who are afraid of people, are nowadays turning into liabilities, not
assets.
What exactly does this mean? Those of us utilizing Livestock Guardian Dogs
(LGDs) to protect our valuable cattle, sheep, goats, horses, alpacas and fowl,
have new challenges these days facing us that must be met head on and dealt
with, lest we risk losing our rights to farm and use these magnificent dogs as
protection for our flocks. Running and
owning skittish, half-feral, untrusting LGDs is no longer the smartest or
safest way to go as increased population presses in on all sides, and more and
more people venture into BLM and USFS lands where many sheep and goat operators
run their stock, guarded by dogs.
Let’s examine this topic that regularly
incites many online arguments and debates.
When the first testing and use of LGDs
in this country was performed in the 1970’s by government USDA researchers and
sheep stations, it was decided by researchers that minimal human interaction
with LGDs was the preferred method of rearing.
From that initial assumption grew an entire cadre of LGD users who took
the “minimal human interaction” to extremes probably never intended by the
original researchers. Because LGDs work
off of ingrained instinct - that is, good ones are born with the instinct to
guard in them which does not need to be instilled by human training - some commercial
sheep outfits and ranchers soon realized these dogs would work and guard for
them with little or no input on their part.
They quickly classified them as a tool, much like a hammer or saw, and
little else.
The argument is presented by some - and
could in a few situations hold water - that dogs who were not easy to approach
served as a much stronger deterrent to potential two-legged rustlers of
livestock. And certainly, the thought of
tangling with a not-so friendly 160 pd LGD would put off most would be thieves
of sheep, goats or cattle. This is the
reason some people give for not handling their LGDs as pups. They want them uber-aloof and
suspicious, if not outright vicious, towards people - enough so that it
discourages anyone from approaching, whether their intent is innocent curiosity
or with ideas of stealing livestock. Of
course, observers can quickly point out that all the rustlers would need to do
is shoot the dogs to take care of that potential roadblock.
The studies in the 1970’s and
researcher’s recommendations unfortunately led to many stockmen taking their
advice to a level probably never intended, which included never handling
touching a litter of puppies, and tossing them into a flock at too young of an
age and walking away from them - often a recipe for failure. Shepherds in the European countries where
most of these breeds originated had and have a much closer bond with their dogs
and sheep, as many of them literally camp and live with their stock full time
as they trail their sheep through countrysides.
Their LGDs mingle with family members and herders daily and are raised
with frequent handling and interaction.
But in America, where larger commercial operations often run sheep in
public lands with no human presence, the “hands off, minimal interaction”
became the accepted “norm” and anyone deviating by handling or socializing
their LGD litters was soon mocked and labeled a “pet breeder”. Online forums continued to hype and promote
the “hands off” rearing until it became the accepted practice in this
country. Anyone deviating from this was
roundly trounced. New LGD owners were
told “don’t handle or touch your dog too much or it will never guard”,
something which is not true at all.
Pups who are reared in this “hands off”
manner typically only view humans with distrust and in some cases, outright
fear. As they mature, if they are never
handled this distrust only deepens. If
pressed, adult LGDs who were brought up nearly feral, will stand ground or even
attack humans who they perceive only as threats to their flock and importantly,
to themselves. Having never known a kind
touch or encouragement from a human, LGDs raised like this ultimately can
become liabilities to their owners instead of trusted and cherished assets.
Hikers, bikers and nature enthusiasts
heading into back country who come upon bands of sheep being guarded by
unsocialized LGDs are often at risk of attack.
The average hiker, biker, and weekend wilderness explorer is very
uneducated when it comes to what those big white fluffy dogs are doing in a
band of sheep. They have either never
heard of or encountered a working Livestock Guardian Dog in their lives. Often when they see these dogs, they wrongly
mistake them for wild dogs going after livestock. Others think they need to be rescued because
they are stray pets. Add to this the
often encountered lack of herders or human presence amongst the sheep, coupled
with no warning signs posted, and you have the makings of a potential problem.
A good guardian dog will alert at
strangers approaching his flock. This is
what LGDs do - and what they are supposed to do. However, if he’s never been offered a kind
word or touch by a human before, that alert could go to extremes of biting or
attacking people who venture too close to his stock. Add to that what can sometimes amount to
blatant arrogance and an overabundance of sense of self-entitlement on the part
of the hiker or biker, who feels the public lands are “his and his alone” to
use as he wishes, and who often views ranchers and sheepmen as “enemies”
because they are allowed to graze on public land allotments, and you see why
this could turn into a wreck. And woe to
the rancher who’s LGD bites a recreationist or hiker!
Recently a wilderness biker
participating in a road race sued and won a case against a Colorado sheepman
because his LGDs attacked her on her bike when she passed through the middle of
his flock. Never mind the fact that she
showed little understanding or respect for the situation at hand. Unfortunately, incidents like this are only
going to increase as more and more people who do not know what LGDs are, use
public lands where sheep bands graze.
As responsible sheepmen it is
imperative that we run stable minded LGDs who will not turn into attack dogs at
the sight of a human trekking across the field near sheep.
LGD pups should come from breeders who
have handled both parent stock and pups which will allow you to rear up a pup
who can be taught to respond to simple voice commands and at least be
encouraged to “come back” when needed.
Having that needed minimal control over the dog may stave off an
incident and prevent someone from being bitten.
That in turn may save you and your operation from a costly lawsuit. Its been proven time and again by “hands on”
LGD breeders that handling and socializing LGD pups in no way, shape or form
deters from their guarding instinct or abilities. In fact I will personally
attest that forming a bond with your LGD can actually enhance its desire to
guard what it perceives is his or hers.
Guardian dogs with good, stable
temperaments will assess a situation, not just charge blindly into it on the
attack. LGDs must be brought up in an
environment that encourages them to learn to reason and think things through, not
just react aggressively from fear. If
they’ve received positive reinforcement from their breeder since puppyhood; if
they’ve been taught that not all humans are to be suspected as evil or threats
to their stock, then they stand a better chance on the range of being handled
responsibly by their owners or herders.
This in turns lessens the chance they’ll harm users of public lands who
might happen to hike or bike by your band of sheep.
Another good rule of thumb is to either
micro-chip, tatoo or collar and tag your working LGDs. Bright “day glow” colored collars or tags
that stand out will show that this is not a wild or feral dog, but rather,
belongs to someone.
Likewise, on larger operations, a good
shepherd and manager will take steps to ensure his LGDs are safe to be around
and not vicious or skittish around his hired help. He’ll take the time to educate his herders,
who are usually immigrants from another country, about the proper use and care
of LGDs. The sheepman won’t expect
herders to “just know what to do” without first giving consistent and proper
direction. Likewise, LGDs should be
introduced to the herders, and a relationship should develop so that they are
more of a team who will be working together instead of treating the dogs like
disposable tools.
The American Sheep Industry has
published a document titled Best Recommended Management Practices for Livestock
Protection Dogs which may be accessed on their website, here: https://www.sheepusa.org/IssuesPrograms_Programs_LivestockProtectionDogs
The same page also offers links to
“Signs and brochures informing recreationalists about the presence of livestock
protection dogs and grazing sheep”. In
order to further educate those who don’t recognize what your LGDs are or what
their job is, these printable signs and brochures are a great way to help
inform them. Posting warning signs that
alert passers by that those big dogs are actually doing a job may save you many
heartaches down the road.
The
ASI 2010 paper, revised in 2011, calls for the responsible use of LGDs and
encourages socializing these dogs. It
was put out in order to hopefully nip a problem in the bud before it mushrooms
to the degree that the government steps in and tries to regulate the use of
LGDs. No one wants to see that. None of us wants “Big Brother” telling us how
to raise our sheep and run our dogs. But
if we don’t take the steps needed to prevent more issues from arising from irresponsible
use of guardian dogs, we may be facing regulations and new laws that would or
could regulate or entirely eliminate the use of LGDs. No one wants to even think about that!
Its a sore subject amongst many, but
the days of running half-wild LGDs who pose threats and possible fodder for
lawsuits, are going to have to come to an end.
Our cherished Right to Farm is consistently under attack these days from
many sides. I feel the proper raising
and use of LGDs is one area we can all make a difference in, and give our
would-be opponents one less target or excuse to try to put us out of the
agriculture business.
Its okay to give that big guardian of
yours a hug and a pat for doing his good job - and rewarding him with a juicy
bone won’t deter him from doing his duty, either. He’s an investment in your flock’s life
insurance. Give him the respect he
deserves. Cherished asset or an unstable
liability? What your LGD ends up being
is ultimately in your hands.
