Raising Trustworthy Goat Guardians:
Starting Right with Young Livestock Guardian Dogs
Brenda M.
Negri
© 2017
Published in Dairy Goat Journal
July/August 2017 Vol. 95 No. 4
Livestock
Guardian Dog (“LGD”) breeds have been bred for centuries in “The Old Country”
to guard flocks of sheep, goats and cattle from predators. It is an instinct they are born with, and
quality bred LGDs will naturally show a deep affection and gentle way with
livestock.
But
even with this inherent nurturing instinct, as youngsters they need guidance,
correction, support and praise from their human owner. Raising a Livestock
Guardian Dog up to be a stable, trustworthy guardian of your goats can been
successfully done with an owner who is committed to doing their best to
understand and respect these incredible dogs.
Starting
Off Right
Begin by choosing a quality LGD
pup or pups that are legitimate LGD breeds or a combination of LGD breeds. Always buy from a reputable breeder raising
healthy working dogs, with good references, and who offers health guarantees
and breeder support. Pups should have
been handled by the breeder and socialized.
They should have several puppy vaccinations and de-wormings and a
veterinarian check up before leaving their mother at the age of at least 8
weeks or older.
Here is a partial list of
recognized LGD breeds:
LGD Breeds
Great
Pyrenees
Akbash
Anatolian
Shepherd
Spanish
Mastiff
Tibetan
Mastiff
Pyrenean
Mastiff
Komodor
Turkish
Kangal
Kuvasz
Maremma
Polish
Tatra Sheepdog
The
Owner as Parent and Partner
LGDs need to form a bond with
their owners – not just their owner’s goats.
The owner becomes the new parent for an LGD pup once it leaves it’s
mother and littermates. Noted European
dog behaviorist and trainer Turid Rugaas says in her book, On Talking Terms With Dogs: Calming Signals:
“Remember
that wolves bringing up wolf cubs get perfect wolves out of them, and dogs
bringing up puppies get perfect dogs out of them. When we humans bring up puppies, we get
problems. It is about time we looked at
leadership as a myth we do not need. We
need to be parents, good parents, the way dogs are good parents.”
By being a good parent to their
LGD the owner also forms a partnership with their LGD. Good parenting and a good partnership with an
LGD is built on the following:
Patience
– do not expect too much, too soon and give
the pup time to mature
Compassion – do not use harsh or cruel training methods or gadgets
Respect
– respect shown to your dog will be returned
Trust – allow the pup to show you what he is capable of doing
Consistency – dogs, like people, appreciate a routine and a level of predictability
In the Old Country where LGDs
originated they worked side by side with their shepherds and flocks. In America, many hobby farmers work a job in
town and are often gone during the day.
Their time in their livestock is often minimal. This often is the root of many problems
because the LGD is alone, and he knows it.
He sees that the owner is not participating as much as he should. As much time as possible should be spent with
your LGD pup in the stock. This sets the
tone and the pup realizes you are not only his parent, but his partner as
well. This gives the pup added confidence
and a sense of purpose and mission, and that can mean the difference between a
mediocre LGD and a great one.
Patience
LGD pups mature slowly, some
breeds more so than others. It can take
a pup over up to two years to fully outgrow his adolescent puppy stage where he
has ups and downs with his progress as a guardian. Too many owners do not give the pup the time
he needs to develop and mature, and often give up when the pup is still in a
stage of physical and psychological growth.
Understand that this is a process that takes months, not days. Do not expect a three or five month old puppy
to be doing an adult’s job. Don’t put it
out alone in high predator load country, because a young puppy is incapable of
protecting himself at that tender age.
Likewise, when the pup is young expect that there will be good days and
bad days. What matters most is that you
are consistently giving the pup praise when deserved and correction when
needed.
Example
of Patience:
John has successfully gotten his
two sibling Maremma pups through the stages of over-playing with his Nubian
goat kids by using proactive measures.
First, he bought a sibling pair of pups.
Instead of taking out their energy and normal puppy curiosity and
playfulness on his goat kids, his pups have each other to tussle and play
with. Second, he does not pen them up in
a tiny lot permanently, but takes them out of his goat pen several times a day
for perimeter walks and time with his family because he understands they need
the physical and mental stimulation in order to progress and grow. Third, he allows them time to play, romp,
explore and be puppies. Finally, John
spends time seated on a bench inside the kidding area each day, while the pups
chew on soup bones. His presence tells
them he is invested in this process. The
soup bones positively reinforce his pup’s good behavior. His pups feel appreciated and know they are
not alone and their focus is where it should be.
Compassion
By understanding a dog’s body
language and using calming signals and body language of your own facilitates
better communication with your dog. By
this you can avoid having to use cruel or harsh methods to correct or train
your LGD. Never resort to shock or
electric collars or cumbersome gadget type “yokes” around a dog’s neck. These only hurt and confuse the dog and the
undesired behavior will only happen again later.
Positive feedback is a must with
LGD pups. When the pup is quietly lying
with goats, praise him. Give him a soup
bone to chew on in the goats to give positive reinforcement for what he is
doing. Grooming and brushing is a way to
calm and show your LGD affection, and lets him know he is needed, loved and
safe. This in turn develops his
confidence, and a confident LGD is always a better guardian than a shy,
confused and mistreated LGD. When you
pet your LGD pup, do not pat him hard on the head. Patting a dog on his head can send
conflicting signals and many dogs consider it an act of aggression instead of kindness. Instead use slow, soft massaging strokes on
the side of the dog’s face and ears and neck.
Speak calmly in low tones and avoid making sudden or exaggerated
gestures.
Example of Compassion: Sue’s Akbash adolescent pup has been scaling her fence and
escaping her 30’ x 30’ goat pen. The pup
has water, shade and yet still wants to escape.
Sue does not resort to using a cruel and ridiculous contraption placed
around the dog’s neck that would hinder it.
Instead she realizes the dog is expressing frustration because she is not
being given enough room to stretch out her legs, and is bored. Sue also discovers the goats have been eating
the pup’s food. Instead of punishing the
pup for escaping, Sue enlarges the area by opening a gate, giving the goats and
the pup access to three acres. She also
constructs a feeding station for her pup’s food bowl that enables the pup to
access her kibble, safely and sheltered, yet keeps the goats out. The pup immediately stops escaping and is
content to remain with the goats.
Respect
Too many Americans use LGDs merely
as tools to get a job done and treat them as if they were a disposable hammer
or saw. Dogs are thinking, feeling
creatures, capable of many emotions, capable of grace, of forgiveness, of pity
and so many more emotions. Dogs know
when they are loved, and they know when they are bing ignored, disrespected and
taken for granted. To understand the
depth of intelligence animals have, and their emotions, Carl Safina’s book, Beyond Words: What Animals Think and Feel
is a book I recommend reading.
Example
of Respect: Over the hot Labor
Day weekend Dan has family and friends over to his registered Alpine goat farm
for barbecue. Dan’s three Great Pyrenees
have been up all night in the back acreage fending off a coyote pack that’s
been pressing on the fence line. The
dogs are tired and resting under a tree.
Dan’s visitors want to see the dogs.
He instructs them to each bring a lawn chair and sit down inside the
pasture under the tree where the dogs rest a few yards away. Because Dan respects the fact that his dogs
are tired, and need to sleep in the heat of the day, he instructs guests to not
approach the dogs but instead let them come to the guests. Because the people are seated, the LGDs see
this as a calming signal. They see Dan
is calm and relaxed which says to them that the visitors pose no threat. The Great Pyrenees get up, casually sniff
everyone, let themselves be stroked – because Dan wisely bought socialized,
handled pups who were not afraid of people – and then go back to rest. A win – win situation: the guests got to meet
the dogs and the dogs were shown respect and not stressed or overly disturbed.
Trust
One
of the most common errors LGD owners make is not trusting their LGD. They attempt to control or micromanage every
move of the dog, not trusting them to think and act on their own. LGDs are highly intelligent and independent. Often, their reaction to a situation is
appropriate and the human does not understand it until after the dog’s
action. Learn to trust your LGD’s
instincts. A dog can hear and see far
better than his owner. Allow the dog to
show you what they can do on their own before you hastily intervene or try to
stop them. You may be pleasantly
surprised at what they can show you.
Example
of Trust: Sitting in my office
yesterday I heard my yearling Spanish Mastiff Yessi begin to bark
aggressively. She came out of the trees
and headed towards my fenced acre front yard where my ewes were grazing. I went outside to see what the commotion was
about. Yessi had heard my ewe’s bells
ringing on their collars and knew they were on the move. Sure enough, when I stepped outside the ewes
were about to go through the open gate and out of the yard. Yessi had stopped them and turned them back
into the front yard where they belonged.
She knew they were not supposed to leave the area and took care of the
problem on her own. So Yessi knew that I was pleased with her reaction, I
praised her profusely and stood there for a few minutes as she checked the ewes
and licked them to show affection. By
trusting her, I allowed her to do the right thing on her own.
Consistency
Just
like humans, dogs enjoy and appreciate predictability in their lives and a
routine. Examples of consistency in a
dog’s life can be as simple as feeding the dog at or around the same time each
day, taking a pup out to the goats at the same times each day, light grooming
every day, etc. The pup will grow to
expect these at the prescribed time.
When they happen, this gives the pup confidence and a feeling of
security, similar to the consistency he enjoyed at his mother’s side when he
knew he could count on her being there for his needed sustenance, grooming and
love. A good owner steps in as a pup’s
parent and fills those requirements in many ways.
Example
of Consistency:
Elayne
runs a large herd of goats that graze many acres. When her new Spanish Mastiff pup Hercules
arrives from Spain, she begins working on consistency. She allows him time in her house to bond with
her and the family, then begins a daily routine that includes feeding and goat
checks and perimeter walks. Hercules
bonds to her quickly and soon follows her around. Elayne has become his new mentor and parent
figure. Because she consistently performs
the same chores each day, Hercules knows he can count on certain things
happening at certain times and this gives him confidence in the security of his
new home. He matures into an infallible
guardian who can barely stand to leave his goats.
/////
With
desire to better understand and work with young LGDs, an owner can have an
incredible, satisfying relationship with a magnificent dog that is worth its
weight in gold who matures into a great guardian of their goat herd.
Recommended Reading
On Talking Terms With Dogs: Calming Signals
by Turid Rugaas, Dogwise Publications
Beyond Words: What Animals Think and Feel
by Carl Safina, Henry Holt
The Truth About Wolves and Dogs by Toni
Shelbourne, Hubble & Hattie
