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[Alex435148]

7 month old white kelso

 

[Md Whitehackle]

7 month old white kelso

nice white

 

[Alex435148]

thanks

 

[Md Whitehackle]

im not big on whites but yours looks good

 

[sdm111]

Anybody have any experience with Great Pyrenees dogs? People that come over for chickens keep saying I need to get one they're great for flock protection, thoughts?

 

[hildar]

Anybody have any experience with Great Pyrenees dogs? People that come over for chickens keep saying I need to get one they're great for flock protection, thoughts?

Greats, are good dogs, and they are great around the flocks. However you may want to get one as a puppy and train it. The lady up the road from us with the rare birds, has 2 and she brought them up with them from the time they were 6 weeks old around the chickens. They protect them very well. However you are talking about $2000 for a registered puppy. Not good though in hot weather with all of that fur. You have to keep a small kids pool out for them to lay in when they get hot. The lady up the road has pea fowl, and even a cuckoo bird from Australia, and tons of other birds from other countries. So she needed the dogs.

 

[centrarchid]

I have. You need a couple acres of roaming area to keep mental game up. If they get out they are really prone to roam afterwards especially at night when you need them close. Since the dog does not need to actually bond to birds you can start with an adult as they are pretty easy to break on killing birds if you know your way around dogs. Pup will require a good 18 months to be trustworthy but a broody hen used early might be an excellent training tool. If you get a varmint and dog goes after it, make certain varmint is not inclined to go into pen for protection otherwise dog will kill a pen or two.

We have about 10 LGD's at work used for sheep and goat herds, roughly half of those are Greats. I know a couple guys that use GP's for games. About 4 acres is fenced in. Corded cocks and stags near core and pens used well away from house. Cockyard setup can be important. Once fellow with three dogs still suffers losses to raccoon penned about 900 feet from house because dogs do not respond. A different set of dogs might stop those losses.

Biggest advantage of GP's and typical LGD's is they can handle domestic dogs which mine have considerable difficulty with. I keep those dogs out then my dogs blow doors of GP's against wildlife because they are smaller, faster and primarily hunting breed..

Dogs are handily the most expensive measure you can have, especially if you are less than a few acres. Do not forget importance of fence and multiple dogs is better than 1 for a lot of reasons.


Look up Akbash. Folks familiar with those and other LGD's prefer Akbash. My experience with them is they have some of my dog's behavior and much of the same speed but also have the size needed to handily whip a domestic dog. Foxes will be a challenge with any LGD tasked with protecting free-range birds over any real acreage.

 

[JShubin]

Anybody have any experience with Great Pyrenees dogs? People that come over for chickens keep saying I need to get one they're great for flock protection, thoughts?

Dont get a German shepherd. I have had them my entire life and they are prone to killing chickens.

Good article on Guard dogs on this farm site.. http://www.chaffinfamilyorchards.com/about-us/livestock-guardian-dogs/ .. they use mixed breed LGDs

 

[sdm111]

Thanks for the advise. I already have 3 APBT's but were already grown when I got back into raising so they're pretty useless in that area. I don't have problems with thieves of the human kind though.

 

[JShubin]

Thanks for the advise. I already have 3 APBT's but were already grown when I got back into raising so they're pretty useless in that area. I don't have problems with thieves of the human kind though.

I bet, 3 APBT would scare any would-be intruder. Do they ever kill any chickens? One of my idiot friends had two that got out and killed one of his neighbor's sheep. He didnt take good care training them tho.

I keep a terrier mix and german shepherd mix. Two different skill sets, but they work well together catching vermin and guarding the house.