2 dogs to protect the farm?

[Freerange Chick]

We bought a German Shepherd pup, Bear, about a month before we got our chicks with the intent to raise him to protect our land and chickens. This has worked well for us. We have coyotes and the neighbors have dogs that have been accustomed to hunting on our land before we moved there. So far this has worked great. He watches over the chickens and makes sure they don't wonder too far. They are free range birds and have 11 acres to roam but stay on about 3 acres. We are adding electricity to our chicken house soon and will have motion detector light which should help. We plan to get another pup next spring when Bear is old enough to teach. He is still such a pup but takes his guarding as seriously as play. And is growl will scare anyone or anything away!

 

[MrsBrooke]

We bought a German Shepherd pup, Bear, about a month before we got our chicks with the intent to raise him to protect our land and chickens.

Our older Aussie is named Bear! Great minds think alike.

DH insisted on naming the little one Moose.

 

[Freerange Chick]

Our older Aussie is named Bear! Great minds think alike.

DH insisted on naming the little one Moose.

Beautiful dogs!! Of course love the name!

 

[SavageDestiny]

English Mastiffs were bred to be war dogs. They were used by Roman soldiers in battle and to guard their camps, and eventually commoners used the dogs to guard their homes. This eventually led to bear baiting, lion hunting, and blood sport. Today, they are bred for docile temperament and companionship. I wouldn't necessarily use a Mastiff to guard a flock of birds.

I would personally go with a breed used specifically for guarding livestock or fowl. Australian Shepherds are so-named, not because they were bred in Australia (they are actually a Californian breed), but because they were bred to herd Australian geese specifically. This gives them a very gentle, calm nature with a hard-working attitude without the intensity and high-strung nature of a Border Collie (I had a Border Collie, too, so I feel experienced enough to speak on both

). Aussies are bred to work with birds by moving around them, where Border Collies work with cattle, usually with "The Eye" and by biting and nipping.

I got an Australian Shepherd two years ago with the intent of someday having chickens. He turned into an 80 lb teddy bear. He is very gentle and docile with a "soft mouth" (he doesn't bite down when things are put in his mouth). A few months ago, I got another Aussie. He's 6 months old and is an absolute terror in a way my first Aussie never was. Maybe it's that he's hitting puberty (he's starting to hump EVERYTHING), and he's running on straight testosterone. He gets the snip next Friday to calm him down, so I can start working on him with the chickens when we get them.

ANYWAY.... this is not an anti-Mastiff/Pit Bull/fighting dog post. Pit Bulls used to be bear-bait dogs, but they were then used to guard nurseries due to their loyal nature and desire to protect their owners and territory. Sure, you get a "cool factor" with the Mastiff, but are they the BEST choice for guarding livestock? Ehhh, I'm not so sure about that.

Any dog can be trained to do anything you want it to do. I feel the key is selecting a breed for your purpose, so that you don't have to "reprogram" a dog to do something he wasn't necessarily bred to do.

Plus, the cost of feeding a Mastiff is something to consider. Big dog, big food bowl, BIG POOPS!

Why are you suddenly bringing Pit Bulls into the discussion? They are unrelated to Mastiffs except that waaaay back, both breeds stemmed from the molosser-type dogs. However they are very much separate now in temperament and purpose.

The Pit Bull- a.k.a. American Pit Bull Terrier- was not used for bear baiting. One of it's ancestor breeds, the bulldog, was used for bull and bear baiting, but the APBT was created for the dog fighting ring. Bulldogs were crossed with terriers resulting in the "bull-and-terrier" breeds for the fighting ring, which is where the APBT and the Staffordshire Bull Terrier came from. Neither breed was ever used as guard dogs, since while they often have high prey drive and are not always friendly with other dogs, they are pretty uniformly terrible at guarding against people. Both breeds are usually poor choices for guarding anything, since they don't guard against people and their high prey drive makes them risky around the livestock they are supposed to protect.

Sorry to derail the thread a bit, but the APBT is very dear to me and there is so much misinformation surrounding the breed.

 

[LoganTW]

And also the Tibetan mastiff is a livestock guarding dog, so I will probably be getting that! And we have a mastiff rescue about four hours away give or take, so it's a win, win, or I might be getting them at a breeder, but I'm not sure. But I just wanted to say that mastiff is indeed a LGD.

 

[centrarchid]

And also the Tibetan mastiff is a livestock guarding dog, so I will probably be getting that! And we have a mastiff rescue about four hours away give or take, so it's a win, win, or I might be getting them at a breeder, but I'm not sure. But I just wanted to say that mastiff is indeed a LGD.

If your fencing is tight (dog-wise), then Australian Shepherds and English Shepherds are worth considering if they can operate as a pair or better against coyotes. Both breeds tend to be pretty tough against the cold yet do well in the barnyard setting when multi-tasked with serving as guardian.

 

[MrsBrooke]

Why are you suddenly bringing Pit Bulls into the discussion? They are unrelated to Mastiffs except that waaaay back, both breeds stemmed from the molosser-type dogs. However they are very much separate now in temperament and purpose.

The Pit Bull- a.k.a. American Pit Bull Terrier- was not used for bear baiting. One of it's ancestor breeds, the bulldog, was used for bull and bear baiting, but the APBT was created for the dog fighting ring. Bulldogs were crossed with terriers resulting in the "bull-and-terrier" breeds for the fighting ring, which is where the APBT and the Staffordshire Bull Terrier came from. Neither breed was ever used as guard dogs, since while they often have high prey drive and are not always friendly with other dogs, they are pretty uniformly terrible at guarding against people. Both breeds are usually poor choices for guarding anything, since they don't guard against people and their high prey drive makes them risky around the livestock they are supposed to protect.

Sorry to derail the thread a bit, but the APBT is very dear to me and there is so much misinformation surrounding the breed.

Just to clarify, I lumped them in, because I realized my post was starting to soap box against "fighting dogs."

I love Pit Bulls. Every Pit I've ever met has been a charmer. As has every German Shepherd, St Bernard, Rottweiler, Dobie, etc.

They just wouldn't be my choice for flock guarding.

I would *still* like to point out that there is a difference between guarding cattle and sheep and guarding a flock of birds.

 

[SavageDestiny]

Just to clarify, I lumped them in, because I realized my post was starting to soap box against "fighting dogs."

I love Pit Bulls. Every Pit I've ever met has been a charmer. As has every German Shepherd, St Bernard, Rottweiler, Dobie, etc.

They just wouldn't be my choice for flock guarding.

I would *still* like to point out that there is a difference between guarding cattle and sheep and guarding a flock of birds.

Well, for the record, to me your post didn't come off as anti anything. You were just explaining breed traits and why Mastiffs might not work out.

I agree that Pit Bulls are not great for livestock guarding, of any sort.

 

[bobbi-j]

I don't know if the OP would agree with me, but I would get mutts because they are healthier than pure breeds. Yes, a dog that had more "herder" than "hunter" is preferable, but any dog, if raised properly around chickens from a young age should do well with them.

Not to mention they're cheaper.

(Between you & me, Catmoose - mutts aren't necessarily cheaper. Many people are breeding them, calling them "hybrids" or "designer dogs" and charging more for them than you'd have to pay for a purebred anything. But as long as people are willing to pay the price it'll keep on happening. Sooner or later there will be no such thing as a "purebred".

)

 

[MrsBrooke]

And also the Tibetan mastiff is a livestock guarding dog, so I will probably be getting that! And we have a mastiff rescue about four hours away give or take, so it's a win, win, or I might be getting them at a breeder, but I'm not sure. But I just wanted to say that mastiff is indeed a LGD.

Well, I can tell you have already made up your mind on a mastiff, so good luck!