Adopting an Anatolian Shepard

[Ninjasquirrel]

That can be a job too! My dog's (golden retriever) jobs are 'helping' with the chickens, and alerting us to people outside at night. He'll eventually get the newspaper every morning, but he does not have enough self control for that yet.

We currently have a border collie that came to us with several behavior issues: urinating in the house, aggression with urinating, food aggression, dog aggression, people aggression, aggressive towards sticks and water. You name it she had it. She also had giardia and heartworm disease. Shes cured of both AND all her aggression. Shes now a registered service animal

 

[Ninjasquirrel]

And believe me when I say this is a family decision. We are considering everything. If the hubby says no, we dont move forward. If he says yes, meet and greet with our current dog. If she says no, we have our answer. Dogs are members of our family and everyone needs to be onboard

 

[Ninjasquirrel]

Perhaps this could be of interest to you @Ninjasquirrel :

https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...l-puppies-are-sold-after-8-weeks-old.1496945/

Thanks but we only adopt animals from shelters. We do this to give those animals that have been turned away a better life

 

[black_cat]

We currently have a border collie that came to us with several behavior issues: urinating in the house, aggression with urinating, food aggression, dog aggression, people aggression, aggressive towards sticks and water. You name it she had it. She also had giardia and heartworm disease. Shes cured of both AND all her aggression. Shes now a registered service animal

That's wonderful that you are able to help her! I do wonder if this dog has any aggression or resource guarding, if it would provoke your border collie and rekindle her old issues or damage her relationship with the other dog. This sort of thing may not present its self in a quick meeting at the shelter, but consider it as a possibility.

I will also say that training with a BC is very different than training with an anatolian or other LGS breed that hasn't changed much over the years. People needed a dog with strong guarding instincts that would be able to make independent decisions on the spur of the moment, and that's what the breed is today (unlike some other breeds that have been 'watered down' a whole lot). They don't have the same will to please or eagerness to learn to the same level at all that a border collie does. It might be a rude awakening after being used to a BC>

 

[CaliFarmsAR]

Thanks but we only adopt animals from shelters. We do this to give those animals that have been turned away a better life

 

[CaliFarmsAR]

Thanks but we only adopt animals from shelters. We do this to give those animals that have been turned away a better life

We need more people like you who are willing to adopt animals from shelters and give them great homes!!

 

[Ninjasquirrel]

That's wonderful that you are able to help her! I do wonder if this dog has any aggression or resource guarding, if it would provoke your border collie and rekindle her old issues or damage her relationship with the other dog. This sort of thing may not present its self in a quick meeting at the shelter, but consider it as a possibility.

I will also say that training with a BC is very different than training with an anatolian or other LGS breed that hasn't changed much over the years. People needed a dog with strong guarding instincts that would be able to make independent decisions on the spur of the moment, and that's what the breed is today (unlike some other breeds that have been 'watered down' a whole lot). They don't have the same will to please or eagerness to learn to the same level at all that a border collie does. It might be a rude awakening after being used to a BC>

Im aware of this definately. It should be noted that our current girl is only half BC. We believe shes also a german shepard. She does exhibit guarding behavior but rarely now. Usually only if she gets sick. She will guard her vomit but I think this is due to possibly being abused so she fears she will be hit for getting sick. I'm always very gentle and understanding with her though and I can calm her down. Shes only ever vomited twice since weve had her so its not easy to train out. I realize with LGDs that you need to be THE BOSS but not to the point that you're abusive. Theyre smart and make decisions on their own

 

[black_cat]

I realize with LGDs that you need to be THE BOSS but not to the point that you're abusive. Theyre smart and make decisions on their own

'Benevolent dictator' is the way to go with these guys. You have to be firm and lay down rules, and be ready to enforce them. They're smart and make decisions on their own because that's what they were bred for- but in a household setting, those decisions of 'this is a threat' are not appreciated, and the ones that are 'how do I solve this problem? By chewing through this' are not either. It is a difficult balance.

 

[Ninjasquirrel]

'Benevolent dictator' is the way to go with these guys. You have to be firm and lay down rules, and be ready to enforce them. They're smart and make decisions on their own because that's what they were bred for- but in a household setting, those decisions of 'this is a threat' are not appreciated, and the ones that are 'how do I solve this problem? By chewing through this' are not either. It is a difficult balance.

Yup thats what I was expecting. I pretty much had to do that with our BC since she had so many aggressive tendencies. She would just come up to you and start barking in your face and biting at you. I'd get on the floor with her and wrestle her until I won. Everything else was treat and positive reinforcement training. She wont wrestle with me anymore but she listens to everything I say. Shes my best friend now and she kisses me bye before I leave the house.

 

[rosemarythyme]

That can be a job too! My dog's (golden retriever) jobs are 'helping' with the chickens, and alerting us to people outside at night.

Unfortunately her "job" is what caused her to get dropped off at the shelter. The former owner couldn't deal with her barking any longer.

She barks maybe 1-2x a day at our house (which sets off the other 2 dogs, so all 3 go running around like idiots) since we don't have the foot or auto traffic to trigger more frequent barking.

She's very handy to send out to chase off coyotes.