Flock Dog Reccomendations

[Mosey2003]

We are in the process of installing a 6 ft tall chain link fence around the entire area and then will be running a hot wire around the entire enclosure but also wanted to back that up with a guard dog inside the enclosure. Was hoping someone had some experience with a specific dog breed that worked best for them. I guess I will just continue to do research and hopefully pick a winner that with proper training will be the added protection we are looking for. Good luck with your LGD. Please keep me updated on how things progress. Thanks for the input.

If you're fencing anyway, and you want a dog on alert both night and day, you would need a pair - they would then be able to take turns napping while the other was watching.
The breed is kind of personal preference and what you have available within your preferred travel distance. Anatolians are good, GP/Anatolians are good (this is what I have), Maremma, Karakachan, etc they're all rather similar. You would want a male and a female pair, or two males, but definitely not two females. Some people make it work but female-female aggression is real and can be deadly. Preferably try to find adults, at least an adult female - you need something ready to work (over two years old) and also you really want to wait to spay/neuter the giant breeds until they're fully mature at 2, and it's easier to have an intact male running around than a female going into heat calling dogs and coyotes from up to five miles away.
I would get your chainlink up and run electric both inside and out if you want dogs, on top and then close to the bottom because they are digging and climbing machines.

 

[CisChicks]

If you're fencing anyway, and you want a dog on alert both night and day, you would need a pair - they would then be able to take turns napping while the other was watching.
The breed is kind of personal preference and what you have available within your preferred travel distance. Anatolians are good, GP/Anatolians are good (this is what I have), Maremma, Karakachan, etc they're all rather similar. You would want a male and a female pair, or two males, but definitely not two females. Some people make it work but female-female aggression is real and can be deadly. Preferably try to find adults, at least an adult female - you need something ready to work (over two years old) and also you really want to wait to spay/neuter the giant breeds until they're fully mature at 2, and it's easier to have an intact male running around than a female going into heat calling dogs and coyotes from up to five miles away.
I would get your chainlink up and run electric both inside and out if you want dogs, on top and then close to the bottom because they are digging and climbing machines.

Thank you

 

[PatriciafromCO]

Lots of good sharing. I had 7 city GSD when we moved to start our home stead. They were older and trained and the process was easy giving the same structure training about the birds and livestock. They not care personally, they were territorial for predator guarding areas and the animals as possessions. 7 made them highly successful.

Barking is essential as warding the wild life to move on... No easy meals here.

My guardian breed choice is Caucasian Ovcharka, when it comes to choosing its preference what you like. What you will enjoy and having enough of them to handle the predator load they up against!

Barking is essential the Guardian dogs are not looking to fight or kill they first instinct is to deter predators away. That is why I love them they will fight to kill only as a last resort when their warnings are ignored. We don't have a problem there is a predator trail next to our property second pasture that is 6ft field fenced and it goes through out 3rd pasture that we left passable for them to pass by us easily.

We have fencing 6ft field fencing, we practice putting the animals up at night and the smaller animals in the center closer to the homestead larger animals on the outside.

About the 6ft chain link was sitting out at dusk with the geese having a pool party when I herd a noise. Was just about to turn my head towards the noise when my dogs came tearing out of the barn passing me at warp speed. they shredded the single coyote on contact, that jumped the fence. Love dogs cause they always cocked and ready to go. It happen so fast.

 

[Penpal]

A livestock guardian dog guards the perimeter. It doesn't have to live with the flock per se. They also are bred to guard large areas. I'm not sure having them in the enclosure will work for you. Let them guard the entire homestead.

 

[ZedikerStation]

German Shepherd worked well for us. It took about 6 weeks of "chicken training" before we were comfortable letting her alone with them. Once they were able to jump on her back and peck oats from her back, we were sure... How she acquired her HATRED for hawks is still a welcome mystery. If one flys over she tries to sprout wings. The chickens seem to have learned to hang reasonably close to her most of the time. Haven't lost one to a hawk since she started keeping watch!

 

[Hip Hillbilly Acres]

German Shepherd worked well for us. It took about 6 weeks of "chicken training" before we were comfortable letting her alone with them. Once they were able to jump on her back and peck oats from her back, we were sure... How she acquired her HATRED for hawks is still a welcome mystery. If one flys over she tries to sprout wings. The chickens seem to have learned to hang reasonably close to her most of the time. Haven't lost one to a hawk since she started keeping watch!

What a blessedly ideal situation. Thanks for sharing this.

Our pups arrived yesterday. He is in here with me now crying, bless his heart. I had to remove him and crate out of our bedroom 'cause I got tired of husband screaming at him to shut up. He's just a baby, pulled from litter mates and all, geesh dude.

 

[A Justice]

I have an American Staffordshire terrier and a hound mix of some kind, both rescues.

The hound barks at everything, but seems to keep things away, and the AST is quiet, but I've seen her give chase to packs of coyotes, with no second thought. The hound has the most ridiculously sensitive ears, and if something's even near the house, he will bark and scare it away. It can be a little annoying at 2:00 in the morning, but he's doing his job. A lot of people see a barking dog as a problem, I don't, I see it as an early warning system.

It's been hard to convince the hound not to eat the chickens, while I'm outside he leaves them alone, but I wouldn't feel comfortable unsupervised. The AST won't touch them, she knows better.

I saw a hawk try to snatch one of my chickens one time, and before I could run out there with a stick, the dogs were out there on top of the hawk. The hawk was able to escape uninjured, but there were three or four other Hawks in nearby trees that saw the incident, and since then, I haven't seen them sitting around eyeing my chickens as dinner anymore.