I have 5 acres, but only about 1/2 acre is fence-able by the barn. I suppose two more cleared acres in the back could be fenced, but they are a 7-minute walk from the barn behind some woods, so that presents some risk.
Are you saying that one should have an LGD if leaving goats unattended in their outdoor run?
It is a problem, wildlife doing wildlife things causes many problems. Like killing livestock. It can be hard to fence in a half acre and make is completely wildlife proof. Example: It is
They can be great at the job, including with chickens, but require a lot of training, socialization and a firm hand, because they are a very independent and dominant breed that likes to test the boundaries.
Depends on what your predators are. But there are a lot more wildlife that eat chicken than those that eat goat, so the chickens will need a lot more protection.
It's not just about the monetary cost. It's about the environmental cost as well. Why do we think we have the right to kill wildlife? That line of thinking is why there are so many animals either extinct or on the verge of. But they all play a role in the ecosystem, so we're only shooting ourselves in the foot by eliminating predators. Case in point: killing the wolves that sparked the explosion of deer, deer damage on forests, deer-borne diseases that they give to people via their ticks, deer totaling cars on roads... etc. It's all connected. If it's too expensive to protect your chickens, then don't have chickens. If you have to have chickens, then have a large flock so you can sustain some loss and still have more left.
To get more details - why is it that you’re looking for another dog if yours is working? Is your current dog an inside dog and you want a true -live outside- LGD?
I don't want to derail this thread. But coyotes (which seems to be the biggest problem here) are actually booming, despite extreme hunting.
True, different animals have a different density and different impact when they're gone. It's important to see the subtlety, because a lot of the time when people talk about shooting predators, they think of the big scary ones, like bobcats, bears, wolves etc. - the vulnerable ones that should be left alone. So it's important to differentiate.
