LGD Question

[BHep]

Thank you everyone... I went for one puppy. I will add another as she matures as suggested. She is 3/4 Great Pyreneese x 1/4 Maremma. So far so good. She was born and raised with chickens, goats and Turkeys. She has not bothered with anyone, not even the tiny ducklings.

 

[TXchickmum]

Precious!

 

[galanie]

I don't think I'd want a pair of rotts in with my chickens. Good for overall protection but nope, not for mixing with tasty birds. The other breeds mentioned are specifically bred for guarding and living with livestock.

Correct me if I am wrong, but no breed was specifically bred to be guarding and living with livestock in the form of chickens.  Breeds promoted for such services on this site were bred for guarding and living with mobile groups of sheep and goats.  Rottweilers can also not be excluded since at least part of their historical employment involved herding and guarding cattle.


Very few chickens have the freedom of movement mine have yet they still are sedentary relative to herds of sheep and goats that had to move about as they exhuasted the local forage base.  This business of confining herds on the little overgrazed paddocks that require supplemental haying and often involve grain feeding was not part of the LGD's development.


So rotts good as any.

Any breed of dog can be taught to be a livestock guardian. Even for chickens. The one I responded to suggested that rotts would be better than a Pyrenees or maremma. I don't think so, and I didn't want such a statement to go unanswered. I still think the best would be the breeds raised not to herd livestock, but to guard it. Your opinion is of course different. That doesn't make either of us experts in the field.

 

[centrarchid]

Any breed of dog can be taught to be a livestock guardian. Even for chickens. The one I responded to suggested that rotts would be better than a Pyrenees or maremma. I don't think so, and I didn't want such a statement to go unanswered. I still think the best would be the breeds raised not to herd livestock, but to guard it. Your opinion is of course different. That doesn't make either of us experts in the field.

Unless you have kept rottweilers, Pyrenees and Maremma's at same time as livestock guardians for chickens at same time, a good comparison is not possible. It even requires multiple dogs of each breed over multiple years to get real handle on merits of each breed. This ingores effects of a breeder and you as poultry keeper. I suspect neither of us have such experience. Almost all this dog and even poultry breed comparison stuff is opinion and often poorly founded in facts.

 

[galanie]

Any breed of dog can be taught to be a livestock guardian. Even for chickens. The one I responded to suggested that rotts would be better than a Pyrenees or maremma. I don't think so, and I didn't want such a statement to go unanswered. I still think the best would be the breeds raised not to herd livestock, but to guard it. Your opinion is of course different. That doesn't make either of us experts in the field.

Unless you have kept rottweilers, Pyrenees and Maremma's at same time as livestock guardians for chickens at same time, a good comparison is not possible.  It even requires multiple dogs of each breed over multiple  years to get real handle on merits of each breed.  This ingores effects of a breeder and you as poultry keeper.  I suspect neither of us have such experience.  Almost all this dog and even poultry breed comparison stuff is opinion and often poorly founded in facts.

Exactly. I said the same, just in a different way.

 

[zazouse]

a pair of rotts would be best they dont bark unless something is acutually bothering something plus rotts are also used for bear hunting i have coyotes and just about any other predators execpt bears and havent had one problem with coyotes only thing ive had problems with is snakes

I have both and i can tell you as far as going out and working the perimitor at night to keep preditors at bay the Great Pyrenees and Anatolian are the best for that here however once they make a certain bark the rott is their to help out, this leaves me protection in the roosting area at night and a second line of defense out in the Fields.
I used rotts for herding and protection when i rased horses, they are great livestock dogs and i will never be without at least one here.

 

[zazouse]

Thank you everyone... I went for one puppy. I will add another as she matures as suggested. She is 3/4 Great Pyreneese x 1/4 Maremma. So far so good. She was born and raised with chickens, goats and Turkeys. She has not bothered with anyone, not even the tiny ducklings.

She is adorible

 

[karimw]

That's interesting about the Rotts, I wouldn't have considered them. I went with a Great Pyrenese and at 4 months is pretty good with the chickens. I just wish I could get him to stop mauling the cats! He'll stop when I tell him to, but the next time I turn my back he's "playing" with them again and mostly they let him. If they won't run way or discipline him, how will he ever learn to leave them alone?

 

[TXchickmum]

Any breed of dog can be taught to be a livestock guardian. Even for chickens. The one I responded to suggested that rotts would be better than a Pyrenees or maremma. I don't think so, and I didn't want such a statement to go unanswered. I still think the best would be the breeds raised not to herd livestock, but to guard it. Your opinion is of course different. That doesn't make either of us experts in the field.

I am definitely not an expert.....but, I disagree. My Yorkshire Terrier would NOT EVER be a good LGD.

-would kill my birds immediately, and more than likely become the meal of a hawk as well. (I wouldn't put any terrier breed with chickens - large or small, based upon their natural instincts and inclinations.) -but, I do agree that per past experience with Pyrenees, they make excellent guardians. -no experience with Rotts, so no opinion offered.

 

[SarahMcD]

I love this discussion - appreciate the varying comments. I would not have thought of Rottie either - though I love the breed. This discussion has got me to thinking that a Rottie might be the breed to help me get the animals rounded up at night (chickens, turkeys and goats) and to be around to help the Komondor in a crisis.

I've also been thinking about which breed of small dog could be trusted around the chickens but small enough to be the inside/companion dog...but that's a different topic.