LGD: seeking advice from experienced owners

[NotabitaiI]

Ah got it. You mean snapping in relation to food.

Yeah definitely not an appropriate behavior to display over nothing

Thankfully, I have a plan to create a separate feeding area so the dog will be able to eat in peace on the other side of the fence as the goats.

Great! That eliminates any food related issues then

 

[Love Donkeys]

We raised Meat Goats (Savanna/Spanish) 250+ does & 6 bucks. We ran 5, all fixed, LGD's were in with the main herd. In the weaned kid pasture we used a Jenny Donkey.
When you bring your LGD home I would keep it separated from your from your goats, like a quarantine period. Let them sniff, look and get used to each other. Remember the LGD is there to protect your livestock, it is not a pet. LGD's are ment to be part of the herd, also by the way LGD's can scale gates and fences.
We sold off our herd due to my farm injury. Our oldest LGD, Freddie, stayed with us, the rest of the LGD's went with the herd.

 

[WingItRanch]

We raised Meat Goats (Savanna/Spanish) 250+ does & 6 bucks. We ran 5, all fixed, LGD's were in with the main herd. In the weaned kid pasture we used a Jenny Donkey.
When you bring your LGD home I would keep it separated from your from your goats, like a quarantine period. Let them sniff, look and get used to each other. Remember the LGD is there to protect your livestock, it is not a pet. LGD's are ment to be part of the herd, also by the way LGD's can scale gates and fences.
We sold off our herd due to my farm injury. Our oldest LGD, Freddie, stayed with us, the rest of the LGD's went with the herd. View attachment 4256601

I was actually originally planning on a full size donkey (I think I even asked you a bunch of questions on a thread once) as a guardian but after much consideration, I decided on a dog. Mainly because my #1 common predator are bobcats and large birds of prey and feel like the dog could handle it better. Plus, I really miss having a dog around. I do understand that he has a job to do and won't be a pet but that doesn't mean I won't show him love when I'm out doing chores in the pen.

 

[WingItRanch]

I'm going to go meet Beaux this weekend. Anything I should look for? Specific behavior as a LGD?

I'm going to ask to see him with his current goats.

 

[Squawkers]

I'm going to go meet Beaux this weekend. Anything I should look for? Specific behavior as a LGD?

I'm going to ask to see him with his current goats.

If you can I’d try to see his reaction to a leash

@Pampered chicken girl

 

[Love Donkeys]

I'm going to go meet Beaux this weekend. Anything I should look for? Specific behavior as a LGD?

I'm going to ask to see him with his current goats.

Observe his behavior. Does he cower or is he over aggressive when you or the owner comes towards him. Watch from a distance how he reacts to the other livestock.

When he meets you he shouldn't be overly happy to see you like a house pet. He should be an independent thinker and will decide if you will be a friend or foe. LGD's should act cautious around you because he doesn't know you. Ask the owner if he barks and when he barks. An LGD will bark during the night, sometimes a whole heck of alot! They are telling everyone and everything, I am here, I am awake, I watching, stay away or else! Since they are awake during the night on patrol they will sleep during the day. To me they sleep like a Goose, they may look asleep but you can't sneak up on them.

Also why are they giving him away if they still have livestock? Does he like to wander? Will he bite human visitors? Does he kill cats? Does he kill livestock? (I had one male LGD that ate baby goats as they were being born! He was dispatched immediately, no second chance.)
Hopefully this will give you idea of things to ask and look for.

 

[WingItRanch]

Observe his behavior. Does he cower or is he over aggressive when you or the owner comes towards him. Watch from a distance how he reacts to the other livestock.

When he meets you he shouldn't be overly happy to see you like a house pet. He should be an independent thinker and will decide if you will be a friend or foe. LGD's should act cautious around you because he doesn't know you. Ask the owner if he barks and when he barks. An LGD will bark during the night, sometimes a whole heck of alot! They are telling everyone and everything, I am here, I am awake, I watching, stay away or else! Since they are awake during the night on patrol they will sleep during the day. To me they sleep like a Goose, they may look asleep but you can't sneak up on them.

Also why are they giving him away if they still have livestock? Does he like to wander? Will he bite human visitors? Does he kill cats? Does he kill livestock? (I had one male LGD that ate baby goats as they were being born! He was dispatched immediately, no second chance.)
Hopefully this will give you idea of things to ask and look for.

Thank you! I did ask why they were giving him up. She said that they got him and his sister (already rehomed her) because they thought they would have a heavy predator load but have decided their fencing is a good enough deterrent. Also, he apparently does bark a lot so I'm guessing they found it annoying. That part doesn’t bother me. He'll be a fee acres away and I'd rather barking than a bobcat taking one of my goats.

That's horrifying about one of your dogs eating kids! I've read they may sometimes eat stillborns or miscarried babies.

I'm honestly still on the fence. I keep going back and forth about the pros and cons. I'm worried about a lot of things. What if he's sick with something not noticeable at first like heartworm or something? It doesn't sound like they took good care of him. What if he's great when we meet him but take him home and he attacks my goats? What if he's too big for me to handle?

 

[Squawkers]

Observe his behavior. Does he cower or is he over aggressive when you or the owner comes towards him. Watch from a distance how he reacts to the other livestock.

When he meets you he shouldn't be overly happy to see you like a house pet. He should be an independent thinker and will decide if you will be a friend or foe. LGD's should act cautious around you because he doesn't know you. Ask the owner if he barks and when he barks. An LGD will bark during the night, sometimes a whole heck of alot! They are telling everyone and everything, I am here, I am awake, I watching, stay away or else! Since they are awake during the night on patrol they will sleep during the day. To me they sleep like a Goose, they may look asleep but you can't sneak up on them.

Also why are they giving him away if they still have livestock? Does he like to wander? Will he bite human visitors? Does he kill cats? Does he kill livestock? (I had one male LGD that ate baby goats as they were being born! He was dispatched immediately, no second chance.)
Hopefully this will give you idea of things to ask and look for.

Great advice!! It’s cool hearing from you, I’ve never had an LGD but I’d love to when I get goats

 

[NotabitaiI]

What if he's too big for me to handle?

I'm 4'6 and disabled, they're big teddy bears, you'll be fine. They're certainly not dogs you can hold back on a leash, you have to have a helper or really good training.
Just try to keep the environment under control for those first few days, no meeting new dogs, no being left completely free and alone with the goats, and just focus on showing him you're trustworthy. They want to trust you and chances are he'll mellow out into a great LGD. If you don't have peace about it don't get him, trust your gut, you've had dogs before and you will know what you're comfortable with, like personally I'm not comfortable with shy LGDs, my 90-130lb dogs need to direct their aggression towards strange animals not people, most people will not want to cross them anyways, so I like the dopey goofy dogs who give big bear hugs, I'd be bristling at the sight of anything less than joyful, but you may find yourself being more comfortable with a passive dog, only you know at the end of the day. Do not fall victim to the sunk cost fallacy, wasting some hours and inquiring about a dog you don't end up liking is far better than guilt adopting a dog you're not comfortable with.

 

[NotabitaiI]

If it doesn't work out lmk, I'm in East Texas and may be able to connect you to one of the many LGD people I know.