Almost three weeks ago, I got my very first LGD. When predators started picking my chickens off almost daily, I had to do something. When I was offered an Anatolian Shepherd puppy, I couldn't pass it up! This is Jethro, who will be 8 weeks old this Monday. I did get him a bit early, at 5 weeks, but we know his breeder really well and he was completely weaned and all went well! His training is going super well, and our vet (who I got him from) is giving me fantastic pointers in training. He's still a little too playful with the chickens, but our training sessions are getting longer and he's almost quit chasing them (though he did catch one by the tail today No harm done though) We plan to leave him with the chickens all day, and bring him in when we lock the chickens up at night due to a bear we have hanging around. I know a few people who do it this way, and it has worked really well for them. The more time he spends outside, the less he likes being in the house. He's not happy unless he's out there staring at the goats and chickens. If anyone has any advice for a newbie, it'd be greatly appreciated!
How Cute!!!! Love his name!! I have an LGD also.....Finn.....Maremma...He is almost three now.... Enjoy your puppy..... Cheers!!!
This is my 10 month old maremma puppy Alfie. He doesnt stay with the chooks, he guards the house and property and the chooks free range around. He would kill chooks if locked in the yard with them so I stopped doing it. He's happier to be free ranging with them. The sheep didn't like him and at first he used to chase the sheep, now he just watches them from afar. He follows commands better and has become more mature before he was hard to control and he would just run away. Once he learnt sit and drop he became a completely different dog. He doesn't mind the cows and two cats beat him up the other two he chases as they run away from him. Hope this summary of Alfie helps your training. Good luck
Hey!!! Just thought I'd update :-D Jethro is now 13 weeks old, and has already saved the chickens lives multiple times :-D He's scared away eagles many, many times, and even chased a stray rooster up under a building just before an eagle could get him. He's doing super well! He turned 13 weeks old yesterday, and I weighed him today. 51 pounds!!! He's a big ole boy! He's already passed the smaller of our older dogs (a Brittany spaniel) and is catching up to the bigger (A Golden retriever) I'll try to get some pics up soon!
