North Carolina

[pondviewfarm]

what type of dog training do you do? Obedience herd dog or ?

Obedience, Behavior Modification, Detection, Tracking, Protection, Police, Military, and Weight Pull are all things that I have experience in.
Most of what I do now is obedience and behavior modification but I still do detection, tracking, and protection work on the regular.

 

[pondviewfarm]

I'd love to see a photo of these!



On the prey drive bit...I have four dogs; three Mastiffs and a Great Dane. The Dane has a much, much higher prey drive than the other three, but he managed to get two of the other three to join him in killing my birds when the opportunity presents itself. Levi, the Dane, loves squeaky toys. The big, warm ones are more fun than the cold small ones I buy at the pet shop. When it stops squeaking, just go grab another if possible!

We've opted to quit raising turkeys because of that puppy, and have done some fence work on the chickens. Since I have bottle baby goats, I've come to the conclusion that it will be some time before they can be on pasture unsupervised, unless Levi is indoors and crated. I could never fully trust training on him with the extremely high prey drive he's exhibiting. The Mastiffs though, I'd retrain if I didn't have to find alternatives because of Levi anyway.

Animal interactions are amazing, as are what characteristics we've enhanced in the breeds we have spent centuries artificially selecting. I love it. (As long as my flocks stay protected for that puppy of mine!)

You'll be able to break Levi off of the goats and birds when supervised fairly easily. You should be able to work up to periods without supervision down the road.
I have some very high drive working dogs here and have not yet had one kill a chicken or any other animal on the property. Training will give you and your dog so much FREEDOM.

 

[dutchbunny83]

FVRM-- The crates you are talking about are actually used for green beans. A lot of times people can get them for free from the grocery stores. Or I guess you could make them. You're talking about these right,?



They don't hold up very well, but they get the job done. My husband got quite a few from the commissary last year, it's how all their green beans come in from the distributor.

 

[Coop Scoop Boogie]

 

[FVRM]

FVRM-- The crates you are talking about are actually used for green beans. A lot of times people can get them for free from the grocery stores. Or I guess you could make them. You're talking about these right,?



They don't hold up very well, but they get the job done. My husband got quite a few from the commissary last year, it's how all their green beans come in from the distributor.

oooh I thought they had been made for the chickens, since they work really well as carriers.

 

[doubleatraining]

Nice!
What breed LGD is that? I have very little experience with LGDs but I absolutely love them and the work that they are bred to do.
Sometimes, I fantasize about getting one but I think it will be a while.

But yeah, these guys standing up to predators is not the same situation as the Boxer one. LOL. These guys could feel any mixture of prey, defense, pack, and fight drive when protecting the livestock on their property.

I would really love to hear more about your dogs. I am a dog nut.

The tan one is, Moose, an Anatolian Shepherd. He is only 11 months old and right at 95lbs. Grover is the white one and he is 1/2 Anatolian and 1/2 Great Pyrenese. They are a fabulous team. Grover is the flock dog. He is more mellow and prefers to stay with the goats and cuddles the babies. Moose is HIGHLY reactive to strangers, predators, changes in his "territory".....he is NOT bluffing. He is more of a perimeter dog. He reacts first and hard. Any real threat and Grover is there for back up. I wouldn't want to try to get past these 2. They can handle quite a lot.....and they would perceive that Boxer as a massive threat.

If you want to discuss LGDs more send me a PM and I'll invite you to a REALLY good FB group that is all about learning the breeds, behaviors, training, etc.

 

[sbrooks88]

So my rooster is still hangin in there. I fixed him his fave noodles and strawberries since he's still not eating a lot and he wouldn't touch it! then he always used to peck holes in the dog food bags when he free ranged...he loved dog food. And I have him some of that as a last resort kind thing! And he ate it! I hate that he ate dog food but at least he ate something! Anybody have any ideas on something I can feed him besides dog food he might enjoy?

 

[Matt A NC]

Have you tried any antibiotics on him yet? If not, go to a feed store and find some.

 

[Hollowoakfarm]

 
I'd love to see a photo of these!



On the prey drive bit...I have four dogs; three Mastiffs and a Great Dane.  The Dane has a much, much higher prey drive than the other three, but he managed to get two of the other three to join him in killing my birds when the opportunity presents itself.  Levi, the Dane, loves squeaky toys.  The big, warm ones are more fun than the cold small ones I buy at the pet shop.  When it stops squeaking, just go grab another if possible!

We've opted to quit raising turkeys because of that puppy, and have done some fence work on the chickens.  Since I have bottle baby goats, I've come to the conclusion that it will be some time before they can be on pasture unsupervised, unless Levi is indoors and crated.  I could never fully trust training on him with the extremely high prey drive he's exhibiting.  The Mastiffs though, I'd retrain if I didn't have to find alternatives because of Levi anyway. 

Animal interactions are amazing, as are what characteristics we've enhanced in the breeds we have spent centuries artificially selecting.  I love it.  (As long as my flocks stay protected for that puppy of mine!)

You'll be able to break Levi off of the goats and birds when supervised fairly easily. You should be able to work up to periods without supervision down the road.
I have some very high drive working dogs here and have not yet had one kill a chicken or any other animal on the property. Training will give you and your dog so much FREEDOM.

Since Levi has already killed a number of birds, no matter how much training he gets, I would Never trust him with livestock. He'll be competing in obedience trials soon...and I still wouldn't trust him. Training will only go so far to counter what has been bred into them. And I think that we often expect too much along those lines. The trainers I work with who know him and have seen his responses both at home and at our training facility are united in that assessment.

 

[sbrooks88]

Have you tried any antibiotics on him yet?  If not, go to a feed store and find some.

I have some duramycin. Would that b ok?