Pyrenees and ducks

[CelticOaksFarm]

we have 3 great pyrenees with our flocks and they are FANTASTIC dogs. I always warn people that it takes YOU training them and working with them until age 3 to get them to be fantastic. Our "puppy" is 1 now and is not permitted loose with the ducks yet, but is permitted to be tethered to the 3 year old boy for guidance when we cant be with him. He is great with the goats and ignores the geese as they move about. The ducks still peak his interest though lol. In another years time he will be fine as well. Our 2 three year olds are wonderful, and wont allow anything 2 or four legged to get inside the fences.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Honestly I couldn't imagine putting any breed of puppy in the house with my ducks no matter if the LGD's seems at some point they are going to want to play tug.

 

[Lilyt]

Thanks!!

He was the runt of the litter and he was very grey when we first got him. Not sure if he's really "full" Pyr like I was told, but as long as he does his job, he'll work out just fine. He's starting to lighten up a lot. The grey is more underneath now.

And he weighed in @ 25 lbs. for 3.5 months. So he's growing!!

Fingers crossed. And thanks for all the encouragement and positive thoughts!!

 

[Lilyt]

Oh!! I need to clarify!!! lol He is not in their HOUSE. He shares a 25 x 25 pen with them. The ducks have houses and I them out during the day and then at night, I put them back up. The ducks don't get to come out unless I'm home to keep an eye on things, but thankfully, he sleeps a lot during the day and at night, when he's active, they're sleeping. So far so good. But no... HECK no... NO WAY would I lock him in their house with them. lol lol

 

[Lilyt]

An update, after all this time. Rufus will be one year old next month. We had him neutered last month and he weighed 89 pounds. He's not a full-blooded Pyr like we were told, but he's still good. We did adopt a full-blooded Pyr in February and Roscoe is about 2 years old. He could care less about the ducks. I feed him with the ducks. He doesn't mind if one or two of them eat along with him, but more than that, and he gets a little cranky. He can't eat as fast as 21 ducks.

He weighs 100 lbs. I'm hoping because he is older, he will know how to guard and won't roam too far from home. Obviously he roams and that's how Animal Control ended up with him.

The dogs are now separated from the ducks. But their pen is right next to the ducks so they are still very familar with them. I'm still not brave enough to let the dogs run the property (it's not fenced in on all sides) until they are micriochipped. Over the winter, we lost the last of our ducks (4) and our two geese to either dogs or coyotes. I haven't put anything back on the pond.

As soon as I figure out how to upload pics, I'll post. Thanks for the conversation! It's great support!

 

[Casey4432]

An update, not that anyone asked . . .lol. We bought what was supposed to be a full-blooded, eight week old, Pyrenees (Rufus) on August 8th. He's been in the pen with our buff ducks ever since. He's amaziing to watch and I would LOVE to get inside his head!! He has yet to kill or mangle any of the ducks (knock on wood) although, he has had a mouthful of tailfeatthers a couple of times. I will sit in the pen with him and play Alpha dog. If the ducks try to mate and the duck is throwing a fit, he will walk (or lop) over to them and break them apart. If two are squabbling, he'll break them up as well. Some times, I've seen him, after he breaks up the racket, chase the male under the duckhouse. And, if they are in a blindspot, he'll run over there and put them where he can see them. He's very interesting to watch.

I don't trust him 100% yet, and I know that eventually he will run the property, so my main concern right now is making sure that he thinkis of the ducks as "family", if he thinks about them at all.

He goes back to the vet this week for his 3rd round of puppy shots and I'm curious to see what he weighs.

Any updates 9 years later?

 

[Miss Lydia]

Any updates 9 years later?

 

[Americanaudacity]

Has anyone ever used a Great Pyrenees to guard their ducks? We live on 6 acres in the country and we seem to have developed a predator problem, whether it's wildlife or local dogs, I'm not sure. We have dogs but they are more barkers than protectors and I've decided to look into Livestock Guardian Dogs. The Pryn seems to ideal, but that 's on paper. Just curious if anyone has actually had any experience guarding their flocks with these dogs. Thanks

Hello! I have a Great Pyrenees and an Anatolian Shepherd. The GP has tried 4 times to kill the ducks and succeeded once. Our Anatolian has never tried to harm or chase the ducks. He will lay with them all day. We have to keep the Great Pyrenees separated from the ducks. Highly recommend Anatolian Shepherd. Much more trainable too. The Great Pyrenees is a very stubborn breed.