Suggestions on a Great Farm Dog....Anyone ???

[Johndeere96]

We have a australian cattle dog alson known as blue heeler and its the best dog we have ever had we've had her for 12 plus years and she has never run off. we only tie her for 2 months in the fall when our apple orchard is opened so she doesn't bother the people shes very very protective and will not let any one near our house unless you call her off or tie her up which is good and bad.

 

[OldGuy43]

I once had a purebred Shetland Sheep that we got as a puppy and she instinctively (

I don't try to explain it, I just report what I saw.) knew where the property line was from day one. One side I can understand, the neighbors driveway was there. The other side was just one grass lawn to another, but she KNEW(!). Anyone walking down the sidewalk she would follow quietly from one end of the yard to the other and than return to the porch. I could gush on and on about how smart she was, but suffice to say great with kids, extremely easy to train, strong herding instinct, very protective and fast as a streak.

Might suit your situation.

 

[capayvalleychick]

If you are willing to do some basic obedience training, be a fair & firm leader and give a dog love and companionship, in addition to the chores, look into English Shepherds.

English Shepherds were America's favorite farm dog when the US was comprised of small family farms. There is variability in individual dogs, but the breed traditionally was the all purpose, do it all farm helper. They guard the property and the livestock, will help with herding and keeping critters in their place (have an off switch when there's no work to do) and will hunt vermin.

They are also a wonderful companion dog and want to be with their person, are smart and biddable.

The catch is, along with any intelligent working dog, you must take time in the beginning to teach them the rules or they will make up their own. You can't expect a puppy to behave like a mature dog. Take some time teaching them, tagging along with you while you care for the critters and they will learn the rules and enforce them. Walk the perimeter of your property every day and reinforce where the boundary is. Spay or neuter your dog.

ES can live on farms or even a condo. What's important is that they get mental and physical exercise. The smaller the property, the more you will have to interact with them to give them what they need. They have much less energy than a Border Collie and don't have the need to patrol a large area like a LGD.

If you are interested, do lots of research on many breeders. Talk to people who have bought their pups.

I have 20 acres, not fenced for dogs. My ES and my husband's (German) GSD stay on the property and do not wander. People in this area have horrible problems with predators, but we have had minimal losses in 11 years.

Just last night, as I was closing up the coop, my male ES lifted his leg and marked around the coop doors... his way of telling the predators that these chickens are his.

Kim

 

[User105877]

Since you only have a small amount of land, try considering a Fox terrier. Not much bigger than the popular rat terrier, but they if they are from good stock, not show dogs, they are very protective little dogs, that wont stand down to anything. I've had a 15lb pound dog kill a 20lb coon and run off foxes and other varmits, very couragous dogs.

 

[Achickenwrangler#1]

go to the local animal shelter and get a mut that would be happy to guard your place for a hot and a cot

 

[OldGuy43]

Achickenwrangler#1 :

go to the local animal shelter and get a mut that would be happy to guard your place for a hot and a cot

A big +1

 

[momw2cutekids]

Quote:
Exactly, That is how my Boxer is I guess when you find a GREAT dog it's just hard to settle for no less ! My husband one morning left for work at 4am in the morning this past summer and left my dog out forgetting he was outside going to the bathroom and you know when I got up and moving and started to head out for my morning chores around 9am he was sleeping on the front porch !

There has been other times where I've sent him outside for hours and hours and he remains in our back field area

I think I'm just skip looking for a another dog right now until I can find the perfect dog for us, but, for now the shotgun is loaded and sitting by the door - For the love of a

Thanks for all of the suggestions and for those that understood what I was saying about a GREAT DOG ! !

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

IF YOU HAVE A GOOD DOG that is one of the family IT WILL NOT RUN OFF !!!

That's simply not true, especially when the OP only has 2 acres.

And I agree with everyone who said get a mutt from a shelter.
They make the best "yard dogs"

Electric fencing is pretty cheap and will keep your dog in and predators out too​

 

[Mountain Man Jim]

So, I'm an idiot ... I meant to post the following on this thread:

My 2 cents on which breed is this … breed helps but it also depends on the dog’s personality. As far as breeds goes, I think it helps to start with a breed that is known to naturally watch and guard property. We don’t need our dogs to “bond” with the chickies but, they need to have the instinct to be on alert for intruders. For example, our Labs are useless for guarding. When they are outside they sit next to the front door waiting to be let in or waiting for us to do something with them. That’s great behavior for a hunting or companion dog but, we have had chickens stolen literally from right under their noses by the fox. On the other hand, our Great Pyrenees would take her favorite position high in the backyard and survey her turf. Just about any sound would set off a volley of barking. At the sight of an interloper, she would charge the fence growling with the other dogs in tow, quite the sight. If you opened the front door, all of the dogs run to the door. The Pyr , lying on her mound, would lift her head and look at you … What I need to come in now?

So, anyway, guarding breeds guard and that’s a good thing. Some other good things to consider about the breed are:

How weather proof is the breed? Boxers won’t work for me because of our cold winters. Consider that the dog needs to be outside whenever the chickens are outside, in all weather.

How independent is the breed and that particular dog? Many people have the most problem with predators at night. Your guard dog may need to be outside all day and night with little or no interaction with you, the leader of the pack. That’s tough on some dogs. If they are stressed, they can't guard very well.

Size and deterring affect of the dog? A little terrier would lose the fight fast in my neck of the woods; we gots loins out here. Again, the dog way be unsupervised for hours, can it handle itself against the areas predators without you?

Aggression. Oddly enough, you may still need you guard dog to be a big kitty cat around you, visitors and, especially, children. A junkyard dog may not be desirable so, look at the breed and the individual dog for signs of aggression.

Breed, I believe only gets you part of the way there but, it does help to stack the deck. Next comes the dog’s personality. You need to interact with your future dog and test to see if she is going to work for you. Lastly, there’s training. Your new farm dog will need to be trained to accept the chickens, understand the property boundaries, even to bark and chase predators, etc. You can adjust for quite a few personality issues with training but, I don’t think you can change my Labs into watchdogs.
I swear by using dogs to guard the chickens. I also like having a small pack of dogs, the dynamics are great. They tend to keep each other in check. I also I like shelter dogs that are few years old. You can evaluate a dog’s behavior much easier than a puppy’s. And, adopting a shelter dog is a good thing to do for the dog. All of our current dogs are rescues.

So, time to do your homework on DogBreedsInfo.com and plot out your next dog … I hear Boxer are pretty good watchdogs, if the weather is nice by you, maybe it’s time for another

Jim