Great Pyrenees on the Homestead
Livestock guardian dogs, or LGDs, can be great defenders of the homestead as well as barking headaches. Many new homesteaders are unsure if a LGD is the right choice. Are they worth it? First, a question.
What do you call the Great Pyrenees who escaped your fence?
Answer: A Great Disapyrenees!
Are they still worth having despite having to run and hunt them down if they get out?
Absolutely!
Who me? I’m not an escape artist. You must be thinking of some other Great Pyrenees.
Great Pyrenees are a common breed of livestock guardian dog, or LGD. When I was researching livestock guardian dogs I ran across a lot of “livestock guardian dog people.” These are like horse people, or chicken people, or show dog people. Although they are great sources of information they generally just roll their eyes at you and your unknowing ways. I heard a lot of people saying thing like “that’s what you do with dogs, but these are LGD’s.” I would just be left thinking “isn’t a LGD still a dog?”
I needed a LGD because we have a coyote problem at Mossygoat Farm. We also have bobcats and nearby cougars. After several mornings of waking up to the coyote chasing the sheep and the cow having to be the one to chase the coyote I knew we needed a LGD and we needed one ASAP.
We decided to get a Great Pyrenees over other livestock guardian dogs breeds because of their temperament towards people. I needed a dog who could be great with children AND a livestock guardian dog. The two are not mutually exclusive if you get the right dog.
How to find the right Great Pyrenees for your farm.
The first thing that you need to know when getting a LGD for your farm is that you are buying a livestock guardian dog. Your dog needs to come from a background of guarding livestock.
Great Pyrenees is a LGD breed but not all Great Pyrenees are LGDs. A papered show quality Great Pyrenees may not have the same natural instincts as a backyard bred puppy that has been specifically breed for the task. A house or kennel raised dog will not necessarily have the same pack training as a farm raised dog.
There are a lot of rescue Great Pyrenees available. Some people buy the breed because they are beautiful sweet dogs. However, they bark and need 5 foot fences and gates. Yes, they will dig under a fence too. They are a lot of dog to handle and because of this a lot of them end up in rescues. You do not know the background of all rescue dogs and for that reason alone, most of them should not be used as LGDs. Occasionally you do see rescue LGDs that come with some sort of warning such as “eats chickens.” Each rescue dog can be assessed on an individual basis.
How do you find the right dog? You can ask Great Pyrenees owners who they got their dog from and if they are happy with their dog. Sellers will often use Craigslist to advertise their dogs. There are Facebook groups for LGD owners. Look around and ask questions.
You want a LGD that was raised in an environment similar to what you have. If you raise goats then you should try to find one who was exposed to goats. If you have an electric fence then you should try to find a breeder with an electric fence. Although being exposed to chickens as a youngster does not guarantee a chicken safe dog, it is a basic pre-requisite if you own birds.
Although there are Great Pyrenees breeders closer to me, I chose to drive 200 miles for my particular pair. They were farm raised and pack trained. They had been exposed to all basic homestead animals and kids. They also grew up doing perimeter patrol with their mother on an electric fence.
It needs to be pointed out that even though a LGD has been raised around farm animals, you will need to train them to YOUR farm animals, especially birds. “Mine” is the command my dogs know. When something is “mine” they know not to chase or attack. This is a lesson that needs to be reinforced often. Do not let a LGD loose with chickens or other birds unless it has been trained by you and you are 100% confident that nothing will happen. Being an LGD does not guarantee a chicken-safe dog. Breed has nothing to do with guarding chickens. It is true that breeds with a high prey drive tend to kill chickens more than breeds without the prey instinct. However, there are exceptions. The most chicken safe dog I have ever owned was a Rottweiler/Labrador mix that we got from the pound.
LGD’s: What you need to know
The first thing that you need to know about owning a LGD is that they are really smart. There is a false rumor going around the internet that they aren’t that smart because they are a harder dog to train. Recall (or coming when called) is especially difficult to train. The difficulty in training doesn’t come from a lack of intelligence though. This is a breed that relies heavily on instinct. They use this instinct to guide their decisions in life. If you give them a command that counters their instinct, they likely will choose instinct over you. They actually think they are smarter than you and will act accordingly.
When it comes to Great Pyrenees, two are better than one. You definitely can just have one LGD. However, there is benefit in having two. Two dogs will work together as a pair to do the guarding. This more than doubles your guarding power.
My two livestock guardian dogs train together daily for the task. They do this by play fighting and practicing attacking each other. When a real threat comes they bark, and bark, and bark. This is something else you need to know about Great Pyrenees: they are barkers. Barking is their first line of defense. They bark at everything they think can be a threat. Their definition of a threat may be different then your definition. I thought the Great Blue Heron who decided to nest in the pasture next to us was going to be the death of me trying to train the dogs that it was a welcome friend.
When the barking doesn’t scare off the animal and the threat doesn’t retreat, they fight each other. They become a snarling mass of fighting dog. Are they hurting each other? Absolutely not! But the message they are giving out is “Look how mean we are, don’t mess with us.” That is message a single dog can’t give. It is a powerful message.
Great Pyrenees are excellent dogs for living in cold snowy conditions. They are also known as The Pyrenean Mountain Dog. They were bred for cold and snow. My pair happily patrols the ice water of my drainage ditches as if they don’t even notice the ice. They also happily sit out in the cold rain guarding animals even when they have a dry place in the barn.
What really made us chose the Great Pyrenees over other LGD breeds is their very lovable temperament. The are friendly to other humans who are friendly back. I can have them loose while I have other people and families on my property without worrying about them doing harm. As with all dogs, I do introduce my dogs to people who I want them to be friendly to. Although they do not spend a lot of time in the house, they love to come in and be snuggled.
Great Pyrenees can be a wonderful addition to your livestock and your home. Every breed of LGD has its benefit and the Great Pyrenees is a great choice for many homesteaders (with good fences). And yes, there is much emphasis on the term with good fences.