Wanted: LGD for chicken flock

I live on 24 acres outside Post Falls, ID. I'm about to adopt a flock of about 40 chickens from a neighbor. Chickens will be in a mobile coop, so dog house will move with them in paddock shift system. The area has deer, elk, moose, skunk, porcupines, coyote/wolves(?), black bear, weasels, and probably other vermin I don't even know about yet. Need LGD to protect flock.

I believe a good place to start is to familiarize yourself with the traits of the different breeds there are to choose from and to determine what might suit you and your needs the best. They are each quite different. For example, my neighbor has had and still does have a Great Pyrenees. Good livestock guardian, good with people and strangers, but this breed has a tendency to roam. And I don't mean over to the neighbors, I'm talking like 6 miles away. I've read about that in this breed before, and my neighbors experience confirmed what I had read. He'd get phone calls from people miles away saying things like "missing your dog? he sure is nice and loves cookies!"

My neighbor is about to go get a Karakachan this weekend so he has two LGD's. Good guardian dog again, smaller in size than the Pyrenees, this breed is known to stay close to home, but also has a known tendency to not be good with other people and strangers. They'll bond to the owner, but that's likely it. They can show aggressive behavior to others. Maybe not the best breed if people are coming over regularly. I'm sure there are exceptions to every breeds known tendencies. I believe there is some degree of "nurture over nature" and spending the time up front with a dog will yield years of reward down the road.

Hope this helps! :)

I am in NO WAY disagreeing with what James has said, but in my experience, my Great Pyrenees has never roamed. There may be reasons for that; we do have good fences, and we do have ample acreage (the autumn paddock right now is 22 acres) so maybe that plays into it. Still as calm as she looks out with my sheep, she has 2 coyote and 2 fox kills to her name.

I'm just looking for anyone selling LGD pups that can be trained to guard chickens. Doesn't have to be a certain breed or pure bred. My aunt sells Great Pyr - Anatolian mixes that are a mix of the best traits from both breeds, but she's down in TX. Would like to find something closer to ID.

I have a friend near Hot Springs, MT who teaches at convergences about working dogs. She's bred and worked with many, and might know of someone not too far from you who can find a litter. Would you like me to ask if I can give you her info?

Fredy Perlman wrote:I have a friend near Hot Springs, MT who teaches at convergences about working dogs. She's bred and worked with many, and might know of someone not too far from you who can find a litter. Would you like me to ask if I can give you her info?

Yes! Thanks, Fredy!