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interesting (kinda scary) experience with anatolian shepherd dog

 
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We visited a farm in Northern Oregon recently, to look at a heritage breed of pig we are probably going to start raising this summer. 

The farm owner introduced us to his 160 pound livestock gaurdian dog, Buddy, while he was safely confined in a fence

We spent a minute looking at pigs in the barnyard, then went out to the field to meet some boars.  Buddy apparently had had enough with being patient about our presense, and we were suddenly aware of the fact that he had jumped the fence and was running towards us full speed. 

I haven't been afraid of a dog in a while.  Neither has my partner.  We were both scared s***less at the idea of this 160 pound monster eating us alive (the sounds he was making made us believe that was his intention).  It's his job to protect his herds, and he made it clear we were a threat. 

Farm owner managed to wrestle Buddy to the ground - by throwing his entire body on the dog - and instructed us to walk slowly to the pasture gate.  We escaped with nothing more than a good adrenaline rush. 

Farm owner said he can't really recommend this breed in the pure blood form as they are so aggressively protective.  He did say that his last (female) livestock guardian dog had a bit of great pyrenees crossed in, was quite a bit smaller than her fully able to breed male replacement, and wasn't nearly as difficult to deal with when human visitors came around. 

Buddy was tied up behind the fence for the remainder of our visit. 

The farm has no predation problems!  Imagine that!  They also go through A LOT of dog food. 
 
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What a great story - I was laughing my head off trying to picture it all.

Never thought you were in real danger with the owner right there, but WOW he had to tackle the dog!  That's scary.

Glad you survived the tour 

 
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Well.....the owner sounded worried, which is a big part of what scared me.  He was very serious as the dog was charging us and ordered us to "GET BEHIND ME"  and then tackled the dog.  hahah.  Yeah, it is funny in hind site! 
 
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I have heard other spooky stories about anatolian shepherds.  It kinda comes back around to great pyr being the preferred breed.



 
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Whew!

I am looking into gettng this breed. I think it is too hot here for Pyrenees Mountain Dog... long fur.

Will check out with the breeder. Seems to have a good record here but good to tred cautiously when hear things like this!!! They are used here to protect Sheep from Cheetah.

I am assuming you were near the livestock... and right in the pen? Seems the bonding is with the livestock and not the owner. Interesting. But sorry for your nasty scare... they are big dogs and even smaller dogs can be intimidating when aggressive. Glad you got out safely and lived to tell the tale.

Chelle
 
                          
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Glad to hear you're safe, Marina. I hope the dog owner develops some better control for his own sake!
 
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Wow! That one must not have been trained quite right. Mine (110 lbs and going steady) is an absolute sweetheart who loves everyone! He has a very fearsome sounding bark, but in truth is a big baby - he treats my cat as his master ever since she taught him a hard lesson about not being too friendly.
 
Chelle Lewis
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Been thinking about this whole thing. It is not the dog that should be getting the bad name. The owner needs to have understood his dog better..... and never have allowed any stranger near livestock being so guarded.

It is no pussy job to guard livestock from very real and hungry predators. The LGD was simply doing what he was trained to do. Actually quite impressive.

I think this particular LGD is probably more aggressive than normal for the Anatolian Shepherd Dog.... a matter of profile rather than breed of LGD. You get this in all breeds.

Chelle
 
Chelle Lewis
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Kirk Hutchison wrote:
Wow! That one must not have been trained quite right. Mine (110 lbs and going steady) is an absolute sweetheart who loves everyone! He has a very fearsome sounding bark, but in truth is a big baby - he treats my cat as his master ever since she taught him a hard lesson about not being too friendly.

Yes. I think training has a lot to do with it too. I wouldn't want to cross-breed out what has so skillfully been bred in.

I need a working animal that can do the job and that takes courage and determination with the predators I have. Not a pet.

Fencing needs to be secure and parts of the property where visitors are welcomed excluded. That was the true error in this whole scenario. And that the owner did not really understand his animal. Real pity Marina had to be so carelessly exposed to a very real danger. No doubt a learning curve all round. And glad to have heard of it... so thank you for posting. Must look at profile within the breed too.

Chelle

 
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The farmer said that this particular dog was bigger and more aggressive than he'd ever seen before.  By far the biggest dog I've ever seen in person, I'm pretty sure - besides a few very friendly great danes, but this guy had a totally different stocky build and demeanor.  He was huge and without a super thick coat.  He was just sincerely huge.  Could totally tangle with a cheetah, I'm sure. 


It is no pussy job to guard livestock from very real and hungry predators. The LGD was simply doing what he was trained to do. Actually quite impressive.



I agree.  Buddy is not a pet and he was doing his job, albeit a bit too enthusiastically.  I do think the farmer showing us around should have had him tied up behind the fence when we got there, but he's only a year old (so he'll get BIGGER!?) and we were told he has never jumped the fence before. 

We were introduced to Buddy first thing so that he knew we were there - we were instructed NOT to put our hands through the fence to say hello.  The farmer seemed like a very reasonable guy, not the kind to intentionally expose potential customers to danger.  He apologized so many times....but it was all ok in the end!  One of those 'good stories'...

Chelle, our high summer temps are what give us pause about pyraneeses as well.  Every livestock gaurdian dog puppy we've seen advertised in our area is pretty expensive, also.  And I can't imagine how much that dog must eat....well actually I can, and it makes me really not want to have a dog that size. 

So, in the meantime....We're going to build a temporary live stock holding shed near where we sleep outside in the summer (inspired by Sepp Holtzer, of course) and plan to keep piggies in it at night.  We hope to train them (with harnesses at first) to follow us to and from the enclosure....I think it will work, pigs generally are smart and we'll get to start with them at a young age.  And electric fences.  And our dog (only 80 pounds!) is actually good about "doing the rounds" but is nothing like Buddy towards strange humans.  He's a little too friendly, if anything.   
 
Chelle Lewis
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Sure is a good story! One I don't think you are likely to forget. In fact I think I will remember it too.... with wanting to get the Anatolian. The short fur is essential here to spot bush-ticks and help them manage the heat.

I wish I could just leave my animals outside like Sepp Holzer does. What a wonderful life to be able to do that! I know I wouldn't have livestock very long if I did. Even dogs are vulnerable here. I had 4 absolutely beautiful Rottweillers here but no fences and they would go hunting at night. One by one I lost them to the bush. Probably snake or leopard but I have also heard that the local Malawians who come south for work eat dogs. Who knows..... Just know it was heartbreaking. They were so friendly and loveable. I was never into Rottweiller till we had these. Spunky, loving dogs. Will not get dogs again without fencing. They cannot guard territory without fences anyway the vet told me. And I need dogs that can really take care of themselves.

I was reading somewhere about more natural ways to feed dogs and looked like it would keep costs down. I must go find it again. Will let you know if I do. I am into making all feed here anyway. I will need to get really big dogs for them to do all I require or I am just wasteing my time. Had enough of being the local monkey hotel... for one thing. But it will all come together in time.

I hope the dog doesn't jump the fence. I recently saw a Nat Geog documentary about a female tiger at the San Francisco zoo that jumped a moat that had not been jumped since built in the 60's. She was brought in for breeding especially for her wild strength and aggression. She mauled 2 youngsters and one 17 year old was killed. They think the hunting instinct was triggered in some way because even now they find it hard to believe the width of the moat was jumped. Not even half that distance can be jumped by trained tigers..... with many and various tests. He would be advised to take what happened as a warning that this time round he is dealing with a bit of a wild card. A superb animal that must be carefully watched and understood as far as possible.

Pigs are very intelligent. Sounds like a marvellous plan!

Chelle
 
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A woman who owns a great pyranees told me that they have a tendency to roam if they don't have clearly defined (fenced) boundaries.  Another way to let them know their home turf, she told me, is to take the puppy on a daily walk around the perimeter of the area they are protecting.  I'm assuming anatolians could be similar?  They like having a herd to protect, they aren't going to take off on some mission in the bush and leave their responsibilities at home. 

Wow, hadn't heard that story about the tiger crossing the moat to eat people.  Makes sense to me that wild stock would be much stronger than the caged halfway domesticated zoo animals, what a tragic underestimation of her abilities.  I bet they killed that tiger after that incident, too, huh?  Guh, zoos.....  Lock up the wild animal!  Oh crap, quick, kill her for showing off her instincts!  The end result is to eliminate an incredible specimen from the dwindling gene pool of tigers because of some human's dumb decisions. 

Remember that Sepp lives in an extremely populated part of the world, and one that exterminated its major predators a looooonnng time ago.  I'm sure there are advantages to your climate and region that are enviable also, but it's good that you realize what you're up against so far as predation goes.  Sounds like a dog like Buddy could be just what you need.  So long as you're home to lock him up every time a human friend comes to visit. 

We're talking about raising rabbits for dog/people food.  Probably will wait to add them to the fauna mixture next year though.  My dog loves nuts, that's a good fat+protein combo also. 
 
Chelle Lewis
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That makes really good sense about walking a dog around the perimeter. I will need fences first to be able to see my perimeter easily ... haha. Ah well... Rome wasn't built in a day they say. When I got quotes I figured I better find another way.

Yes. Dumb. You have my agreement there about zoos. Some terrible places. Our biggest zoo in Johannesburg has completely revamped with enormous enclosures.... but as I said.... our biggest. ... all the others are smaller. Terrible thing to do to an animal. I must say we have a local TV program that is hunting down animal abuses amoungst other stuff ... consumer and business cons .... and bringing some effective changes because such popular watching that people fear to be programmed on Carte Blanche. Have stopped a number of "animal sanctuaries" from all kinds of horrors and export abuses even on declared Cites animals. They even police our police.... too marvellous! The tiger did die.... terribly sad all round. That 17 year old boy.... terrible way to die. Hard on the family to know that. Was very sad to see.... left a real impression. The zoo is doing all it can now to revamp and prevent such a tragedy happening again.

It looks so wild there on Sepp's farm. If populated then he has the best of both worlds. The more I learn about what he has done the more impressed I am. Hadn't heard of him much till joined here.

Buddy would do really well here.... just I would really need to be geared up to have him. Your story made that very clear. Will do it. Yes, I love where I live. I guess we all do 

I had a dog as a child that loved eating avocados off the tree. He had a beautiful coat. Wouldn't even wait until they were perfectly ripe! Amazing what dogs will eat. Nuts are really good food. I have 2 cats that steal tomatoes if I don't have them well put away. Always show up when I am cutting tomato for salad. Go figure! The first cat I had that did this really freaked me for a while. Didn't realise a cat could so fancy tomato and I had cut a tomato and walked out probably to see to the baby... we were living in a small apartment at the time... and when I came back the tomato was gone... no sign of it. The door was locked and only me and the baby... . and of course a tomato-eating cat!.... haha!

I am also going to raise rabbits... French Angoras... dual purpose... meat and fibre. I will be so thrilled when it all comes together.... just lots of hard work at the moment.... but love it too. Dreaming and building is part of the fun.

Chelle
 
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I agree.  Buddy is not a pet and he was doing his job, albeit a bit too enthusiastically.  I do think the farmer showing us around should have had him tied up behind the fence when we got there, but he's only a year old (so he'll get BIGGER!?) and we were told he has never jumped the fence before. 



This caught my attention, a one year old dog is not ready to work by himself.  At two years they are just getting secure enough to handle the job.  That dog should have been with an older dog to be able to feel more secure.  Size is no substitute for experience.  Plus it is too much to expect one dog to do it all.  They are social animals and work as a team.

Also, the owner should have told you not to make eye contact with the dog.  With two eyes on the front of your head, and looking at the dog or the livestock, you are behaving like a predator as far as the LGD is concerned. 

When we have visitors they get told all this and we always proceed slowly, not because the dogs are dangerous, but because we want them to feel comfortable and secure in their jobs.    After a few minutes the dogs realize there is no problem, calm down and go back to the herd. 
 
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A woman who owns a great pyranees told me that they have a tendency to roam if they don't have clearly defined (fenced) boundaries.  Another way to let them know their home turf, she told me, is to take the puppy on a daily walk around the perimeter of the area they are protecting.  I'm assuming anatolians could be similar?  They like having a herd to protect, they aren't going to take off on some mission in the bush and leave their responsibilities at home. 



A fence is certainly important.  I wouldn't say pyrs and anatolians roam, but rather are expanding their territory.  Mollison's "the map is not the territory" fits them well.
 
Jami McBride
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Great points Gary, concerning the training and handling of the dogs.  Very good to remember along with Marina's cautionary tale.
 
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Jami McBride wrote:
Great points Gary, concerning the training and handling of the dogs.  Very good to remember along with Marina's cautionary tale.



Thanks and I agree about the cautionary part.    Each dog is different just like humans and Buddy may not work as a guardian, but one year old and huge is still a puppy and his next year will be like a teenager
 
Chelle Lewis
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Valuable insight Gary. Thanks.

Buddy as a teenager...... o boy! 

Chelle
 
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I'm sure Sepp's place is pretty remote as far as Europe goes, but....it's in Europe, which just has a fairly high density of people who have spent a long time making it safe for them to live there. 

Thank you for the input, gary.  I seem to remember that he had another dog on the farm that "went to live in town" recently (hints of a recent divorce? we didn't get too far into personal details, obviously).  No idea what his plans are as far as getting another dog is concerned, but it seems he usually has two on the farm.  My partner just reminded me that he told us to "LOOK AWAY" when he was keeping the dog on the ground while we were walking away. 

Each dog is different just like humans and Buddy may not work as a guardian,



I think Buddy already is an excellent guardian dog, I don't really understand that sentence....?  I get the impression that human visitors to this place are pretty uncommon.  I suppose the training of your dog should reflect the expectations of his duties.  If you want your dog to be nice to everyone, you'll spend a lot of time getting a breed that is not instinctually inclined to behave that way, though I'm sure it's possible.  That doesn't seem to be the interest of this particular farmer.  He needs him and intends him to be ferocious.  We were warned about his personality immediately and I'm sure he'll be way more contained the next time someone comes to visit. 
 
gary gregory
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Each dog is different just like humans and Buddy may not work as a guardian,

I think Buddy already is an excellent guardian dog, I don't really understand that sentence....?



I guess I was thinking about the coming over the fence part.    With coyotes for example, one or two try to draw the dogs away from the herd in one direction while the pack is waiting to move in from the other side.

In my experience, the LGD's work together in that one will put itself between the herd and the perceived danger.   The other dog will stay with the herd or flock.    Sometimes in high predation areas we will use 3 or more LGD's but they always stay within the fenced area.   

 
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He was being contained in an area that he doesn't normally hang out in, because of our visit.  I dunno, farmer said he has no predation problems even with the one dog and lots of livestock.  Not my farm, or my dog! 
 
paul wheaton
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To give you an idea of how high a dog or coyote can leap

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZcdYzCsKVn8

 
                    
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I raised Great Pyrenees Mountain Dogs, and I loved them.  When we went to select our first puppy, we were terribly intimidated by the parents, particularly dad.

They gave us the usual, we don't pet our stock dogs, they are in with the livestock.

We took our pup home, now how do you keep a 5 year old from playing with a white ball of energy?  She became a member of our family.  A lady owning a male with many good pedigrees and show records wanted a pup, out of my unregistered dog, she looked that good!  So we got puppies.  And then I knew why my dog was not "quality" she had an overbite problem.  It was obvious when naval cords needed tending to.

But, we raised all of our pups as pets, and with the livestock too.  We played shepherd and walked the goats, and took the puppies.  So they accepted that.

They welcomed visitors, as long as, the visitors observed two rules, keep your hands off the humans and the animals.  They would come sit at my feet, and listen to the conversation.

But, until a Pyrenees is about 2 years old, you are talking to a brick wall.    Joking, they play and all, but they won't obey until about 2.

I find that females do not roam.  Mine do tend to think it is their job to patrol more than our acreage.  But, they have their little routine, and never wander outside what they set as their boundary.  The Pyrenees can be here in the yard, and suddenly they hear something, it is a quick take off, and a leap over the fence, and off into the pasture they go to investigate.

If you only have one Pyrenees they cannot defend themselves against a pack of wild dogs or coyotes.  Coyotes will actually lure them into a trap and kill them.  But, if you have 2 or 3, then they will do their job, admirably.  Only complaint, they tend to drag the coyotes home, to show off what they did.

It gets too hot for tomato plants to live here in the summer, and my Pyrenees do fine.
Think about it, in really hot desert climates, people bundle up, they were heavy robes etc.
My Pyrenees do hate water, and treat bath time, rainy days, or dipping like you are punishing them.
 
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I've never heard of a guardian dog for pigs.  It doesn't make much sense to me.  Was the dog primarily responsible for another species on the farm?

As far as I know coyotes will not mess with pigs, at least if there is a full size hog in the lot.  A boar is no easy target for any predator.

 
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Thanks for sharing your experience with pyrenees dogs, ozark lady!

Mangudai: there were lots of animals at that place.  Dexter cows, goats, chickens, and the pigs we looked at.  That particular breed of pig doesn't get that big.  A full grown guinea hog boar is "only" 250-300 pounds, waaay smaller than a lot of other breeds whose boars can easily can approach a thousand pounds.  They do have tusks and can defend themselves (I highly doubt a coyote would try to take on a full grown male), but they just aren't huge.  I think the dog was mainly there to protect the baby animals of all varieties, anyway.  They are the most vulnerable to predation. 
 
                                    
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marina phillips wrote:
Thanks for sharing your experience with pyrenees dogs, ozark lady!

Mangudai: there were lots of animals at that place.  Dexter cows, goats, chickens, and the pigs we looked at.  That particular breed of pig doesn't get that big.  A full grown guinea hog boar is "only" 250-300 pounds, waaay smaller than a lot of other breeds whose boars can easily can approach a thousand pounds.  They do have tusks and can defend themselves (I highly doubt a coyote would try to take on a full grown male), but they just aren't huge.  I think the dog was mainly there to protect the baby animals of all varieties, anyway.  They are the most vulnerable to predation. 



You get a chance look at my first post-please.

CC
 
                        
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We were selling our guard donkeys and had a four month old and my grand daughter sold it to a fellow in her Equine class .. he was from Mackay, Idaho.

He put it in the front seat of his Grand Mother's new Dodge Dually .. bucket seat with the window down and drove through town .. two blocks .. with the little donk having his head stuck out the window and his ears sticking up above the roof of the truck. That stopped traffic for a while. I don't know if he made it home before any accidents or not.

 
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Hi everyone, I know this thread is a bit old but in case someone is still viewing it, I wanted to mention soemthing quick about Anatolian Shepherd Dogs or "Kangal" as it is named in Turkey after the village it originates from. I live in SoCal but my family from Sivas, Turkey, and reading the post about the encounter with "Buddy" I wanted to say that it is very normal for this dog to behave like it did.
This dog does excactly what the encounter decribed, it protects under any circumstances ITS family. This dog will give its last breath to protect owner, family, and the livestock and, in return the owner and family would give their lives in return for this amazing creature. In Turkey this dog is regarded and honored higher than most humans and people would die for this beautiful creature. The Kangal dog is used in the mountains to help protect livestock from wolves and, until few decades ago, against Tigers. This dog is very playful with it's own family only and very intelligent. My dad, when he was a kid herding sheep, would send his dog down the mountian to go to our family home for my grandma to put food into the scarve that was wrapped around his neck, he than would go back up the mountain to my dad...Anyway, my point actually was to say that, don't be scared but feel blessed if you can get an Anatolian Shephard Dog. Only thing is, it will need lots of land to roam. You can not have a small garden and keep it there, that would be cruel. This dog will change your life and will make you become an even better person. God bless...
 
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I wanted to second what Oguz-Han Ince wrote.

I own an Anatolian shepherd and he is exactly as he described. There is no better guardian dog in the world.
I would add that these dogs can live up to 15 years and are not fully mature until they are 4, and it's the nature of the breed to be wary of strangers and very protective of its "flock".
Once they get to know you, they are as friendly and playful as can be, but it can take time.
And as the previous poster said, these dogs are very intelligent. Mine has figured out how to turn the door knob with his mouth and pull the door open, so if I have to leave him in the house I have to deadbolt the door.
Mine would also jump the fence occasionally when he was younger, but as he matured he became satisfied with patroling the perimeter and then finding the highest spot with the best view to keep watch.
These days I can even leave the gate open and he won't go out unless I call him out.

Anatolians require little to no training for their guard duties, it's the socializing part that requires a lot of work. But it is well worth it. When I have Nicodemus with me I feel pretty safe no matter where I am.
 
pollinator
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Rick Perconte wrote:
I own an Anatolian shepherd and he is exactly as he described. There is no better guardian dog in the world.



Doesn't sound suitable for anyone who has visitors.

I have several of the BIG WHITE DOG breeds. They will bark like made at a person unless they've been "introduced." Once the dogs have seen that I approve of the visitor, they go back to laying around. I haven't had to tackle my dogs to get them to obey me.
 
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We raise a different Turkish breed, Akbash, and they are our pets as well as guard dogs. We have 4. They love visitirs of the 2 legged variety, but
kill anthing else that wanders in. they guard our goats, chickens guineas peafowl etc.
 
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gary gregory wrote:

A woman who owns a great pyranees told me that they have a tendency to roam if they don't have clearly defined (fenced) boundaries.  Another way to let them know their home turf, she told me, is to take the puppy on a daily walk around the perimeter of the area they are protecting.  I'm assuming anatolians could be similar?  They like having a herd to protect, they aren't going to take off on some mission in the bush and leave their responsibilities at home. 



A fence is certainly important.  I wouldn't say pyrs and anatolians roam, but rather are expanding their territory.  Mollison's "the map is not the territory" fits them well.



Not true. Anatolians do roam. They head out into the bush to hunt down predators before the predators have a chance to get to their charge.
 
Barrett Karz
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Kirk Hutchison wrote:Wow! That one must not have been trained quite right. Mine (110 lbs and going steady) is an absolute sweetheart who loves everyone! He has a very fearsome sounding bark, but in truth is a big baby - he treats my cat as his master ever since she taught him a hard lesson about not being too friendly.



It has nothing to do with training. It's bred into them. Anatolians are VERY sweet dogs to their masters, family, and anyone who has been "okayed"... but they can turn in a second on anyone (or anything) they perceive as a threat. You're not going to overcome 6000 years of breeding with training. You have to remember these dogs were bred to fight off bears, jackals, and packs of wolves.
 
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Working in the veterinary field for many years, I have had experiences with Anatolians that can be agressive. Three years ago we were searching for a livestock dog and fell in love with Lilly. There was an ad in the paper for Anatolian Pyrenees mix puppies so I went to see them. I knew how Anatolians could be so I checked out all the pups. Lilly was the largest female. She immediately ran past her littermates to greet me and looked into my eyes. Her littermates stayed back and did not greet me. I thought about this. She was the most brave and the most social. She had to pass one more test. I wanted to see if she would submit to me, so I tried to turn her upside down. Nope, didn't work. She did not growl or bite, but managed to get out of any manuever I tried. Hmmm. So she did not submit. This might be a good thing. The lady that I was buying her from laughed and said her brothers try to get her to submit and she just won't. They try and they cannot get her to. Still she was so social and beautiful. So she went home with me. I decided to call her Lilith, (remember, Lilith would not submit to Adam). And so she became Lilly for short. Over the next year, I thought I would strangle her! She would not listen and managed to dig holes, tear out irrigation hoses and dig up entire trees. Ugh. I worked with her to make her understand that I was in charge. This was difficult. However, at 2 years old, a miracle happened. She started listening. And not only that, she did things that are truly amazing, often making me wonder if she was actually reading my mind. We just love her. She watches our goats, she loves our cat and is great with visitors most of the time. She is wary of certain people but never agressive. She has turned out to be the most wonderful dog. We may have been lucky, but I feel the mix of these two breeds is a good choice. Just make sure this breed is social and friendly as a pup. Work with them as much as you can, they are wonderful dogs. I probably would not have a pure Anatolian, but this mix is great. Lilly is a huggy, lovey, awesome dog.
 
Randy Gibson
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great story Rose! Sounds just like our Akbash.
 
pollinator
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Our great pyr jumps the fence and chases people. We had to electrify the fence. The good news is that while the neighbors have been robbed, we haven't been. The bad news is that whenever we go on vacation the family we have feeding the animals just has to throw food over the fence to him.
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I may love my baby but I'll bite your face off!
 
Randy Gibson
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I don't see any bad news there, I wish our dogs weren't so social. They kill any 4 legged critter that comes along, but they love people.
 
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I have pure anatolians and will never have another breed.  My dogs protect my livestock and when people come over they bark a warning but as soon as I say it's okay they relax.  This is how this breed should behave if you have the respect of your dog they trust you when you tell them a person is not a threat.  When my dogs go out with me they are very friendly and love meeting people, they draw a crowd where ever we go and they love it.  I trust them and they trust and respect me.  If I'm not home and you come on my property the dogs will warn you off with barking if you listen and back off you will have no problem if you don't, well you were warned.  I've had meter readers and ups guys ignore my beware of dog signs but none of them got bit because when my dogs asked them to leave they did.  
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pollinator
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In Anatolia where these dogs came from, they had to protect their flocks against human livestock thieves as well as animal predators, so they'll respond aggressively to strange people approaching their flock unless their owner tells them its ok for them to be there.
 
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...they had to protect their flocks against human livestock thieves as well as animal predators


Just as everywhere, those two legged predators can be worse than the 4 legged ones.
 
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