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Guard Dogs are Reducing
Livestock Losses Across AL |
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Affectionately Known
as the “Gentle Giant,”
the Great Pyrenees Guard Dog is a Fierce Defender
of Livestock
By Ben
Norman |
Rafton Davis’s Great
Pyrenees are fierce defenders of his goat herd. Little Red, an orphan
goat, has bonded with one of the Pyrenees puppies.
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Visitors
arriving at the home of Rafton and Jo Ann Davis of Route 1, Highland
Home, do so under the watchful eyes of |
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Bucky and Pretty Girl, the Davis’s
two Great Pyrenees guard dogs. Get too close to the fence around Davis’s
goat pasture and you will get a
stern warning in the form of a deep growl from Bucky. It is in the best
interest of one’s good health to heed his warning.
Davis
said he was constantly having trouble with dogs harassing his goats.
"I
was always uneasy when I had to leave home with my goats unprotected.
Several times I came home to dogs trying to get to them. I was also
worried about a growing coyote population around my house. I knew it was
just a matter of time before I would lose some goats to dogs or coyotes,
so I decided to get a Great Pyrenees to protect them. It was one of the
best things I’ve done since we started raising goats."
The
Davises purchased the male dog first and later acquired a female.
"I had heard that you had to train them to guard livestock, but
that wasn’t our experience. I just built them a small shelter and put
them in the pasture. They immediately bonded with the goats. Basically
all we do is feed and water them and they do the rest. We buy all our
dog food, vet supplies and goat feed at Luverne Cooperative Services.
Our dogs and goats really do well on Co-op products," said Davis. |
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Rafton Davis gives his
goats a treat as his Great Pyrenees guard dogs watch.
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Guarding
livestock with dogs is nothing new. The Great Pyrenees breed originated
in the Pyrenees Mountains in France. They are believed to be relatives
of the St. Bernard and Newfoundland breeds, and were first used by
shepherds to guard sheep in the French Highlands. Considered one of the
oldest guard breeds, remains of a dog similar to the Great Pyrenees has
been dated to 1800 BC.
The
Great Pyrenees remained a working dog until the Middle Ages when they
became popular with the French nobility. Equipped with a collar with
large protruding spikes and their double layer of thick hair, these dogs
were ideal for guarding the nobility’s livestock from bears and
wolves. They also did double duty as avalanche rescue dogs, sled and
cart pullers, and as pack dogs for those journeying into the wilderness.
The nobility also delegated some dogs for nothing but castle guards and
protectors of the estate’s children. |
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Davis
said it is almost unbelievable how devoted the Great Pyrenees is to the
livestock it is guarding. "On numerous occasions we have actually
had a dog assist a nanny giving birth. Not only do they stand guard
while the nanny is giving birth, they help clean up the kid as soon as
it is born. I’ve seen our male dog have the first of two kids
completely cleaned up for the nanny by the time she had the second kid.
They really hang close to a nanny with newborns, too. We once had a
nanny die and leave a newborn orphan. Our female dog actually allowed
the kid to nurse her until we could get the kid on a bottle. We fed the
little orphan, named Little Red, with a bottle but Pretty Girl has
otherwise taken on the role of her mother."
Jimmy
and Truman Johnson of Goshen agree with Davis that it would be hard to
find a dog more loyal to the livestock they are guarding than a Great
Pyrenees. The Johnsons had one of the largest goat herds in the area
until about a year ago when they liquidated it and began raising beef
cattle. |
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"We
wondered if the dogs would convert from guarding goats to guarding
calves. They took to guarding the calves immediately just like they had
been guarding them for years. They help clean a calf after birthing just
like they will with goats. They are extremely protective. We had a grown
bull knock a young calf down and slightly injured him. One of our dogs
immediately got between them and backed the big bull down. Even our big
Angus bull didn’t want to tangle with that big dog," said Truman
Johnson.
Johnson
said it is important to start the dogs off right. "It’s important
to provide food, water and shelter, but you don’t want to pet them too
much. They are bred to guard livestock and that is where they are at
home - in the pasture with goats, cows or other livestock.
"We
just didn’t lose any goats after we got our dogs. Every now and then
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Raven Brown, the Davis’s granddaughter, gives Bucky and Pretty Girl a
hug.
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dogs
would get near the fence and our Great Pyrenees would take off after
them as soon as they were spotted. Recently, a fox ventured into the
pasture but as soon as those dogs spotted it and gave chase, the fox
scooted under the fence. We had a friend who had a pack of deerhounds
run a deer into his goat pasture. He said he had never seen so much hair
flying or heard such snarling and hollering in his life. When the scrap
was finished, our friend had to help a couple of hounds back over the
fence. He said he never had trouble with that pack of hounds
again," laughed Johnson.
Old
time livestock rustlers would have had a hard time making a living if
early farms had had a Great Pyrenees on duty. About all the sheriff
would have had to do was keep an eye pealed for a big white dog setting
under a sweet gum tree with fingernail scratches on the bark – the
rustler would probably be found near the top of the tree.
Both
Davis and Johnson have Great Pyrenees pups for sale. You can reach Davis
at 334-537-9585 and Johnson at 334-484-8636.
Ben
Norman is a freelance writer from Highland Home. |
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