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Raising Livestock Guardian Dogs
February 18, 2010
Hello,

Raising Livestock Guardian Dogs

I had a decision to make. Am I going to buy livestock guardian dogs, Llamas or Donkeys to guard my Boer meat goats? After all, I had done my research and there are pros and cons to each of these guardian animals.

Well, I decided to go with the dogs. I began my search for Great Pyrenees puppies and finally brought them home in January 2009.

At six weeks old, they were cute little fuzzy white balls of fur prouncing among my three month old Boer goats. I named them Sadie and Ranger, gave them food and water and locked them inside the barn with my goats.

Many old time farmers told me not to pet them, not to acknowledge them in any way. If I want them to do their job of protecting my goats then they must receive affection only from the goats.

On the other hand, much of want I read told me it is alright to give them affection, but only in their territory and not to bring them to the house.

I hope you can understand that I'm an animal lover and it was one of the most difficult things I've ever done not to pick up Sadie and Ranger and hold them in my arms and love on them. I would stand in the middle of the barn and watch Sadie and Ranger interact with each other and the goats. Sadie would playfully grab Ranger's tail and he would jump back and bark at her to let him alone. They would play and roll around in the hay and among the goats. It was such a pleasure to watch them play, and of course Nuisance,(a bottle fed goat)would start playing with them thinking she is a dog too.

Well,they say that the first few months of a dogs life is the most important time to train your guardian dogs and I was determined to make Sadie and Ranger the best guardian dogs in my country.

Afterall, Sadie and Ranger have a big job guarding my goats from the coyotes, mountain cats and bear. This is a serious business to me. I have my goats to clear my land and also make a profit from selling meat goats. I can't afford to just have them for pleasure, though it truly is one of the most enjoyable experiences of my life.

To make a long story short, As of January 27th, Sadie and Ranger are now proud parents of nine little white fuzzy balls of fur. Yes, that's right, nine puppies. They are just so adorable and cute!

And, If you just want to see these precious babies you can vist:

OakSpringsMountainRanch.com

I have one page that is dedicated to my dogs; Sadie and Ranger. I've also created a short diary on YoutTube of the puppies lives so their new owners will be able to share this experince with me. These videos are posted on Sadie and Rangers page.


Thank you for allowing me share just a little part of what I'm so proud of. And, I hope your journey to become more Self Sufficient is going well. Keep up the good work!

Visit: Self-Sufficient-Farm-Living.com to learn more.

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