Hey Reader,

A very Happy Thanksgiving week to you! I appreciate you taking the time in-between cooking copious amounts of food to take a gander at this long, but important email.

First an update: Red has lost her lead. I know we're all sad about it. I hope you weren't betting on her otherwise you've lost some money.

She is however still our biggest girl at 21 lbs, but Blue and Grey have tied for the lead at 22 lbs. Pink is our most adorable, smallest pup at 18 lbs.

I'm starting to think I may not be able to weigh these pups for much longer. They're getting heavy to carry onto a scale with me!

Sometimes it can be difficult to get videos of the puppies' progression because I'm usually just going about my day-to-day activities with them, but I made it a point to record these training sessions.

It can be difficult to work with puppies because they're balls of energy and there are a lot of them all vying for attention at once.

The best way to start training is not with a top-down forced command, but to reward them and encourage them in behaviors they're already exhibiting. They're just puppies after all and need guidance at their level.

Most training will fall to new owners, as we're only with them for 12 weeks, but we work on being calm and sitting on their bums for attention.

As I mention in the video, Blue and Pink were excelling the most at this, but all of them got the gist of it and figured out how to sit and be calm. This training happens at least twice a day.

They also met Mr. Thumbs this week. He was not impressed.

consider these before getting a LGD

Here are some other considerations that may or may not have been stated or didn't fit in well in prior emails.

Should I get two puppies at one time?

As these dogs work best in pairs or more, many people want to go ahead and get 2 or more puppies at one time. This is because they think it'll cut down on training time, make their flocks safer, and allow the dogs companionship.

I do not recommend this unless you're very experienced with dogs.

Training one puppy and supervising it around your flock can be difficult enough without adding in a second ball of energy.

And those cute balls of energy can do more damage together by egging each other on in chasing, injuring, or accidentally killing livestock.

Training time would be doubled because, to be effective, the dogs should be trained one-on-one and not together.

Littermate syndrome is the term for most of the issues that can arise from getting two puppies from the same litter or two puppies of the same age from different litters.

Having two young pups can create separation anxiety, a pack mentality, difficulty bonding to livestock (bonding to each other instead), and reduced independence.

Now like in everything, there's exceptions to the rules but I can't imagine getting Juno and Jove at the same time.

Have I seen others manage two pups successfully? Yes, but it's a very rare occurrence.

We waited to get Juno a partner until she was fully mature and trustworthy around livestock. For our sanity, our livestock's, and the dogs', I'm glad we did.

Should I get an older dog or a puppy?

Not a helpful answer I know, but this depends on your preferences.

Puppies have a much longer lead time on readiness than an older (properly trained and working) dog. However, you can't just drop an older LGD into your livestock and expect them to start working either.

The older LGD will need to become comfortable with you, the new livestock, and their new territory. He or she will need some time to acclimate as will your livestock. You may need to retrain some commands or expectations with a dog that has already matured and worked elsewhere.

Now with a puppy there's more time required from you with training and supervision before that puppy is ready to be on their own with livestock 24/7.

But you can be assured that the puppy is growing up around the livestock you want it to bond with and that it is learning the commands and expectations you intend for its working life.

The great thing about both a puppy and older dog is that their presence alone (scent and bark) helps to deter predators. Both still need proper fencing and shelter.

Older LGDs tend to cost more as their owners have spent more time supervising and training them whereas a puppy is somewhat of a blank slate.

We had livestock before we got Juno so we kept them closer to us in smaller pens to keep them safe while our puppy learned them, us, and her job.

Do I need to keep my herding/farm/pet dog separate from my LGD?

I'm of the belief that these dogs are smarter than we give them credit.

I do believe that most LGDs can understand the difference between a foreign dog that's a danger to their charges and a family dog.

Now that's not to say that this holds true for all - again generalizations - so you'd need to mix them in ways that you and the dogs feel comfortable.

Your non-LGD would need to be properly trained around livestock as well otherwise risking an altercation with your LGD.

I've found that this question really divides the LGD community. Many state that the LGDs should never interact with other dogs, but how does that work when you need both herding and protection dogs?

It doesn't.

We never employed a herding dog, but I've seen multiple examples of them getting along fine with LGDs. It comes down to your LGD and herding dog both understanding their roles and being comfortable with the other in their working roles.

I'll share some examples of this in a later email.

Now pet/inside dogs may be a different story unless they're trained how to behave properly (be calm) around livestock. If not, then I wouldn't recommend letting them interact with your LGD or be near your livestock.

Cost to Upkeep

I've touched on this before, but most LGDs are larger dogs which directly translates to larger costs in food upkeep. We chose Maremmas because they tend to be smaller than Great Pyrenees and other LGD breeds.

But there's more than just food to consider. There's maintaining nails and coats, vaccines if you go that route, vet visits, monthly flea, tick, and heartworm meds (if you live in a wet and warm place like Tennessee versus a dry and cold place like Wyoming), etc.

There's also the need for proper shelter and fencing. Many LGDs are built for cold weather, like Maremmas.

Juno and Jove typically stayed out of shelters and enjoyed the snow and rain along with the negative temperatures they brought. But they still needed a shelter as an option if they so chose to use it.

Right to Farm

As mentioned previously, LGDs use their bark as a first line of defense. But barking isn't always conducive to a good night's sleep for your neighbors.

You'll want to make sure that working dogs are protected in your area. Also document any interactions you have with neighbors over issues with your dogs.

Does my LGD need a buddy?

Like livestock need a flock or herd, so do LGDs function best with a partner. That's not to say that they can't work well solo but they do best with a buddy of their own species.

But this is truly dependent on your setup and predator load. If you have a heavy predator load only one LGD isn't advisable. That solo LGD will also be at risk of predation, depending on the predator, and won't be able to effectively protect the flock if the predators are aggressively encroaching.

But with adding a partner you'll want to consider the options of pairing a male and female (the best pairing), male and male (second best), and female and female (the last advisable option).

With this also comes the need to navigate heats to avoid puppies and the consideration of what age to spay or neuter your dog.

It's my preference to spay and neuter once these dogs reach physical maturity, but that is not always possible. Females in heat may be prone to wandering or can attract intact males from miles away that might endanger your flock. Intact males may be prone to breaking out of their fencing if they sense a female in heat nearby. As always, good fencing is key.

The Maremma Sheepdog Club of America recommends altering dogs at one year old. Many owners alter dogs at 6 months of age to avoid any chance of puppies due to heat cycles starting from around 8 to 12 months old.

Fencing

Fencing makes good neighbors and it also makes for happy LGDs.

It's imperative that your LGD not be able to get out and wander because they need to be with your livestock and not in other people's livestock. This is especially true when they're puppies and could injure or kill other animals.

Good fencing is also a line of defense from predators. While many predators can scale or tear down fences, the easiest prey is preferred. Any extra line of deterrence is a win for your livestock.

Time Requirements

I'm touching on this again because it's so important. On average, large dogs mature around 2 years of age.

This is a significant time investment for your and your LGD. You don't need to be with them 24/7 but you do need to have them setup for success with livestock by observing and correcting them.

When you're not available to observe, make sure they're setup in a way that they can be with or near livestock without giving in to puppy tendencies like chasing and chewing.

And especially with a new puppy, be cognizant of your livestock that are friendly and accepting of a LGD and those that are not. You don't want a puppy to become aggressive with livestock because the livestock are beating up on it. You may need to not only correct your LGD but also your livestock.

Whew! This turned out longer than I anticipated and honestly I could have kept typing. But don't let this overwhelm you when it comes to needing a LGD. Always come back to the basics:

• shelter
• food
• water
• fencing
• observation plus time

Ciao for now!

Jamie

P.s. I hope you like Dr. Seuss otherwise that email subject line is super confusing.

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