Re: [PyrNet-L] Work, Show or Pet?

[Adrienne Wilder <draggon@STC.Net>]

A good fence for any dog is important, a good fence for live stock is 
important too.  A few hot wires marked with some ribbons can be all the 
deterent one needs to enclose live stock and a live stock dog.
I have and will continue to place rescue dogs in working 
situations...infact I don't think I have had a rescue pyr yet that has 
not gone to a working environment.  
The issue of adiquate fencing is important, even for the farmer.  The 
pyr will guard all it can see and if it can see 10 miles onto the 
neighbors property then you might have a problem.  
As with dogs staying with live stock or staying in fences.  In my 
limited experiece I have found there to be generally 3 types of 
guardian behaviors.  The type that will need a border of signifigant 
nature because it wants to guard any and all in its sight, the type that 
is simply content with a good visible border and will patrol a well 
marked line of visibility, and the type that is animal oriented, moving 
with the live stock and being content to travel where it goes.
Bonding, in any of the above cases is important. With puppies you can 
pretty well let them form the bond because their little legs won't carry 
them too far away.. ;)  With adults you have to work at forming a bond 
between livestock, yourself, and the dog...this may take time...but 
without it the dog simply has no idea what is wanted of it....
Sure it has the instincts to guard but guard what?  what it can see, 
where it walks, where the boudries lie, the animals....

The final part is JMHO and that is the problem with escape artists.   
Dogs that are so intent on running away everytime they get a chance are, 
in my eyes, just as much a working failure as those who kill live stock 
or won't guard at all and should probably be veiwed in that manner when 
people are considering breeding to produce a working dog.



-- 


Adrienne Wilder  www.stc.net/~draggon/index.htm (pet portraits)
Murrayville GA

"Oh, to be loved by a dog!"

Home of:
The golden gang,
Patou and the evil sister geese.
and many stray cats.