PURPOSE BRED

 Can we talk about using purpose bred dogs for minute? Specifically LGDs, particularly Anatolians. 

Anatolians were bred over thousands of years to be hardy enough to withstand extreme cold, rugged terrain and trying conditions. They were bred to defend their livestock and even their Shepherd from predators, both animal and human. 

A good preservation breeder will continue to selectively breed for the traits original to this breed’s purpose. Their purpose requires enough dog aggression, stranger aggression, and internal strength to keep livestock safe from apex predators. They require a thick double coat to be able to withstand extreme weather conditions. They require a non biddable personality. They need to be able to make sound and often quick decisions without the direction of humans, as they are meant to live with stock 24/7. They need good discernment to be able to judge various situations and potential threats while working. They need to have appropriate size, we find females in the 95-125 pound range and males in the 130-165 pound range work best against large predators. Slightly over these ranges are fine so long as the dog has proper structure and remains agile. 

So many times I hear people boast about their hunting hounds, Pit bulls, Rottweilers, Great Danes, Mixes, etc being just as good as a livestock guardian in protecting stock. 

Most of time I shake my head and scroll on by. But, sometimes “curiosity” gets the best of me and I engage in a conversation in which I try to understand the person’s thought process. It usually ends in them getting angry and blocking me. 

I am a firm believer in purpose bred dogs. If you want a dog to retrieve, get a retriever. If you want a dog that herds, get one of the many breeds bred for that. If you want a dog to live with your stock 24/7 and protect it from predators, you get a Livestock Guardian Dog.

Sure there can be outliers, such as Anatolians being suitable as family protectors instead of livestock, etc. We had a Shitzu mix rescue that would chase the foxes off, caught him many times on our trail cams doing so. But, I would never call him a guardian. He wasn’t built to live outdoors or defend against apex predators. The only trait he had similar to our Anatolians was his selective hearing. 

Many times people falsely believe their non LGD can do the job of an actual LGD. I have to wonder if these people have ever owned a real good working LGD before or even fully understand traits and abilities of livestock guardian breeds. Chasing off predators is much different than engaging and killing predators. Our working cattle dogs will move a 2000 pound bull, no issues, they have some real grit!! But, they are no match for our Anatolians nor could they successfully defend against a pack of 55+ pound Coywolves. I wouldn’t ever think of even asking them to, they are at the farm to herd, not guard. 

I recently saw an ad for Great Dane/Mastiff/Corso mixes being labeled for sale as LGDs. My first thought was do they only work in warm climates and during the day when their human is present? I can’t imagine a dog without a double coat working in -30 degree temps. I can, however, imagine the injuries they would sustain without the double coat and substantial neck rough. 

Bottom line, Anatolians are effective and efficient, “wolf” killers (any predator), when bred properly. They don’t need human intervention or direction. They are built to withstand the elements and predators. They have a tremendous amount power and are extremely loyal to what they protect, both family and stock. They may share similarities with some breeds, but I can guarantee you they are not your average dog. This primitive breed has been our choice of livestock and farm protection for 26 years and we wouldn’t ever dream of changing it. 

Quite frankly, I don’t understand why people try to repurpose breeds.

Puck pictured below checking the perimeter of his domain in the middle of a New England blizzard. Large, rugged, powerful, and impressive. A working guard dog without equal. Just as the standard calls for.