Which Breed For Us?

[Salukifan]

An Irish Wolfhound.If raised with little pets they can live with them quite well.

But many still have prey drive in spades.

I would not recommend any sighthound for this situation. I wouldn't recommend a sighthound with chooks, period. And yes, I know some dogs are fine with chooks. if there are kangaroos around, scratch them too unless the house yard has roo proof fencing.

Anatolian Shepherd or Central Asian Shepherd perhaps but you'd want to do your homework on breed AND breeder. Only buy from responsible, registered and informed breeders.

Edited May 23, 2016 by Haredown Whippets

[Purdie]

An Irish Wolfhound.If raised with little pets they can live with them quite well.

But many still have prey drive in spades.

I would not recommend any sighthound for this situation. I wouldn't recommend a sighthound with chooks, period. And yes, I know some dogs are fine with chooks. if there are kangaroos around, scratch them too unless the house yard has roo proof fencing.

Anatolian Shepherd or Central Asian Shepherd perhaps but you'd want to do your homework on breed AND breeder. Only buy from responsible, registered and informed breeders.

I new you would say that HW..:).

I would not trust any dog around free ranging chooks.

Small pets need to have their own safe secure areas and any interaction with big dogs needs to be managed depending on the dog and the safety level needed for the other pets.

My Wolfhound cross was protective and guarded my bird aviaries.

My neighbours Vizsla that i minded for a day could not be left in my yard as he would try to get to the birds and knock over the cages.

[Salukifan]

An Irish Wolfhound.If raised with little pets they can live with them quite well.

But many still have prey drive in spades.

I would not recommend any sighthound for this situation. I wouldn't recommend a sighthound with chooks, period. And yes, I know some dogs are fine with chooks. if there are kangaroos around, scratch them too unless the house yard has roo proof fencing.

Anatolian Shepherd or Central Asian Shepherd perhaps but you'd want to do your homework on breed AND breeder. Only buy from responsible, registered and informed breeders.

I new you would say that HW..:).

I would not trust any dog around free ranging chooks.

Small pets need to have their own safe secure areas and any interaction with big dogs needs to be managed depending on the dog and the safety level needed for the other pets.

My Wolfhound cross was protective and guarded my bird aviaries.

My neighbours Vizsla that i minded for a day could not be left in my yard as he would try to get to the birds and knock over the cages.

Glad I met expectations!! :laugh:

I WOULD trust an appropriately conditioned LGD around chooks. Espinay's Pyrs are their protectors.

Edited May 23, 2016 by Haredown Whippets

[RuralPug]

Do look at the Mastiff - they are great big couch potatoes for sure. Mine was always protective of my small dogs and my cats and even rescued a baby rabbit that one of the cats fetched home and tried to mother it until somepug ate it. She would bark at intruders but would show them the keys to the safe if they ever came inside!!

But strangers were usually terrified of her just because of her looks.

Only you have to be prepared for the slobber....

[ash1]

Hi everyone,

Thanks again for all the great suggestions/words of advice, etc.

Hubby is ADAMANT it is a GSD or nothing. So the search is now on for a good reputable breeder of old-style straight back solid shepherds. Looks like we'll (read: me!) have to get seriously involved in some sort of dog sport to keep him out of mischief.

Imma gonna sneak in a mastiff puppy after he gets his shepherd puppy....

[Kavik]

While I obviously think dog sports are awesome and lots of fun (I compete in agility :laugh: ) there is a lot you can do to keep your dog occupied without going to classes if that is what you wish. A lot of the stuff I do at home to work on conditioning and thinking skills is not directly related to my sport, and you can do at home with little space and minimal equipment, many are tricks :)

This channel has a lot of great ideas

https://www.youtube.com/user/kikopup

[RedFeather]

If you go through the DOL pages there are a few who specifically mention breeding old-style GSDs

[ash1]

Thanks for the link, Kavik, some great info there, I'm going to enjoy watching.

Yes, RedFeather, thank you, I have started working through the list, we definately want the old-style shepherd with the square back, prepared to wait for the right pup to come along.

[trojka]

I'd definitely recommend an LGD breed from a reputable breeder in your situation as well. My Anatolian Shepherd puppy is 16 weeks old tomorrow and is already great with the chooks, the sheep and goats (although only interacting with them under supervision at this stage), as well as our little Border Terrier and Labrador/Kelpie cross. She has already started guarding (and has a very deep growl already). She has her puppy moments, but overall I'd say she's very laid back for a puppy of her age and is very easy to have around.

Which state are you in? Maybe you could go and meet some breeders and their dogs and your husband might reconsider? It really sounds to me like an LGD would be best suited. Feel free to PM me if you want more information.

[Bushriver]

For something different, how about a Great Dane? From my understanding they can be pretty laid back, short coat and have the big dog, big bark factor?

[Amax-1]

Hubby is ADAMANT it is a GSD or nothing.

Good choice!! Realistically, dogs are an issue for people up to no good and bad guys make it their business to know the breeds most likely to give them grief. GSD's are the most widely used breed in protection roles globally and even if the individual dog isn't that good in a protection role, the bad guy never knows the training that could be on that dog. Perhaps a seemingly calm GSD may let the bad guy over the fence, and then nail him when he's in the yard? Bad guys are always wary of GSD's by default and they don't have to show hostility where other breeds often need fence fighting hostility to be taken seriously.

So the search is now on for a good reputable breeder of old-style straight back solid shepherds

Straight back GSD's are predominantly working lines and the reputable breeders work test them. A good rule of thumb in working line breeding's is looking to see how far back the bitch lines go without Sch/IPO titles. If grandmother isn't Sch/IPO titled is a good indicator they are making puppies and not breeding trait tested dogs. Unfortunately many working line breeders don't train and work females to determine breed quality.

Edited May 29, 2016 by Amax-1

[Tor]

I know you've already settled on a shepherd? But my boxer would do well in your situation. We have chooks, a cat and Guinea pigs and although I wouldn't trust him with free range chooks or small animals, he shows no signs of trying to get to them. He likes to look at them but is easily called away. Same with the car, he's learning not to hassle him (he only wants to play).

He's great with smaller dogs, although any puppy would need to be taught not to hassle older smaller dogs I think.

Our GSD we had when growing up had a high prey drive and was so smart she could open gates and cages. She killed a few rabbits and Guinea pigs although was always fine with the cat