Thou Shalt Not Be a Pet

From the desk of Tarma Shena

Thou shalt not be a pet. Thou shalt not enter thy abode nor leave the area under your protection. Thou shalt guard livestock and it will have hooves and no other thing will be as important as those tasks in your lifetime.

Phanatics 12:19

Yes I was trying to be funny, but it is also not funny. Somewhere along the way we acquired a really skewed view of livestock guardian dogs and how they should live and work. There are those of us struggling to correct that to this day, despite the volume of the naysayers.

So let’s talk about temperament. Even breeders doing all the right things are going to get some variation in temperament and work ethic. Placing all these dogs in the same working environment is not only a disservice to the dog but to the customer and, most importantly, the stock being guarded.

I am going to break it down into three basic categories with the understanding that there will be variations of scale within these groupings.

On the left we have the “pet” temperament. A lack of proper drive to work, the ethic to stay focused without a handler present, and without the tenacity to stay on the job. The idea that LGDs cannot, under any circumstances, be sold as pets is not only ludicrous, it defies all logic. Some 500 plus other recognized breeds are sold as pets when low to medium drive makes them unsuitable for work, but not LGDs, no… LGDs must work. Selling the wrong temperament into a pet home is another story, let’s not get distracted.

On the right we have the “workaholic”. These are the dogs with such high drive they can’t NOT work. I am not referring to how they were raised, I mean Type A, can’t relax, wound too tight, type of dog. These dogs are inclined to lack self preservation instincts and will be the first on the scene for any fallen leaf or invading squirrel. If there is nothing going on they will make something happen. There must be work to do somewhere.

In the middle is what I label “ideal” temperament. This is the stable, versatile dog who can do the job it is asked to do NO MATTER WHAT THAT JOB IS. This is the dog that can be sold into a family setting, small homestead, ranch or anything else you can think of. As long as they have a “Shepherd” to show them what is important they are going to rock that job.

Kids? Sure!

Flowers? No Problem!

Rhinos? I’m on it.

If you look at the current demographic of farmers/homesteaders in this country most of them have fifty acres or less and most of them have an LGD or two. That population is also growing. If we want them to succeed, if we want these dogs to succeed, then versatile, stable, adaptable temperaments are what we should be breeding for.