Introducing

Although there are headings for the different situations you may have, only the new elements to be considered are addressed in each category.

There are several categories of "other dogs" that may be associated with introducing your new Great Pyrenees.

1. Other Great Pyrenees. If your dog is a puppy, your adult Great Pyrenees should accept the dog almost immediately. You may have to witness a short explanation of "I'm the boss and you're the puppy" but there should be no serious problem.

If your new Pyr is a spayed or neutered older dog, you need to introduce it to your Great Pyrenees already on site. Watch to ensure all goes well. There may be a short alpha demonstration but there should be no problems.

If you have an intact dog on site and your new Pyr is also intact and the same gender as your on site dog , DO NOT PUT THEM TOGETHER IF THEY ARE OLDER THAN A FEW MONTHS. You can try this after your new Pyr has had a little time to adapt but do it carefully and be ready to separate them if necessary. Same gender intact Pyrenees will often fight to establish alpha status and while sometimes in younger dogs the fight is not too serious, other times, especially with fully adult dogs, it can be a fight to the death. If you plan on same gender intact dogs working together, start with only one adult and let the puppy(ies) grow up with the adult. There will still be fights as the pups go through adolescence and become adults but the chances of lethal fights will be greatly decreased.

2. Other non-Pyrenees Livestock Guardian Dogs. Never put same gender dogs together regardless of their reproductive status unless you take the same precautions described for same gender intact Pyrs.

3. Pet dogs of any breed. Do not let them into your stock yards, introduce them to your new Pyr, or encourage your new Pyr to accept them. We strongly recommend total segregation of pets from LGDs.

New puppy, Cara, learning about goats.

If you raise goats, and the goats have been around dogs before, you’ll have very little to do in the way of introducing a Bountiful Farm Great Pyrenees to his or her charges. Simply put the dog on a lead and take it into the area where the goats are. Observe both the dog and the goats and when they are all comfortable, release the dog and observe some more to ensure everything goes well. The entire process may take as little time as five or ten minutes but do not take that estimate for granted, stay there, observe, and don’t leave until you and the animals are at ease with the situation. If the dog is mature, or close to it, that should be all it takes.

An immature dog or puppy may become excited or exuberant about all these new friends and want to sniff them all immediately. If this happens, and you’re lucky, a mature goat will teach the pup some manners and decorum and that will be that. If that mature goat isn’t available, you need to take its place. When you observe inappropriate behavior by a pup, immediately interrupt that behavior by shouting harshly and/or exhibiting some form of threatening behavior of your own. Make it short and to the point, stopping immediately when the pup changes its behavior. If you observe this behavior from a pup, you need to ensure that the pup knows it will not be tolerated. The closer you can copy its mother’s behavior in correcting it, the more effective it will be.

Lilly, a rescue dog, meeting her first newborn kid after spending adaptation time at Bountiful. Note the kid's dam standing peacefully by.

In any discipline, immediacy is paramount. If you don’t interrupt the behavior, there’s a good chance that the pup will not know why you’re being "mean" to it. If you believe that the undesirable behavior may continue, secure the pup in an escape proof pen in the immediate area of the goats, preferably in a holding pen close to the barn, and release the pup when you can observe it until you’re satisfied that it will behave appropriately.

If you raise goats that have no experience with dogs, you must protect pups and younger dogs from them initially. An older dog will sense the fear and hostility in the goats and treat them gently while avoiding any confrontations. A panicked or dog-fearing goat will attack a Pyr and can injure them badly. The Pyr will not fight back and if the dog doesn’t understand it is endangered, it will not know about avoiding attacks until it learns by experience. Our pups have never had to deal with this situation and will need to be protected. We recommend securing the pup in an escape proof pen in the center of the goats’ area. The goats can make the adaptation to the presence of a dog and you can take the dog among them on a lead until you see that everyone has accepted the situation. Even then, providing an area where the pup can escape an attack is prudent. The goats should adapt fairly quickly, within hours or a few days at the most. Again, you need to be sensitive to the attitudes of your animals and observe their relationships.

Neon, a daughter of Clark and Sunshine, allowing an alpaca cria to introduce itself .

If you have animals other than goats, there is a chance your new Great Pyrenees will consider them as predators initially. Take your Pyr in among the animals on a close lead and explain that these are its new charges to guard. Make sure it understands that you expect it to take care of these strange new critters. In this case, the escape proof pen in the center of the herd is a virtual necessity. Your Pyr will live in close proximity to its new charges until everyone seems to accept the situation. If your stock has not been around dogs and shows aggression toward your Pyr, once again, pen the dog in the center of the herd, taking it out into the herd on a short lead regularly until everyone is accepting of the situation.

We don't know how they decide but some Pyrs want to chase chickens and others don't. If this is important to you, let your breeder know in advance and insure they will select a dog for you that shows little to no interest in chasing chickens. You still, however, need to pay particular attention to introducing your dog to your fowl if they will come into contact, or for that matter, if you plan for your LGD to be guarding fowl. When the dog gets to your farm, have some chickens penned so they are available to you and set the dog in the pen with them. Explain that they are to be treated as animals to be guarded and stay with the dog to ensure it leaves the fowl alone. Repeat this process until you have confidence that your dog understands. Leave the dog for increasing periods of time and then begin again with short periods of time during which you leave the dog unmonitored. Remember that puppies will be puppies and never count on the pup being on its best behavior all the time. If you have free range chickens, after penning the dog with some chickens for a short time, arrange for chickens to be in the stock area where the dog will be living. Be alert to its reaction to the birds as well as your other stock and correct any tendency you see for chase behavior. With any undesirable conduct, early detection and fast, interruptive action are the most important factors in stopping this behavior before it becomes a major problem. For more more information on introducing your LGD to chickens click on http://www.anatoliandog.org/poultry.htm

If you are starting a stock operation and want a Livestock Guardian Dog to protect them when they arrive, make your arrangements to receive the stock and the dogs at about the same time. If you must acquire one before the other, get the stock first, then the dogs. Great Pyrenees, and all LGDs, need to be "with" their stock, not locked up alone and waiting for them or treated as a pet until the new animals arrive and then expected to turn into an LGD. Getting your Livestock Guardian Dog early is asking for problems.