To say I am pleased with Lleulu's progress would be understatement.
Yes, she shreds anything she can get her jaws on. She tends to target shoes and clothing that smells like her precious family. She still is ambushed on an hourly basis by the crazy, extra-long tail that's mysteriously attached to her own hind-end. But when it comes to LGD work...she is showing excellent promise.
The lack of rain and grass has finally forced me to let the sheep loose to wander through all the woods and nooks and crannies of the farm in search of edibles. Thankfully there is quite a bit to be had. But it was the first time Lleulu was exposed to "loose sheep." My only real concern was that she would want to chase them....as she likes to goof around that way with our border collie, Meg.
Disclaimer: I know I'm raising Lleulu with slightly different tactics than the literature recommends for an LGD. But our facilities and circumstances demanded I get creative. So my goal was to stick to the spirit of good LGD training even if the details were not ideal. I would say Lleulu is more bonded to the farm, than the sheep. But that suits my needs just fine. If she ends up defending the farm, I still have a good dog! :)
Lleulu did GREAT under this new experience. The sheep, in their excitement, did run and jump as soon as they discovered the magnitude of their freedom. And Lleulu did want to chase them. But I had her on a long leash and I gave it a quick "yank & NO" and she stopped. I stayed outside with the flock and Lu for about an hour and decided to let Lu off-leash. When the sheep ran a second time all it took was a firm NO to prevent her from taking off after them. After a while I went in the house and watched out the windows. Lleulu had one more chance to chase and all it took was a rap on the window to make her rethink her choice. She plopped back down and watched the sheep frolic.
Good dog!
I'm sure I will need to correct her from time to time...but I give Lleulu credit for being a very fast learner. I'm so proud of her. She's even starting to look like a real LGD... lol
2 comments:
I envy you, your dog seems like it's going to work out well. Mine wouldn't stay with the sheep, but bonded to the cats and chickens, and spent most of her time chasing cars until I found a way to contain her. But whenever I hear coyotes at night, she barks like heck and the coyotes keep their distance.
Another Great Pyr owner told me once that GP's tend to guard the whole farm...not just the sheep. I've noticed that with my three GP's. If your dog manages to keep away the predators...than she's doing her job. Even if she acts different than the books say.
Good luck with the coyotes at your place. I worry more about bears here. Hope Lleulu is a lot bigger before she has to face one of them!
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