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| Livestock Protection Dogs: Selection, Care, and Training | 
 enlarge | Authors: Orysia Dawydiak, David E. Sims
Publisher: Alpine Blue Ribbon Books
Category: Book
List Price: $24.95
Buy New: $15.83
You Save: $9.12 (37%)
New (12) Used (5) from $15.83
Avg. Customer Rating:  8 reviews
Sales Rank: 36473
Media: Paperback
Edition: 2
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 224
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.8
Dimensions (in): 8.9 x 6 x 0.6
ISBN: 1577790626
Dewey Decimal Number: 636.737
UPC: 697987906267
EAN: 9781577790624
ASIN: 1577790626
Publication Date: February 2004
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
| Showing reviews 1-5 of 8 | | NEXT » |
 Solid, comprehensive, and very interesting August 11, 2008
Originally published in 1990, the authors have reviewed and added a few extra chapters to this industry standard title from Alpine Books. As always, with Alpine, the book packs a lot of information into an unexpectedly small package. The field of livestock protection dogs isn't particularly well served with titles, but it is also, in the form we see it today, rather a modern endeavour. The breeds discussed, of course, have a long heritage trialling back into the last two thousand years, but in those earlier days farmers and the general population lived very different lives. Now, the livestock protection dog has smaller ranges with boundaries defined by fences and quite often little daytime contact with their shepherds, compared to the past where ranges were huge, there were no fences, and the shepherds were within cooee.
This is a specialist title, naturally, and while I have never lived with or even contemplated a need for a working livestock protection dog, I have spent my life with dogs and also lived the duration on a farm with a number of species that have benefited from the modern livestock protection breeds.
The authors give an excellent review of the breeds in common use in Northern America, and those chapters are of great importance for the judges of the show world - I challenge you to at least attempt the photo quizzes on the breeds!
Advice on general puppy raising and training are fairly typical and sound, the advice for the specialist training and development of the specific protection dog could raise eyebrows, and be warned there is at least one technique that is banned by the Australian National Kennel Council discussed.
The advice on choosing a puppy and buyer are good strong general points any breeder or breed buyer would be wise to read. The authors have a refreshingly open way about dealing with inherited issues, of course they undertake many measures to reduce their own puppies chance to develop such diseases by screening and selective breeding practices, but all breeders know that is not a sure fire guarantee, and buyers and the affected dogs need to be protected.
One point I found of particular interest was the repeated reminder that livestock protection dogs take time to evolve into their full natural role, and an owner cannot expect full guarding duties to be undertaken until the pup is at least 18 months old. And, of course, these traits need to be nurtured.
What surprised me the most, how cute the livestock protection breed puppies were! There are lots of gorgeous cute photos, not what I expected from a working title!
What disappointed me the most, ahh, that is a result of my own experiences of farm animal husbandry, the condition of some of the livestock in the photos. The dogs look hale and hearty and well cared for, a few of the livestock were wanting in that respect.
This is an excellent title reviewing the breeds in use in North America, the current accepted training techniques, and a refreshing look at diet and nutrition for this specialist industry.
Breeds covered include: Akbash Dog, Anatolian Shepherd Dog, Kangal Dog, Caucasian Ovcharka, Great Pyrenees (Pyrenean Mountain Dog), Komondor, Kuvasz, Maremma Sheepdog, Polish Tatra Sheepdog, Slovakian Cuvac, Tibetan Mastiff, with mention of the Sarplaninac, Castro Laboreiro, Estrela Mountain Dog, Rafeiro do Alentejo, and Pyrenean Mastiff.
 Well Done March 29, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
Informative, well written book.
Good reference book to have around when owning an LGD.
It's in the genes November 9, 2006
2 out of 5 found this review helpful
I bought this book to see if I could train my dog in livestock protection. Not! What I get from the book is that you have to buy the right breed, and they will do it instictively, there's not all that much you have to do to train them except expose them to livestock at the right age. However, the book is well written, so I enjoyed skimming through it. I have a neighbor who uses one of the recommended breeds to guard her kids, and I think that's such a great idea in these days when parents seem to have to be afraid of letting their kids stay even in the back yard.
VERY GOOD BOOK October 16, 2006
VERY GOOD BOOK,LITTLE CONFUSING LIVESTOCK PROTECTIONDOGS WHEN YOU CALL THE DOGS LGD LIVESTOCK GUARDIAN DOG.I REALY RECOMEND PEOPLE TO READ IT BEFORE TO GET THE DOG AND NOT AFTER LIKE ME. IT IS VERY DIFFICULT TO BUY IT WHEN YOU LIVE IN SPAIN AND I MISSED VERY MUCH A VERY OLD LGD BREED THE SPANISH MASTIFF-MASTIN ESPANOL THAT HAVE GUARDING THE SHEEP FROM WOLFS DURING HUNDREDS OF YEARS AND STILL DOING IT IN SPAIN BUT NOT KNOWN OUTSIDE SPAIN.I HOPE THEY WILL BE IN THE NEXT EDITION.TODAY YOU CAN EVEN FIND WEB-SITE IN ENGLISH AND IF YOU LIKE YOU CAN CONTACT ME.THE SPANISH MASTIFF IS NOT SO AGGRESIVE TO PEOPLE BUT VERY WACHFUL DURING NIGHT.MARGA
Addresses both the adolescent and mature dog May 6, 2004
14 out of 14 found this review helpful
From wolves hungering for sheep to foxes in the henhouse, ranchers and farmers have always had to deal with the problem of predators. The use of dogs as a front line of defense against predators has achieved even greater popularity with the rising trends prohibiting the use of poisons, traps, and guns. Now in a newly revised and expanded second edition, Livestock Protection Dogs: Selection, Care And Training, by Orysia Dawydiak and David E. Sims defines what constitutes a livestock protection dog; surveys the various dog breeds; provides key advice on puppy selection; addresses both the adolescent and mature dog; identifies specific behavioral probelms and their solutions, and more. If you are in need of a dog to protect your property and your livestock, Livestock Protection Dogs will prove to be invaluable reading.
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