Man's Best Friend Helps Livestock and Predators Coexist

 

Photo credit:  https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Great_Pyrenees_Sheep_Dog_Guarding_the_Flock_(5113678413).jpg Man’s Best Friend Helps Livestock and Predators Coexist By Eva Gordon I’ve always loved hiking and camping. Away from the city, I fell in love with the wilderness. The granite mountains, the soaring hawks, and the deep forests have given me and many others a joy beyond measure. As beautiful as the landscape was, it was seeing my first coyote, mountain lion, and bear and hearing the howls of wolves that took my breath away. Predators are a reminder of the natural world. Without predators, rodents, deer and other wildlife overpopulate and damage the delicate balance of nature’s food web. Wolves, mountain lions, and other predators all have a shared opponent: humans. Predators must survive both hunter and habitat loss. The conflict stems from fear of losing livestock, prey species, or fear of attack. This fear has caused people to hunt some predators to near extinction and, in the long run, damage the ecosystem. To safeguard both the predators and the livestock, some livestock owners are turning to a nonlethal solution.   One nonlethal solution is the use of livestock guard dogs (LGD) to protect livestock from harm. Using guard dogs to protect sheep, goats, and cattle is certainly not new. For centuries, dogs have endured severe weather and fierce predators to protect their charges. The guard dogs are breeds that defend their herd or flock from predators, rather than simply herd. Breeds include the Great Pyrenees, Anatolian Shepherd, and Turkish Kangal. These breeds put up a good fight against wolves, coyotes, mountain lions and bears. The Turkish Kangal has one of the most powerful set of jaws, yet these dogs are good with children. Livestock guard dogs have been used for thousands of years in Asia and Europe to protect livestock with great success and now are being discovered in America. The job of the livestock guard dogs is to protect rather than to herd. In Switzerland where wolves have returned, the guard dogs have successfully protected stock. And guard dogs in Africa have saved cheetahs from extinction by chasing the cheetahs away from livestock. YouTube provides videos on how ranchers are using LGDs to protect their livestock. Read this example of a study that proved the effectiveness of using guardian dogs to save livestock:   “Texas A&M AgriLife Research acquired the Carl and Bina Sue Martin Research Ranch in 2009. The ranch weaned only a 20 percent lamb crop that year. Livestock guardian dogs were acquired to reduce predation, and since 2012 the lamb crop has exceeded 100 percent.” Texas A&M AgriLife has a wonderful 8-page pamphlet on Livestock Guard Dogs you can access through the following link:  https://www.agrilifebookstore.org/v/vspfiles/downloadables/EWF-028.pdf Their research explores many aspects of using the LGD program.  According to Texas A&M AgriLife Research, LGDs protect livestock in three significant ways:  territorial exclusion, disruption, and confrontation. Canines mark their boundary which keeps other canines away from the guard dog’s territory. Disruption occurs when the guard dog barks and or postures to keep predators out. Finally, guard dogs will confront the predator, which for the most part will not lead to the death of the predator. A rancher must consider the right guardian dog properly reared to bond with the livestock so they are considered part of the livestock. The pup must be brought in during a critical behavioral period and spend time in a small pen with the livestock in question. The owner must also commit to basic training commands such as “no” or “leave it.” A guardian dog can become a problem if it is not trained properly: it can turn aggressive toward humans, all wildlife, and even the livestock it’s protecting. To protect mountain lions, coyotes, and bobcats in Texas, it’s imperative we provide ranchers with information about using LGD breeds. Presentations about these breeds are great, but we must provide ranchers with the resources on how to train livestock guardian dogs and, better yet, a list of professional dog trainers. For more information: https://peopleandcarnivores.org/