What kind of dog??

[looptloop]

My husband and I have been discussing getting a bigger dog, to go along with the 10 acres... The previous owners had a rottwieler, and although I'm sure he was a deterant, we're not looking for a guard dog. We have 3 kids (6, 4 & 2) and a house/sofa whippet. We had our border collie put down in June, but he didn't have a big job as we lived in the burbs. At this time we are looking to just get chickens that will live in an enclosed yard. In the future we may get goats, but that is a ways down the road.

So, what tpe of dog do you have?

[cowbelle]

An Australian Shepherd would make a fine farm dog and be protective of your children and home, without the very aggressive mode of some "guardian" dogs. It could also help some with the animals by being genetically programed for herding.

[copperpennykids]

Great Pyrenees. Awesome with critters and kids. Keep predators away.

They do bark - not all of the time, but when they are "warning" predators away. Big deep bark.

If your neighbors are close, you may need a fenced area.... Pyrenees like to guard lots and lots of area if they are allowed to.

[Saffy]

Of course I would say Great Dane! They are great family dogs, and will protect if the need arises. They are not on the black list for insurers. They play well with others! I would make sure I bought from someone that raises them in the home and not in a kennel type situation.

[beaglady]

English shepherds make great all-purpose farm dogs.

[ihuntgsps]

I'd say Mastiff. I have 2 and they are awesome. don't roam much and are excellent with kids and other animals. their size and looks discourage most people. my dogs rarelly bark but will growl if something is wrong (deer/coyotes in yard/etc) I have had lots of other dogs in my life and they all seemed to bark enough at passing animals/etc. that you never really could tell if something was wrong or not. If my dogs bark or growl I know it is something. just my 2cents.

[TedH71]

You don't want Aussies. They have lots of hair and can be OCD without a job and be frantic about herding your kids. I don't recommend them based on my personal experiences.

American bulldog will do you well. You will have to weed out the ones that have bad hips or temperment but they do make good guard dogs. I believe that's what you want if you're living on 10 acres.

Normally I'd recommend a catahoula but not sure how much your activity level is.

[DW]

female lab mutt...we're on our 4th and this one chose us!!!!

[hugh]

English Mastiff. She is great with the kids. We also have goats and a bunch of poultry. She is very smart.

[looptloop]

Wow! What great suggestions! I'm off to google these breeds.

On a side note, I think my dad had a catahoula, smartest dog he ever knew. She could open the doors and gates. They had to move the deadbolt up high on the door! I'm not sure I want a dog that can easily outsmart me.... unless it could possibly drive the kids to school should I be running late!

[7thswan]

I have 3 Rotties. They are a handfull and very demanding,not for the regular dog lover,one must NOT be a pushover or mean. Labs are great, but expect them to chew. English Mastiff will be our next pup. Some of the smartest dogs are mixed breeds.

[Batt]

Originally Posted by copperpennykids

Great Pyrenees. Awesome with critters and kids. Keep predators away.

Absolutely awesome dogs, but don't get them before you have something for them to guard. Without something/someone to protect the will go looking for something/one.

[badlander]

I've had only good luck with my Aussie Cattle dog (found us, pure bred, with a Jethro Bodine personality and WAY too much energy), Border Collie/lab mix and Schnauzer/Terrier mix. Each has their own strengths and weaknesses and balances out the other. The cattle dog and collie are both very work centered, high energy and happiest when they have something to chase after. The collie is a GREAT watchdog and the Schnauzer is my natural born mouser. The Aussie is lovably clueless. I'm hoping one of our Amish neighbors will teach him how to herd cattle so he quits heeling the other dogs.

I have to agree with the Great Pyrenese. Wonderful stock and kid protectors. Only drawback is that they have a short life span and are BIG. If you want them to guard animals don't let them bond with humans.

I'll have to cast my vote for the lab mix.

I've had dogs my entire life, everything from Doberman Pinschers to Bichon Frise's. My best dogs have always been cross breds.

My best advice though is that if you are rural, you DO NOT want a small dog. They equal crunchie munchies for yotes. And believe me, the yotes are out there.I lost a small dog three years ago to yotes when she decided to go up the road to visit the neighbor's dog one night with our border collie and never came home. The neighbor is less than a quarter mile away and my dogs were regular visitors to her house so they knew the way there and home and hightailed it there every time they could figure out a way to get out of the yard. After searching for several days and numerous phone calls to neighbors who saw her the night she went visiting, we figured that she fell prey to coyotes. The collie turned up sitting on the front porch the next day and we never saw the schnauzer again. It's terrible not knowing what happened for sure.

Get a dog that is big enough to intimidate the yotes and fast enough to run if it has to. And if you can, rescue a new family member from your local ASPCA shelter. Save a life and get a new friend for life.

[stranger]

nothing but labs, they can be trained to do anything and they can be watch dogs or lap dogs.we have 2 that will lick you to death, but they will also chew you up if you get loud or raise your hands.

[RJMAcres]

Originally Posted by looptloop

Wow! What great suggestions! I'm off to google these breeds.

On a side note, I think my dad had a catahoula, smartest dog he ever knew. She could open the doors and gates. They had to move the deadbolt up high on the door! I'm not sure I want a dog that can easily outsmart me.... unless it could possibly drive the kids to school should I be running late!

We have a catahoula as well as 4 great pyreneese and a couple of old
mutts. Yep, theose catahoula are smart. Smartest dog I've ever been
around. She learned sit, stay & shake in about 2 minutes. Never had to
housebreak her and she has never gone in the house. But she's not big,
she weighs around 60 pounds.

For a big dog I would recommend a great pyreneese. They are known as
the gentle giants. Most bark quite a bit but not all. I have one that
rarely makes a sound. Didn't even know she could bark until she was 18
months old.

Antolian Shepards are great dogs also. Not sure how they are around kids.

Randy

[Ravenlost]

Please PLEASE consider a mutt from your local shelter! They make great pets and super watch dogs. We have 16 (17 if the newest stray isn't claimed) and they are all terrific dogs.

[Linkovich]

I have a Golden Retriever. Not my breed of choice (I prefer a working dog), but my boss was going to put him down and he is an amazing and well-trained dog, so I had to take him! For livestock he would be useless (unless you plan on hunting ducks) but for a family dog, you could do absolutely anything to him and he wouldn't budge. Excellent family dog, especially if you have kids that might upset a more tempermental breed.

For livestock, my friends have a large sheep farm, and they use a white dog kind of like a Great Pyranees, but I think it's called a moramer? Not too sure of the name, but these dogs, or a Great Pyranees would be great for livestock! The only problem is that these dogs are solely for livestock- the flock becomes their family, and as such they are not family pets, otherwise they wouldn't want to stay with the flock. Border Collies are not good to have unless there is work to do, and the dogs are well-trained. If you have herd animals, and the dog is left unsupervised to its own devices, then he will naturally go after the herd and wreak havoc. Then again, I think any breed will get up to no good if left alone.

I guess I didn't really give a good middle dog, I just gave examples for what's the best for either livestock or children!

[looptloop]

Any dog we get will most definately be a rescue! I'm good with mixed breeds and mutts for sure! I have found a few rescue groups for many of the breeds mentioned on this thread in my area.

Our whippet will only go outside if we are out there, he's mostly snoozing on the sofa anyway.

There is a fenced area around the detached garage, where the rottie had been more or less confined. He must have had some free range, as there is evidence of him having been up on the front porch. Do you confine them at night? He lived out at the house for a couple of months after the previous owners moved out, they just came up to feed him. I figure he survived being out there alone at night (poor guy).

[painterswife]

We have Aussies. No problems with the OCD thing and mine spend most of the day inside when we have to work.

I have found that they combine a wonderful loyal temperment with none of the nipping tendancies that other herding dogs seem to have. Add to that an amazing intelligence and they make a wonderful family dog. I have had many breeds of dogs over the years and Aussies was the all around dog I was looking for. We had two litters before we had our female fixed and the people who took our pups still phone us two tell us how well these dogs fit into their lives.

Yes , they are hairy, the only negative I can think of.

[susu]

Loki the Wonder Dog wants to know why not another border collie?