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Guard Dog feeding

	Member	Message
	KO	Posted 08/01/12 09:44PM  Changed 00/00/00 12:00AM
		I have a nice puppy (from BigBoneAndShag) that is with the ewe lambs 24/7: this group is in dry lot near the barn. I feed the puppy when the ewe lambs are fed grain. As she ages she will be moved to pasture with the older ewes. How do you feed your guard dog while it is with the ewes in pasture? I have a plan but want your advice. Thanks, KO
	ChristianCowgirl	Posted 08/01/12 10:28PM  Changed 00/00/00 12:00AM
		Our dogs are allowed to grumble at the ewes and does in order to keep the animals out of the dog food. Some of the ewes get a well-placed snap if they are really obnoxious about getting the dog food. We start like you have, with the pups in with the young ones. Then they get moved out and we monitor the first few feedings. When the ewes or does move in, we flail and holler to run them off, but let the dog grumble a bit. We reprimand the dog for anything more than what it takes for the sheep to step back. So if they go after the sheep, we step in and put a stop to it. **important to note that they are allowed to grumble at sheep and goats, and only at feeding time. They have to give up their feed to any human at any time with no problems. Routine is improtant, too. We feed ours up near the milk parlor at our evening milkings. That way, the majority of the herd is down in the lower field and their are just six or so goats hanging around.
	EmsoffLambs	Posted 08/02/12 12:12AM  Changed 00/00/00 12:00AM
		A couple different options. Some people use self feeders with lift up lids so the dogs have free access to food. The sheep will often eat it though if they figure out how to open it. I've heard if you feed a meat based food instead of a grain based one that the sheep and goats won't eat it. Another option is to build basically a creep pen where the dog can eat but the sheep can't get in. That will work if you have big ewes, won't work for goats as they can squeeze through anything a dog can. What we do is pen the ewes at night. While the ewes are eating their feed, the dogs get theirs. Problem (if you want to call it that) is that both our dogs are really slow eaters. They'll eat half and then walk off and leave it for a while, letting the sheep or chickens eat it. For this reason, we feed at night because all the chickens are in their pen. We feed the dogs out of the pen. So you'll just have to see how your dog is. If she's a fast eater, you can just feed her once a day and be done with it. If she's a slow eater, then the creep pen will probably be the easiest.

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