Having livestock at the base of a mountain, or rather, a very large hill, which is called a mountain, in northeastern Alberta means that there are plenty of predators around. The coyotes have been out howling and yipping, but the livestock guardian dogs are barking right back at them,warning them that this is their farm and they are not welcome here. I must say, those dogs are pretty formidable, especially the big boys, Mike, Joe and Charka. Harley has retired himself for the most part, choosing to sleep in the dog house most of the day and half the night. He does come out to see me and to have a bite to eat, but he leaves the "work" to the young boys. Joe and MIke have been staying with their sheep much more now, which is great. There is also Karin Llama and Dolly Donkey living with the ewes, and llamas and donkeys do not like coyotes.
But do the dogs protect the farm from human predators? I had a discussion tonight with a friend who is installing a sophisticated alarm system complete with three camera, one at the driveway and one at the house, and the third at the shop. The alarm is directly transferred to the police, fire and ambulance who can view the cameras and see what the problem is. They can listen and watch the intruders. The cost of the system is $70 per month, which is high, but the theft in this area has grown rampant and is out of control. There have been many job losses and people are getting desperate. Drugs play a huge part as well and some alcohol is usually involved.
I actually don't know if the dogs would hurt an intruder. I am pretty sure Robbie would. The hair on his back has been raised on more than one occasion by a person coming near the house and his teeth have been bared too. If Robbie, who is the pack leader, reacted to a stranger in a negative way, I am almost thinking the other dogs would too. The size of them is plenty to deter those who are up to no good, but if they were high and had a gun, they would just as soon shoot the dogs, only there are a lot of them. I would hate to see Ofcharka mad. He has really big teeth.
So, while the dogs do a superior job of protecting the farm from the animal predators, except the ravens, the jury is actually out on whether or not they would tear up a human the same way. I just sure hope that we do not have to find that one out. Dogs know when some one is not to be trusted. I do not think this would be a good place to test the theory.
But do the dogs protect the farm from human predators? I had a discussion tonight with a friend who is installing a sophisticated alarm system complete with three camera, one at the driveway and one at the house, and the third at the shop. The alarm is directly transferred to the police, fire and ambulance who can view the cameras and see what the problem is. They can listen and watch the intruders. The cost of the system is $70 per month, which is high, but the theft in this area has grown rampant and is out of control. There have been many job losses and people are getting desperate. Drugs play a huge part as well and some alcohol is usually involved.
I actually don't know if the dogs would hurt an intruder. I am pretty sure Robbie would. The hair on his back has been raised on more than one occasion by a person coming near the house and his teeth have been bared too. If Robbie, who is the pack leader, reacted to a stranger in a negative way, I am almost thinking the other dogs would too. The size of them is plenty to deter those who are up to no good, but if they were high and had a gun, they would just as soon shoot the dogs, only there are a lot of them. I would hate to see Ofcharka mad. He has really big teeth.
So, while the dogs do a superior job of protecting the farm from the animal predators, except the ravens, the jury is actually out on whether or not they would tear up a human the same way. I just sure hope that we do not have to find that one out. Dogs know when some one is not to be trusted. I do not think this would be a good place to test the theory.
Charka is a big black dog with a great disposition, if he likes you, that is.
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