Modern Homesteader: Dax the guardian livestock dog

Training a livestock guardian dog to be a livestock guardian dog has been an interesting journey. Yes, Dax is still a puppy and yes, Dax still has that vibrant, puppy energy. I'm used to Husky and German Shepard energy. Dax and his half Pyrenees, half Anatolian Shepherd energy is a completely different story. Am I in over my head here? Absolutely not. I love a little chaos.

Even as I sit here writing this, Dax is on the couch destroying the last oven mitt in the house. Why am I letting him do this? Because I am up against a deadline and sometimes, I like to lose. Some people may argue that a true livestock guardian dog wouldn't even be in the house, let alone on the couch. That's OK, moving on.

The good news is he's no longer chasing the chickens around. The bad news is somehow he has acquired a taste for eggs (raw), including the shell. I don't know how this happened. Raw eggs do not agree with his stomach, which has been unfortunate for me.

Now, it hasn't all been a struggle. Dax and my turkey, Stan Lee, have formed quite the buddy system. Stan Lee is basically my own personal alarm system. If anything is awry, he calls out. Now that Dax is around, when he hears that call, he comes running. I didn't teach him that. I love watching his natural instincts kick in. Sometimes, it's a plane or a squirrel that Stan Lee is gobbling about. The other day, however, it was a bear.

So far this year, Dax's presence has scared off one bear and one coyote. So far this year, my presence has scared off one bear; and I didn't really scare him off, I just treed him. This was at 3 a.m. so I had to sit at the window for an hour and wait until he came back down and wandered off. I think Dax is winning. To say the least, I am grateful for Dax and everything he has brought to our home.

Reach Miriah at [email protected].