Colton and Bolt
A few months ago we traded a nice Kiko buckling out of HEMI for an 8 week old solid white Great Pyrenees LGD pup in VA. It was the half way mark between our farm in WV and Richard Perry’s farm in NC. The buckling made the 4 hour trip in a dog kennel while the puppy somehow managed to split the time up between Lorie’s lap in the front seat and our 5 year old son Colton’s lap in the backseat.
Lorie and Bolt
This new addition has brought us to a grand total of 6 dogs on the farm; Four LGD’s and 2 pets. We believe that dogs are better in pairs. Our oldest pair of LGD’s are approaching seven years old. Large dogs have a shorter life expectancy than smaller dogs and LGD’s an even shorter one based on their line of work. We wanted to get a companion for our 3rd LGD and also have another mature LGD on staff before the inevitable happens with our aging pair of guardians.
We have started “Bolt” (the kids named him after the lead dog in one of their favorite movies) with his own group of weanling bucks. So far, we couldn’t be more pleased. He is a very alert dog and he is not afraid to bark and growl at our large German Shepherd male whenever he gets too close to the bucklings even though Bolt is half his size. The best part about Bolt and all GPs that we have been around is that our small children can approach them and handle them (even while eating) without any signs of aggression. They are truly an amazing breed of dog. We are so thankful for ours. We used to wake up in the middle of the night when the coyotes would start howling and go outside with a light and a gun. Now we just roll over and go back to sleep.
5 month old LGD
Here is a picture of Bolt from last night against our new HT barn lot fence. We haven’t had him on the scales but he is growing nicely. Once he is a little bigger and the bucklings are sold, we’ll move him in with his adult companion to learn the ropes of patrolling a large pasture.
5 month old LGD
The HEMI buckling in NC has gained 25lbs on forage in the last 2-3 months 🙂
6 mo old HEMI son
M. R. Goats 