The weather is getting cooler, and fall is upon us. Now is the time to ensure your LGDs are in proper body condition. If they have lost their condition from the summer heat, add more fat and protein to their diet. Changing feeds or adding extra calories through supplements can help increase your dog’s BCS in time for spring lambing and kidding. Your LGD should have a body condition score of 4.5 to 5 by the spring season.

 AgriLife Livestock Guardian Dog Program: Update and Events

Please mark your calendars for our next online seminar on Nov. 20 at 3 p.m. CST. We are thrilled to have Mark Taylor from Prescribed Hunts present a workshop on using LGDs on ranches with hunting leases. Mark has unique ways of working around LGDs in pastures at the AgriLife Sonora Station that hunters use during deer season. This enlightening event is an excellent opportunity for all LGD enthusiasts. To secure your spot, watch the events page on our website. The workshop will be hosted on Zoom, ensuring easy access for all. As always, it is free!

The Texas LGD Association will host a field day in Lampasas, TX, on Saturday, Jan. 18, at the Lampasas County Livestock Showbarn. The event will be held from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Several different workshops, a breeder panel, vendors, and an association meeting will be held. A ranch tour is also being planned for the event. Check out the Texas LGD Association Facebook page for more information.

 Roaming Research

I had a couple of producers email in comments and questions regarding last month’s blog post about my thesis project and the results on roaming that I have found to date. Based on our bonding project, roaming is reduced in adult dogs that have had the treatment of hot wire in the bonding pens. We expose the dogs to hot wire from the first day they are placed in the bonding pens at 8 weeks old. They remain in a fenced pen with hot wire at the base until they are 6 months old. The first four rounds of dogs were then placed into pastures without hot wire until 10 months of age. They were tracked for roaming patterns at the Center and on cooperating producers’ ranches until eighteen months of age.

In round five of the project, we added invisible fence training to the hot wire treatment group for the pups from 6 to 10 months of age. Initial results are encouraging. None of the pups left their pastures at the cooperating producers’ ranches a single time from 10 to 18 months of age. This had not been seen in the previous four rounds. In round six of the project, we used hot wire in all bonding pens and included treatments for invisible fence training after the pups left the bonding pens. We will continue using this protocol and bonding pups as singles vs pairs.

The research articles I am reviewing for my thesis were conducted in various countries. Six of the articles were based in the U.S., and seven of the 19 articles are from research conducted in Australia. The types of livestock included in the research on LGDs included sheep, goats, cattle, and poultry. Nineteen studies tracked the movements of 302 dogs with an average age of 3.93 years. The Maremma breed was used in 47% of the studies, and 37% of the studies used Great Pyrenees. In most studies, various LGD breeds available in the geographic region were used to conduct the research projects.

Herders were used with 26% of the dogs in the studies. Sadly, most of the articles that tracked roaming did not use a herder, so I cannot determine whether a herder influences the roaming behavior of the dogs. While it seems likely that human presence would decrease roaming behavior, I cannot substantiate that based on the articles in the literature review. All LGDs in the studies reviewed worked with other LGDs in the same pasture or ranch property. None of the dogs worked entirely alone. Researchers could not track whether aggression between the LGDs caused any of them to roam. Again, it seems logical that if LGDs have dominance or resource-guarding issues, they may roam to find other livestock to protect, but I cannot prove that based on the data presented in the articles reviewed. Sixty-eight percent of the studies had more male dogs on the ranches than female dogs. This could be because male dogs are perceived to be more aggressive towards threats to their territories. However, we have not seen that to be true in the bonding project dogs. In addition, none of the research I have read has shown a difference in the guarding abilities of males vs. females or fixed vs. intact dogs. It was impossible to determine if any breed was more apt to roam as the roaming data was not calculated by the breed of dogs. Researchers looked at distances traveled and time of day compared to the location of the livestock in the studies. Most dogs did tend to roam more at night than during the day.

 Bonding Project Update

Round Six Dogs

The “L” Girls (Lilly, Lulu, and Lady) looking for treats and kibble in the Ranger one day. AgriLife picture courtesy of Sustaita, 2024

The “L” Girls have been feeling a little more adventurous lately and have been getting into mischief now that the weather is cooling down. They are used to riding in the Ranger to travel from the kennel back to the bonding pasture or for training to acclimate them to different vehicles. The pups in round six were fixed in late October and will be dropped off at cooperating producers’ ranches in  November. They will be tracked for roaming until the dogs are 18 months old. You can look for updates on the pups on our Facebook page.

In closing

If you enjoyed this monthly LGD blog, please remember to subscribe to it with this link: The Guardian Way | Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center at San Angelo.

If you have feedback on this article or would like to suggest topics for future articles, webinars, or workshops, please contact me at bill.costanzo@ag.tamu.edu or 325-657-7311.

If you are looking for information on LGDs, make sure to check out our website. It contains factsheets, research from around the world on LGDs, and case studies we have conducted.

The Texas A&M AgriLife Livestock Guardian Dog Program is a cooperative effort by Texas A&M AgriLife and the Texas Sheep and Goat Predator Management Board. Follow us on our social media sites and share them with your friends and family!

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Remember to check out the Texas LGD Association online! You can follow the organization on Facebook or YouTube at @TexasLGDAssociation or visit its website.