The ultimate in Loft Security!

[SmithFamilyLoft]

Hello Dan,

I must confess that watching this loft unfold, month by month has been pretty exciting and I must confess at some point, I am just going to have to invite myself down to look at this monument that is slowly but surely coming together into one heck of a loft !

And I smiled and showed the wife the "cute" little security systems. You might say, I got a chukle out of it, untill I did a little research on these dogs, and I guess you know what you are in for. Here are just a few lines that I did with copy and paste.

A predator to a Pyr can range from another dog to coyotes, bears, foxes, weasels, mountain lions, etc. They cannot be trusted off-leash, as their guardian dog nature will cause them to investigate anything and everything they find interesting, and to not trust their owners to make the final decisions. Great Pyrenees were bred to guard without instruction from humans and will decide for you what is in your best interest. The Pyr is an excellent guardian — large enough to be a deterrent to smaller predators, such as coyotes and foxes, and a match for larger wildlife, such as cougars and bears, in fact a single male Pyr is supposed to be able to hold off a bear long enough to allow a shepherd to move the herd away.

So you are going to have not one, but a pair of these bad boys, which can weigh up to 160 pounds each, guarding the loft compound ! Now dogs which were bred to hold off mountain lions and bears, really do sound like a security system. Now, any two or four legged varmit, thinking about "borrowing" a few pair of your world famous breeders, will have a couple of really big problems to deal with first !!!!

Excellent job on your loft, and congradulations on your two new "employees".

[learning]

Warren,

Thanks for the words of encouragement! Yes, like everything else on this project, I too have done some significant research on these dogs. Rest assured, they will have an abundance of obedience training. I have to admit that I was just a little bit nervous taking my 11 and 5 year old sons into this "compound", for lack of a better word, to look at these puppies. I can assure you there was no sneaking into this place! As soon as we were inside the gate we were met with about eight of these huge, white, loud guardians. However, as soon as the owner walked up to the car, it was like a switch was thrown and they all turned into big play toys. They were amazingly patient and tollerant of my five year old and seemed more than willing to welcome us into their "pack" as it were.

I am looking forward to working with these dogs and having them around our little pigeon compound. I must say, I sort of pity the first teenager that wanders a little too close to the loft without one of us around. They just might have to make a quick trip to WalMart for some new underwear!

Oh, I forgot to mention that I plan on putting a six foot fence around the entire loft with too big igloo dog houses underneath! Should provide at least a little security at night!

Dan

[warriec]

Dan, just a little concern I have. Dogs do make a good intruder deterent but they need to be properly socialised. Some dogs can be a nightmare. they will pounce on the doors etc scaring the birds.

[learning]

Thanks Warriec,

My wife and I have had dogs all of our lives so we are pretty well prepared for socializing them. Also, if you noticed from the loft pictures, the loft itself is seven feet off the ground and we are going to put a gate at the bottom of the stairs so they will not have access to the loft directly, just underneath it.

Thanks for the concern,

Dan

[teebo]

was i right in reading that the dogs when grown are going to live under your pigeon loft?,that dose'nt sound like a good home ,or very sanitary.i love dogs i own a german shepherd,rottweiler,doberman,black lab,and a chihuahua,i would never let my dogs live under a loft,i have worked with alot of breeds before,just a hint...your going to be brushing alot..good luck with them,they are gorgeous.

[learning]

Teebo,

These dogs were bred to live among the herds of sheep on the slopes of the Pyrenees being left for days on end without any human intervention to guard the flocks. These dogs have been known to regularly take on bears and mountain lions in protection of their flocks.

Perhaps you haven't seen my loft. It will be over 800 square feet and stand 7 feet of the ground on stilts when finished. The dogs will have elevated kennels off the ground to protect them from the elements as well as the loft itself. I am quite comfortable knowing that they will be very happy there. Besides, they will have the four of us to play with on a daily basis. Sometimes we all need a reminder that our dogs, for the most part, were originally bred to aid their humans owners in various outdoor activities. It is us that have often times over domesticated them to the point that we feel they have to be in front of a fire in our living rooms at our feet in order to be happy and healthy.

The parents, grandparents and great grandparents of these dogs are all working dogs on a 75 acre llama/sheep ranch and yes we got to meet all of them. The last dog that they lost was a great grand mother of these puppies and she died of natural causes while still guarding the herds at the age of 15. This age is unheard of among giant dog breeds today. All of the veterinarians I have talked to have been amazed by this fact and have anxiously wanted to contact the breeder in order to have a reputable Great Pyrenees breeder to recomend to their clients looking for dogs.

They are at their happiest doing what they were bred to do.

Thanks for your concern ,

Dan

[Trees Gray]

Hi Dan,

I appreciate you sharing all this information about these dogs and it is true that these dogs know they have very important job to do and that fulfills their lives and are happiest when doing their "chores".

My sister and her husband have a sheep ranch and one of their elderly neighbors has a dog who herds cattle and such. He was ill for a time and the poor dog got restless and seemed quite distraught by not being able to do his daily activities, so my sister felt really bad and asked if his dog would like to come over and "babysit" their sheep. I don't know what became of that, but the fact is these dogs actually need to do what they are trained to do, for their health and happiness.

I just love those puppies, I know you must be anxious to get them.

[learning]

We are READY!!!!!

We have the vet visit all scheduled, talked to the trainer we are going to use and have classes lined up, spent more money than I would like to admit on crates, play toys, etc., etc. Now all we need are the dogs!

Dan

[learning]

Well, the babies arrived home today and between meeting the grandparents, visiting PetsMart, and learning the new surroundings, it was a very busy day!

It is now 3:00 AM and I am sitting at the computer typing this while listening to them cry for each other. They are in separate crates so needless to say I am not planning on much sleep for the next few days! Actually, they have done better than I expected for the first night. They cried for about 30 minutes or so then calmed down and went to sleep. From there it has been about every 30 minutes or so one will wake up and cry for a minute and then go back to sleep. I took them out around 11:00 and again around 3:00. They both went straight to their business! I am keeping my fingers crossed that the housebreaking thing will go quickly.

The boys absolutely love them. They just can't understand why they want to sleep so much! There are some separation issues between them that we will continue to work on and I am sure work through.

Anyway, just thought you might enjoy an update.

Dan

[Lady Tarheel]

Dan, congratulations on getting the babies home. Bet they are really big babies though. Is there a reason they can't bunk together?

[mr squeaks]

Hi Dan,

I once read that a ticking clock would help them sleep better (longer?). Of course, in YOUR case, I'm afraid the clock would have to be custom made for size! (just teasing)

Many thanks for the updates and do keep them coming. Great to be "in" at the beginning and watch their growth and progress as well as your pijies and loft!!

Love, Hugs and Scritches to ALL!!

Shi

[learning]

Maggie,

In doing our research in bringing up two puppies at the same time we were met some very interesting points of view. We called several vets in the area as well as probably ten different professional trainers. The opinions seemed split right down the middle. About half said you should never bring up two at the same time, especially if they are the same sex. The other half said that it was deffinitely doable but there were some things you had to be aware of to avoid future problems.

It seems that two dogs brought up together, especially of the same sex, would not have any initial problems, however at the age of two or so would be much more likely to show agression towards each other as they challenged each other for the "alfa" dog position in the pack. There is also a big problem with them developing severe separration anxiety to the point that you could not take one somewhere without the other becoming uncontrollable.

Regardless of the positions of the professionals we consulted, they all agreed that it was very important to raise the puppies as independent dogs. Crate them sepperately, walk them seperately, play with them seperately, train them seperately, groom them sepperately at least until the imprinting stage is finished (usally around 6-8 months). This way they develope their own self confidence and trust with their handlers instead of each other. that is the theory anyway and it seems to be pretty much universal with all the professionals we spoke with.

Just in two days I can see a difference in the way the dogs interact with us. They are still allowed time to play together, just not all day long. Oh well, hope that answered your question.

Dan

[Lady Tarheel]

Dan, it sure did make sense. I had never considered the things you pointed out so I have learned something today. Thanks for your response. Very interesting.

[learning]

Well, my wife, two sons and myself were on spring break this past weekend so we used the time to welcome the two new additions to the family. In the span of one week they each gained over 5 pounds are now over 30 pounds each at 12 weeks! They are an absolute joy and we look forward to watching them grow and mature (except for the little presents in the house from time to time!).

They are now thoroughly crate trained and enjoy the private time they get while in their crates. I have included some recent pictures to give you guys an idea of how they are doing.

Hope you enjoy the pics!

Dan

[TAWhatley]

They are beautiful, big babies, Dan! Thank you for the pics!

Terry