| The Walking Lightly Difference | Alpaca Facts & Information | Alpaca Sales and Services | Livestock Guardian Dogs & Predators | Colorado's Gold Country | Find or Contact HS Alpacas |  |
| The Walking Lightly Difference | Alpaca Facts & Information | Alpaca Sales and Services | Livestock Guardian Dogs & Predators | Colorado's Gold Country | Find or Contact HS Alpacas | |
Meet Zak (or Czak, or Czar Czak, in honor of his Russian heritage and sense of status). Alpaca Zak that is.
After researching LGDs for two years, I chose the Caucasian Ovcharka or CO. He is not just my first CO but my first LGD so I was in for an intense training to learn what was LGD, what was CO, and what was Alpaca Zak. I spent at least three years learning about this magnificent breed. I expect to continue learning for many years.
That first year with him I learned many things. First I learned that he (like most LGDs) does not understand the word "Come" in any language but will come anyway, unless he has something better or more important to do. He (and the others) will sit and consider whether to respond. You can see the wheels turning in the brain. He sits easily but he doesn't like "Down." He has known his name since a young pup but is fully capable of ignoring it. He hates being shut in, whether it's the bedroom or the barn. He likes being where he has a wide view and can see a long way. He likes being on the highest point of his domain. One of his favorite spots is atop a huge boulder near the road at the highest point of the ranch. He does not want to stay with the alpacas in the pasture; he prefers being where he can look down at them and around at everything else, where his hearing and his sense of smell work best. (He hates wind; I think because it throws off hearing and smell.) He is more discerning than the other dogs, usually ignoring them when they bark or run off to tree a squirrel.
His hearing is exceptional, as well as discerning. His vocalizations give a clue to the perceived threat, much different for a bear than the coyote pack. He is serious but also very funny. His very favorite thing in the world is a good tummy rub. He lays down, exposing his tummy, head thrown back, legs and arms askew, eyes almost glazing over with the joy of it! Even when he was all puppy there was still a maturity in the way he sat silent and watchful over his domain. As he has aged, his maturity has increased.
I don't know what I'd do without him!
This site offers more information about Livestock Guardian Dogs. There is still relatively little in print on the subject.
PLEASE, DO NOT buy one of these special, rare, working breeds from a "backyard breeder," pet store or puppy mill (a breeder who breeds and sells multiple breeds or litters every year), or from ANYONE who breeds for "aggression" or "protection." BUY ONLY from a REPUTABLE BREEDERS (who breed to preserve and improve the breed) here or abroad. Contact me for names of reputable breeders, like Esquire Caucasians in Ohio, or Caucasian Legend in New Hampshire, or Tho'ag Tash Caucasians in Texas. If you don't need a working dog, you can check out a rescue dog. Call me for more information on that possibility.
