Go Ahead- Just Try To Get Past Me

Hi.  My name is Angel.  I know this name seems a little strange given my job, but I think it was given to me as a pun, to make light of what I am not.  I'm not really dangerous around humans, although please don't try to sneak up on my chickens in the middle of the night.  What I am a menace to is coyotes, raccoons, foxes, bobcats, and any other creature that wants to take out a fat chicken or two that I am protecting.

Industrial livestock production sees the presence of predators as a threat, and one that has to be exterminated by force.  Our federal government still spends millions of your hard-earned tax dollars to pay federal agents and private hunters to rid our country of thousands of coyotes, wolves, foxes, and other predators.  These are the same predators that control the populations of our deer, elk, rabbits, squirrels, and other species that are probably nibbling at your garden as you read this.  When we eliminate predators, the shockwave is felt throughout the animal and plant kingdoms (for example, more deer create more pressure on vegetation near waterways, in some cases virtually denuding areas of browse).  Flying creatures such as hawks and owls are also killed, although this practice is illegal but still done nationwide.  Big Chicken (industrial poultry) uses the presence of predators and other wild birds as an excuse to keep their birds completely confined.  Using typical corporate rational, they say this practice of confinement 'protects their poultry from contacting diseases that might be present in wild birds and keeps them safe from predators'.  The picture above shows that you can have poultry ranging unconfined that are also safe from most predators.  Yes a few birds get nabbed by a Red-Tail Hawk or a Great Horned Owl here and there, but that is just a cost of doing business.  This cost gets factored into the price of the product.

There are certainly cases in which predators have to be removed-either physically relocated or killed.  This might happen when a specific animal gets habituated to a site, and despite your best efforts, it will not stop killing your critters.  However, the term habituated is very important to analyze.  Why is this one animal habituated?  Is it because your livestock is always in one place?  Is it because where your animals give birth is not well protected (lots of yummy smells, blood, afterbirth, etc. that will attract predators).  A thoughtful producer would consider all of those things and more before deciding to exterminate the habituated predator.

So next time you buy those eggs, whole chicken, or steak, ask the producer or the butcher how are predators dealt with in that production system.  There is a nascent movement to label animal products as "Predator Friendly", starting out with mostly lamb and wool products raised in the Intermountain West.  However, producers all over are using practices such as electric fencing, guard dogs, guard llamas, noises, lights, and other strategies to prevent predation from occurring without resorting to lethal force.  See the book Livestock Guardians by Janet V. Dohner listed in my Honest Books list for more information if you are thinking about what type of guard animal would suit your production system.

Comments

[Walter Jeffries]

We have LGHDs (Livestock Guardian Herding Dogs). You'll note they do both guarding and herding duty. They keep the predators out and their charges in. Between them and the fences I don't have to kill predators.

One of the things a local sheep farmer taught me years ago is that killing the coyotes isn't actually a good idea if they are leaving you and your stock alone. Those coyotes have learned to coexist with us. Our dogs sing to the coyotes to warn them back from our pastures. On rare occasions a new or young coyote makes the mistake of coming into our fields. In that case the dogs kill it.

For most predators the dog's vocals, scent and other territorial markings keep predators at bay. Predators are very territorially aware. This pretty much prevents us from having problems with bears, cougar, coyotes, fishers, lynx, fox, two-leggers, etc.

[Lisa]

AWWW!!! The dog is beautiful. I have a Great Pyrenees they are wonderful dogs. I had never heard of this breed but if they are like Pyrenees I'm sure they are great. I don't have animals with mine but we have bunnies that live in our backyard which she thinks are her flock haha.

This is a wonderful post, not something I would have thought about.

[Rayrena]

Wow, I've never thought about that aspect of meat/food production. Very interesting blog. This is our second year buying beef from Morris Grassfed Beef so it's neat to see them listed here. Joe is so very nice.

[Rebecca T.]

Natalie- Angel is actually a Maremma, which is a short-haired version of the Great Pyrenees. Apparently they bread them white to stand out against the wolves and other predators who are not white. Having shorter hair is advantageous to prevent overheating and dreadlocks. I really like her demeanor- safe around humans but not around other animals!

[d.a.]

@Natalie, the dog looks like a Great Pyrenees, although I could be mistaken. I've two Great Pyrenees pups in training for my geese & chickens. They're part of a working-dog class called "livestock guardian dog", or LGD.

[Natalie]

So, tell me more about the guardian, Angel.
From your first post, I did wonder about precautions you were taking in such a wide open space.