Beware of the Dog

"Watch out for those dogs, those evildoers, those mutilators of the flesh.- Philippians 3:2

Watch out for dogs.  The Apostle Paul, in his letter to the Philippian church wasn't talking about literal dogs.  He was talking about false teachers who were trying to impose works and the Law on the Gentiles.  We're not talking about figurative dogs today, but literal ones - Big Boy, our Great Pyrenees, to be specific.  And here he is, in all his majesty and splendor.  It would shock you if I were to tell you that this dog was an evildoer - a mutilator of the flesh.  It surely shocked us.

I am Big Boy, Defender of Livestock on Our Maker's Acres Family Farm

Big Boy is a Great Pyrenees dog.  Great Pyrenees dogs have been used as livestock guardian dogs for hundreds of years by shepherds to protect their sheep and other animals.  The dogs are very protective of their flock and become aggressive with predators that may harm their animals.  I've got to hand it to Big Boy, we haven't lost a single chicken to a predator since we've had him.  We've grown to like him. So why is he looking so guilty?

Why the guilty face?

Well, I report with much dismay that we've got to get rid of him.  We're looking for another home for Big Boy.  You might notice that in the previous two pictures, he's no longer in the pasture with his flock.  He is cabled to the trampoline in the backyard.  There is a reason for that.  Big Boy, for some unexplained reason, has recently picked up a very bad habit.  He's begun to viciously kill and eat the very animals he's supposed to be protecting.  The Protector has become the Predator - and we can't have that.  He's disappointed us and right now, I can't bear to look at him.  Here is some of his handiwork:

The wings are the only thing that remains.

I walked to the barn the other day and found the first dead chicken near Big Boy.  It raised eyebrows since we'd not had problems with predators since Big Boy joined our family.  Was Big Boy sleeping on the job, allowing possums to once again feast on our feathered friends?  Was he guilty of dereliction of duty?  Only two days later, there was another dead chicken - another fat Barred Rock hen.  What is going on?

And yet another carcass...

Then I walked out a couple days later and caught Big Boy in act of fowl behavior, pardon the pun. The poor bird was flapping her wings as Big Boy brutally killed and ate her.  It was sickening.  We immediately pulled him out of the pasture and away from the flock.  Three dead birds in a week.  He ate everything but the wings and the cluck.

Pulled off the job

We really don't know what made him turn to the dark side and begin to do this, but we know that he can't stay.  We're actively looking for someone who doesn't own chickens that will give Bad Boy...err Big Boy a good home.  Until then, he sits cabled to the trampoline, thinking about his bad behavior.  If you don't have chickens and want a good dog (FOR FREE), please contact me.

Big Boy's Trip to the Barber

Big Boy is our Great Pyrenees livestock guard dog.  I think if cows and chickens could talk, they'd tell you that he harasses them more than he does potential predators, but since we adopted ol Big Boy, we haven't lost an animal to predators - so there's that. Big Boy positions himself stoically in the pasture atop the chicken tractor, scanning the horizon for nefarious creatures.  It's in his genes.  Pyrenees dogs are native to France where they were working companions of shepherds high up in the Pyrenees Mountains that border France and Spain.

As you might expect, a dog with a heavy winter coat that is comfortable in the upper elevations of a mountainous terrain, might not be especially comfortable in the hot, humid, sultry, appropriately named "Dog Days" of Summer in South Louisiana. Although he has shade, we can tell he's hot.  So, we figured it was time for a haircut, so off to the dog groomer we went...

Strike that.  We opted to do the grooming ourselves.  Tricia got a pair of scissors and I got a pair of scissors and we started cutting...  And cutting...  And cutting...

Getting a crew cut...

I wish I would've gotten a before and after picture.  Have you ever gotten a bad haircut?  One that you just couldn't wait to grow out?  One that made you embarrassed to go out in public?  I don't know if it is possible for a dog to get embarrassed.  He doesn't look embarrassed, but let's just say that Tricia and I are not going into the dog grooming business and Big Boy is not going to win any awards at the Dog Show.

Taking "a little bit off the top!"

We lacked the ability to blend the cuts and it gave Big Boy an odd, funny appearance, but you know what? I guarantee you, he likes the fact that we gave him a haircut - not for the appearance, but for the functionality.

Modeling the haircut

With two 'barbers' cutting, it didn't take long for Big Boy's trip to the barber to be complete and Benjamin walked him back out to his post.  It might have just been me, but it appeared he was happy, relieved, and walked a little lighter in his steps. Hopefully, since Big Boy now lacks the aerodynamic properties of the long, flowing, smooth, hair he once had, it won't affect his ability to keep the animals safe from varmints.

Contours of the Haircut

Tricia swept up a very large pile of Big Boy's hair and will work this on her loom to make me a nice sweater.

A white pile becomes a sweater for Kyle?

I'm only joking!  We threw it away.  The white pile smelled downright vile!