Livestock Guardians
Betsy
Betsy is our senior livestock guardian dog. She is 50% Great Pyreneese and 50% Karakachan. The Great Pyrenees is a large, thickly coated, and immensely powerful working dog bred to deter sheep and goat stealing wolves and other predators on snowy mountaintops. The Karakachan is a breed of dog that originated in Bulgaria as a mountain livestock guardian dog. Betsy lives with our goat herd in the pastures to protect them from coyotes, domestic dogs, and any other threat that she perceives may be present. She is a fierce defender of her goat herd and chickens that wander into the pasture, but is a gentle soul to our family and welcomed visitors.