Dog Community

Ovtcharka

C K

Posted : 3/2/2007 8:57:56 PM

Has anyone ever worked with Mid-Asian or Caucasian Ovtcharkas? I've been musing about getting one, preferably one that failed out as a flock guard if I can ever get a nice acerage. It's going to be at least 10 years before I'd have the chance, so I'm going to spend the time getting as much info as I can on them. I'm looking for a dog that is a little more on the stubborn side, but bonds close. It should be territorial enough to discourage intruders, but it has to be able to recognise family members/close friends. I do not want a dog that will attack without actually being threatened. I know they've got more than enough power to take down a human as a threat, but if they did take someone down, would they actually badly injure him or just immobilize him? Or would it depend on the dog/training? They've got my absolute favorite coat to groom, so that won't be an issue at all. I'd love to do obedience work, probably not competitively, but just for fun. Weight pull would be so much fun, and probably pretty helpful if I ever do end up with livestock. Have they ever been used for that or is there some reason they aren't used to pull? The Mid Asian Ovtcharka is my dream breed and I'd really like to know if it would ever be a possibility for me to own one.

Xerxes

Posted : 3/2/2007 9:27:14 PM

I just want to let you know my experience with a washed up flock guardian. She wasn't an ovchartka, she was a polski or lowland polish sheep dog. She spent her first 6 or 7 months with only the sheep, another dog or two and the shepherd. She was huge...130lbs or so and fear aggressive towards humans. In fact the couple that were rehabbing her has spent several months getting her used to being within 20-30 feet of other humans and dogs without attacking. So when I met her all she did was aggressive barking. She was on a long lead and let me tell you, that was a good thing. She was good with dogs but went into full defense drive when anyone got within 15-20 feet of her people.

Please don't get a washed out guardian, get one from a breeder and socialize the heck out of that dog. My comparison to this is the Caucasian Ovchartka I met that was super friendly-by that I mean he was aloof but curious. He would walk up to strangers and sniff them but not allow them to pet him-he'd saunter away. This is much more preferable to aggressive posturing. Either way, if those dogs think there is danger, they'll be ready to react.

C K

Posted : 3/2/2007 9:43:25 PM

Thanks Xerxes. That's incredibly helpful. Has anyone worked with Caucasian or Mid Asian Ovtcharkas out of show lines? It sounds like I'm definately going to be better off with one that's not a working dog. I've seen Caucasians and I believe South Russians in show photos, but I don't think I've ever seen Mid Asians in the show ring. I thought they were all shown in the same club, but now that I think of it, I've never seen a picture of one doing conformation. Are they just less common or are they not shown?

Xeph

Posted : 3/3/2007 12:49:25 AM

fuzzdomestic, there is a woman named Kathy that has American showline shepherds and one Ovtcharka. I suggest you e-mail her and ask her what it's like living with one. She's got all SORTS of info!

[linkhttp://www.victorygermanshepherds.com]www.victorygermanshepherds.com[/link] <--you can contact her from that website

C K

Posted : 3/3/2007 9:01:58 PM

Thanks for the address, I've sent her an email.

pndhounds

Posted : 3/4/2007 10:36:40 AM

A member, Babs (sp) has this powerful breed...I found the following link from quite a while ago, and I haven't seen her posting in ages. Maybe you could reach out to her. The livestock guarders are amazing creatures and I have always been in awe of them.

[linkhttp://forum.dog.com/asp/tm.asp?m=52698&mpage=1&key=췾]http://forum.dog.com/asp/tm.asp?m=52698&mpage=1&key=췾[/link]

If you reach her, tell her the collossal pup pics are sorely missed!
Coleen

Joyce Dozier

Posted : 3/4/2007 11:49:42 AM

THANKS for the link. I hadn't gotten around to looking them up yet. What beautiful dogs, what a lovely breed. Sort of a pyrenees/newfie X. WOW

miranadobe

Posted : 3/5/2007 1:00:19 AM

A woman I know is a Caucasian/Ovtcharka breeder. [linkhttp://www.caucasianlegend.com/]http://www.caucasianlegend.com/[/link]
Do not let the beautiful images fool the lurkers out here. This is an incredibly powerful breed and not for most pet homes. Heck, this is one of her dogs during a protection temperament test. They are bred to do a job (protecting livestock) and are quite willing and able to do it...

Xeph

Posted : 3/5/2007 3:20:55 AM

That picture just makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside!

You know, you could probably take that and model some creepy new monster out of it.

They're beautiful dogs....I couldn't own one. I admire those that do and can stay "on top"

C K

Posted : 3/5/2007 5:54:37 PM

They're a lot of dog, I know that and I suppose that's what I'm attracted to. I'm definately going to find a nearby breeder to get to know the dogs and make sure I'll be able to handle them. I've found a Caucasian Ovcharka breeder in Ohio, but they're advertising "rare" blue dogs and that makes me nervous. I don't believe that's an accepted color and the fact that they're calling them rare... They do have some top winning show dogs though and it seems like they do lots of health screening. Is there anything I'm missing here: [linkhttp://www.esquirecaucasians.com/]http://www.esquirecaucasians.com/[/link]? It doesn't look like I'm going to find a Mid Asian Ovcharka anywhere near NE. I'd rather not go further east than Ohio or further west than Utah. North and south aren't going to be a problem. Does anyone know of a Mid Asian breeder anywhere in the US, preferably within the borders I mentioned earlier, but if I can find any American breeder they'll hopefully be able to refer me to someone within my range.

rwbeagles

Posted : 3/5/2007 7:23:05 PM

Best way to find out the real deal is to join the breed specific lists. They pull no punches there and are a great resource.

pndhounds

Posted : 3/5/2007 10:05:57 PM

If anyone peruses the site listed, for the breeder, some of the links can get really, really heavy. There are links to some fighting videos, much in the same as Gina' s link from the NYTimes dog fighting article. What was painful for me, was to watch some of these videos for lengths of fifteen minutes or more...These are serious, serious dogs for brilliant, dog-savy people...no more, no less.

If any American trend ever gets their hands on this rare breed....that could get very ugly.

I admire this Livestock Guarding Breed completely...from afar, and I hope it remains so for many dog owners.

Stacey Kubyn

Posted : 3/6/2007 4:34:21 AM

They're a lot of dog, I know that and I suppose that's what I'm attracted to. I'm definately going to find a nearby breeder to get to know the dogs and make sure I'll be able to handle them. I've found a Caucasian Ovcharka breeder in Ohio, but they're advertising "rare" blue dogs and that makes me nervous. I don't believe that's an accepted color and the fact that they're calling them rare... They do have some top winning show dogs though and it seems like they do lots of health screening. Is there anything I'm missing here:http://www.esquirecaucasians.com/? It doesn't look like I'm going to find a Mid Asian Ovcharka anywhere near NE. I'd rather not go further east than Ohio or further west than Utah. North and south aren't going to be a problem. Does anyone know of a Mid Asian breeder anywhere in the US, preferably within the borders I mentioned earlier, but if I can find any American breeder they'll hopefully be able to refer me to someone within my range.

Hi! Blue is a naturally occurring color in Caucasians as it is in Tibetan Mastiffs (a close relative of Caucasians). As a hobbyist having fun showing off the few blue dogs on my site, I've also attempted to clearly indicate that the color blue is currently disqualified under the Russian Kennel Federation breed standard (the FCI breed standard is silent about the color blue). The Tibetan Mastiff breed standard fully accepts blue color. Anyway, blues pop up very occasionally in the ordinary course of breeding, and we sell blue puppies as pets on nonbreeding agreement. We do not breed to specifically obtain this color. Thank you for visiting my website.

Best regards,

Stacey Kubyn
Esquire Caucasians
[linkhttp://www.esquirecaucasians.com]http://www.esquirecaucasians.com[/link]
440.286.2374

Stacey Kubyn

Posted : 3/6/2007 4:44:10 AM

If any American trend ever gets their hands on this rare breed....that could get very ugly.

I admire this Livestock Guarding Breed completely...from afar, and I hope it remains so for many dog owners.

While certainly not a breed for most people or situations, the Caucasian is following in the footsteps of the other closely related flockguardian breeds that have found a niche in the US: Anatolian Shepherd Dog, Komondor, Kuvasz, Tibetan Mastiff. While some dogs of these breeds fulfill ancestral roles as livestock protectors, the majority are companions and home watchdogs. With proper socialization, training, and a sturdy 6 foot fence, responsible ownership is attainable.

Best regards,

Stacey Kubyn
Esquire Caucasians
[linkhttp://www.esquirecaucasians.com]http://www.esquirecaucasians.com[/link]
440.286.2374

C K

Posted : 3/6/2007 8:32:14 PM

Thanks for the explaination on your site. I've just seen so many BYBs that I tend to be a little cynical about breeders until I've met them in person. I think that was the only thing that I was unsure about with your site. You have such gorgeous dogs. Would you happen to know of any fellow Ovcharka(found your article on spelling, lol) breeders around Nebraska? I've mentioned a couple of times that I'm more interested in Mid Asians, but they don't seem to be as popular and seem like they're going to be even harder to find. It's going to be a few more years before I'll be looking to meet breeders in person, but I'd like to know how far I'm going to have to go. I'm actually interested in moving north, maybe into S Dakota or Wisconsin, so that's part of the reason I'm waiting. Are there any breeders in that area that you know of?