Dogs

Black Mesa Ranch
Snowflake Arizona

The Dogs of BMR

Indispensable Workers and Friends

We have an eclectic mix of mutts, and purebreds; pets and working dogs. Here are the introductions...

Bosco

Bosco, DOB 2/8/00 is the perpetual baby and our "all-purpose ranch dog". He's a black lab mix with a innate ability to be able to figure out any situation and do exactly what he's asked to. He loves to run constantly for miles and miles at a time and chasing jack rabbits is a favorite past time. He has greatly improved his skill at getting through barbed wire during his time here - he had more than 25 stitches in various places over his body during his first few months here (but none at all for a while). In 11/01 we purchased a veterinary skin stapler in anticipation of Bosco's next major boo-boo but he has delighted us for having not had to use it... yet.

The one thing that Bosco does NOT understand is not to jump into strangers cars. He loves to do that and has now found homes at three other places, the last time for several months before we could track him down each time! We are very glad to have him back.

Blue

Blue, DOB 7/8/97 is our hard-working 75 lb. male Anatolian Livestock Guardian Dog (LGD). Purchased from a fantastic breeder/trainer in Texas in late January of 2002, Blue took immediately to our goat herd (his charges) and has been fiercely protective of his territory from all types of predators. We've seen him really in action and he is awesome.

Kaylee

DOB 1/1/2006: Kaylee is a purebred Anatolian that came here with her brother, Kirby, as a puppy. She is now well over 100 pounds. She is friendly and good natured, but is learning to take her job guarding the goats very seriously. When Kaylee has just a youngster, she spotted a pack of dogs on our property. She wanted to play, but the dogs tore her up pretty well. She came home and hid for several days. When she recovered from the shock, we could see that she had learned a big lesson. Since that time, Kaylee has been a great protector of her herd and won’t make that mistake again.

Kirby

DOB 1/1/2006: Kirby is a big 150# Anatolian. He lives in the goat buck pen and loves to hang out with “his” boys. He and buck Zippy have a very special relationship and can be seen playing together often. When Kirby was an 8 month old puppy, another dog got into the buck pen and started ripping up one of the boys. Kirby stopped the attack and held the dog off until we could get there and deal with the situation.

2008 Update: Kirby is now out of the buck pen and working with Kaylee, Bosco, and Blue to keep the goats and other animals safe. He is doing great with the one exception that he barks at the cows. He sees the cows as a threat to his goats and will keep them away. That is a good thing, but so far Kirby is taking it a bit to far. He is getting better, though and is becoming a trusted member of our Livestock Guardian Team.

____________________________________________

Kody

Kody, DOB 9/25/2001, is a BIG Anatolian Shepard LGD who came to us through a bizarre and fortuitous set of circumstances. Kody was being "repossessed" from a farm in Missouri by his original breeder here in AZ at just the time we began looking for some more help for "Blue" on the night shift. He had been working with goats a little and had an excellent genetic background as well as being a 140 lb bruiser who would have no trouble "bulking up" our rather diminutive LGD contingent. As it worked out, the breeder would be passing within a few dozen miles of our ranch on his return trip from picking Kody up and we were able to strike a mutually beneficial deal for getting Kody here and working quickly. He's turned out to be a very patient gentle giant with the babies but ferociously pursues any predators he perceives as a threat to his new herd.

We lost Kody in late 2005 in a working accident. He was, apparently, pursuing a dog pack which had been killing our poultry and threatening our goats when he was hit by a truck. We miss his puppy-like eagerness and hard-working manner greatly.

Kira

Kira, DOB 1/2000, a rescued female Anatolian LGD is Blue's main working partner in safeguarding the goat herd. Her job is to hang close to the goats and be the last line of defense should anything get past Blue. She patrols the property at will with her charges during the day and gladly sleeps with them locked in their paddock at night. She is a very playful girl and will egg on the other dogs in play-fights. I pity any predator who draws her attention 'cause play-time will be over in a hurry.

Kira disappeared on rainy night in 2006 during the time our neighbors' dog packs were on a rampage.

Other Dogs

From time to time we will, working with the National Anatolian Shepard Rescue Foundation, foster a working livestock dog, help nurse them back to productive health, and evaluate their working potential. Dropping a new, untested dog into the well-oiled LGD machine we have working here can be a bit of a stress for all concerned but we have yet to have any serious problems.

We have fostered "Harry" - A beautiful Great Pyr but a total couch potato who has found a loving permanent home as a pampered pet near Phoenix; and "Jake" - A monster of an Anatolian, though emaciated and weak from drugs and inactivity when we took him in. Jake, after just 6 weeks with us, had begun really putting on weight, had re-learned how to run and had started to act like a real livestock dog. We know for a fact that he and Blue killed a coyote one night, escaping with just a few scratches themselves for the work. Jake is now happily guarding an alpaca herd for his new owner near Ash Fork AZ.

We've also had some other family dogs who went on to other places. We still have lots of fond memories and keep some photos of them in various places on this site.

Roc, a big white yellow lab came to us as a lost little puppy when we were living in Tucson and stayed his entire, long and eventful life. We had to put him to sleep in late summer 2004 as his arthritis just got too much for him.

Ford, a fun-loving black German Shepard came to us from his home in PA before moving on to a great new home in another part of the state, where where we won't lose him to a rancher mistaking him for a very similar dog who runs free around this area, running cattle and causing all sorts of general mischief.

Dogs at Work

Here are some picture of our working dogs - Blue, Kira and Ford, doing what they love best: watching the world go by and keeping it safe for their goats.

Dogs at Play

Here, a young Roc and Bosco (as a puppy) play in a muddy Hay Hollow Draw tinaja.

Most of our dogs had never really seen snow until they came here. At first it was a little too different to enjoy but by the second or third storm they learned to love it. Blue will still see a snow squall coming across our valley and sound an alert until he realizes what it is. Bosco likes it at least 8" deep so he can burrow in it better.