Breed dogs for livestock guardian dogs? Advertise here
Buyers and trainers use this page to find breeders whose lines do this work. List your kennel free, tick the industries your dogs work in, and advertise litters and stud dogs from proven working lines.
No breeders are listed here yet, so the first profiles get the page to themselves.
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Is it free to advertise here?
Yes. A breeder profile and your litter and stud dog adverts are free. Premium profiles, featured placement and sponsored articles are optional paid extras; see pricing.
Do I need a licence to advertise puppies?
In England you need a dog breeding licence from your council if you breed three or more litters in 12 months or breed and sell dogs as a business, and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own schemes. Licensed breeders show their licence number and issuing council on every advert. Puppies must be at least eight weeks old before they go to new homes.
Is my listing already here?
We add licensed breeders from councils' public registers. Search for your kennel name; if it is listed you can claim it and edit everything.
About livestock guardian dogs
A livestock guardian dog does not herd. It lives with the animals it protects, day and night, and deters foxes, stray dogs and other threats by its presence, its bark and, if pushed, by standing its ground. Working use is still unusual in the UK, but some smallholders keeping sheep, goats, alpacas and poultry now use guardians. If you are researching a livestock guardian dog in the UK, a Maremma Sheepdog in the UK, a dog to guard chickens or an alpaca guardian dog, this page explains how guardians work and who breeds them. Canine Breeder is a directory: we do not supply trained guardian dogs, and no listing certifies working ability.
What this work involves
A guardian pup is placed with its stock young, so that it bonds with them and treats the flock as its own. As it matures it patrols, watches, barks at intruders and puts itself between the stock and a threat. The best guardians are calm with the animals they live with, including lambs, kids and poultry, and wary of strangers.
Guardians are large, independent dogs that are often most active and vocal at night. They are not obedience dogs, they roam if fences allow, and their barking carries. Pups need supervision with stock until they are mature, particularly with poultry and young animals, and the bonding period takes patience.
Who trains and supplies these dogs in the UK
Guardian breeds are bred privately. Most British litters come from breeders who keep their dogs as companions or show them; fewer breeders have dogs living with stock. We know of no UK organisation that trains or certifies guardian dogs, so bonding and managing the pup with livestock is the owner’s job.
The Royal Kennel Club (RKC) registers the Maremma Sheepdog, Pyrenean Mountain Dog, Anatolian Shepherd Dog and Estrela Mountain Dog, all in its Pastoral group. Registration records pedigree, not working ability, and numbers are small: in 2025 the RKC registered 40 Pyreneans, 24 Maremmas, 13 Anatolians and 11 Estrelas. The breed clubs for these breeds can advise on health testing, temperament and whether the breed suits your land, and may know owners who keep their dogs with stock.
Breeds and lines
- Maremma Sheepdog: a white-coated Italian flock guardian, alert and devoted to its charges.
- Pyrenean Mountain Dog: a large white guardian from the Pyrenees, mostly kept as a companion in Britain. If you want a Pyrenean Mountain Dog for working use, look for dogs raised with stock.
- Anatolian Shepherd Dog: a powerful Turkish guardian, independent and territorial, best suited to experienced owners.
- Estrela Mountain Dog: a Portuguese flock guardian from the Serra da Estrela, loyal to its owner and wary of strangers.
All four are big, heavy dogs. The RKC recommends hip scoring for the Maremma and the Estrela, and it is worth asking about for any large guardian breed.
What to ask a breeder
- Do the parents live with livestock, and which species? Can I see them with the stock?
- Were the pups raised around livestock, and at what age will they leave?
- What are the parents’ hip scores, and which other health tests do you do?
- How do the parents behave with strangers, visiting dogs and people crossing their land?
- What fencing, supervision and bonding plan would you expect me to have?
- Will you support me through the first year, and take the dog back if it does not suit?
Legal and welfare notes
- Under section 3 of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991, it is an offence for a dog to be dangerously out of control in any place in England or Wales, including private land. The offence concerns injury, or reasonable fear of injury, to people and assistance dogs. Scotland has its own version of the section, which also applies in private places.
- If a guardian works in a field crossed by a public footpath or bridleway, you remain responsible if it injures a walker. In England and Wales a keeper can also face a civil claim under the Animals Act 1971 for damage a dog causes, including to another person’s dog, where the keeper knew of characteristics that made that damage likely.
- For these reasons many owners keep guardians out of fields with public access. Warning signs do not remove your responsibilities.
- In England and Wales the Animal Welfare Act 2006 requires anyone responsible for a dog to meet its needs, including a suitable environment and diet and protection from pain, suffering, injury and disease. A working guardian is no exception.
Frequently asked questions
Will a livestock guardian dog protect chickens?
Some do, but poultry are the hardest stock for a young dog to guard, because pups chase. Poultry guardians need close supervision until they are mature, and some owners find it easier to bond a pup with larger stock first.
Can a guardian dog also be a family pet?
Many Maremmas, Pyreneans, Anatolians and Estrelas in Britain are family pets. A dog living full time with stock, though, must be bonded to the stock, and working guardians are usually less biddable than typical pet breeds. Decide which role you want before choosing a breeder.
Do I need special fencing?
Yes. Guardians patrol and will extend their territory if they can. Secure, well-maintained boundary fencing protects the dog, your neighbours and people walking nearby.
If you breed Maremmas, Pyreneans, Anatolians or Estrelas and your dogs work with stock, list your kennel on Canine Breeder so smallholders looking for a guardian can find you.