Within the scope of the Carnivora Dinarica project, Slovenia Forest Service has given a dog named Ciarra, the first of the two bred livestock guarding dogs, to her new owners.
The raising of a young livestock guarding dog is the most important and at the same time the most strenuous time in the life of the dog. Due to insufficient experiences with dog training many breeders choose not to buy a livestock guarding dog. Within the Carnivora Dinarica project we have therefore decided that we will raise and train two Tornjak livestock guarding dogs, together with an experienced livestock guarding dog breeder, Aleš Sedmak, and give them to their new owners, where they will be used to protect the herd from large carnivores.
Ciarra is a 19-month-old female dog. She is calm and friendly, and her breeder feels that she has turned into a promising livestock guardian. The new owners are from Dolnji Zemon near Ilirska Bistrica. They have been raising sheep for years, and they also use dogs to guard their livestock. In the following months, the Slovenia Forest Service will closely monitor, together with Ciarra’s breeder, the integration of Ciarra into the new herd. The second dog, Rio, will be handed over to the new owners in December.
Ciarra with her new owner and her breeder. Photo: Jernej Javornik, Carnivora Dinarica
Ciarra has turned into a promising livestock guarding dog. Photo: Jernej Javornik, Carnivora Dinarica