How to Successfully Train Your Prancing Pony Farm Maremma Sheepdog
There are three key components that are required in order to produce an outstanding Livestock Guardian Dog. The first two - genetics and early training and socialization (or Nature and Nurture) - are the responsibility of the breeder. If you've bought a puppy from us (or are considering doing so) you can rest assured that the first two are covered. We have selected our breeding stock from outstanding working dogs with the genetics that produce great LGD's. And our puppies are given the best start possible as future Livestock Guardian Dogs as well as members of their future families. We have a very careful and intentional puppy training and socialization program, which includes intensive early socialization with livestock as well as positive reinforcement training and socialization with humans (including children) and exposure to a wide variety of sights, sounds and experiences. What happens in the first 12-16 weeks of a puppy's life is vital to their success and a breeder can make or break a puppy as a LGD. Therefore we do our best to give our puppies an outstanding start and are always looking for ways to improve our program. If you haven't yet decided to buy a puppy from us you can learn more about our Puppy Training and Socialization Program by clicking the link below:
But the breeder is only part of the equation when it comes to successfully raising and training a LGD puppy. The third and equally important part is a dedicated owner with a well thought out plan of continuing the job the breeder started. There are tools, resources and information out there that will make that job much easier for the new puppy owner. Below are the top three resources I recommend for all of my new puppy owners:
- Karen Pryor Academy Dog Trainer Foundations Course This online, science-based course in dog training will teach you the how to communicate with your Maremma (or any dog) in a fun way and to build a partnership with your dog. The multi-sensory program uses all the learning modalities (visual, auditory, tactile and kinesthetic) through reading, charts and diagrams, videos and hands on practice with your dog. There is absolutely no substitute for this program our no better preparation for owning a Maremma. We have found that people who only read about this training method in books or online aren't nearly as successful as those who take the course. So do yourself and your dog a favor and sign up today. You won't regret it!
- Livestock Guardian Dog Training Manual, by Cindy Benson This outstanding book by Cindy Benson goes hand in hand with the KPA Dog Trainer Foundations Course, outlining how to adapt the program to LGD's, which have different needs than companion dogs. There's no better book on training a Maremma available, but it MUST be used in conjunction with the Dog Trainer Foundations course. It is not a standalone book, though Cindy is working on one of those and it will be amazing!
- Benson Maremmas Training Blog and Training Services Cindy Benson is a Karen Pryor Academy Certified Training Partner who specializes in training Maremmas. She's completed many courses in dog training in addition to her KPA course work. She was secretary of the MSCA for three years and was a MSCA Code of Ethics breeder of Maremmas before she retired from breeding. She is the breeder and trainer of four of our outstanding breeding dogs: Pax, Marisa, Celeste and Circe. She continues to train Maremmas and other LGD's in person and via Zoom Training Sessions. I refer people to her regularly, including my own puppy customers. There is not anyone in America that knows more about training Maremmas than Cindy. Her extensive blog posts are a treasure trove of educational material and her Zoom training sessions have been invaluable for so many people and their dogs. I highly encourage my customers to read her blogs and if there's ever something I can't help them figure out Cindy can do it. If she can't help nobody can!
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Despite having the above resources available I still felt I needed more to help my puppy customers when they had questions. I knew the answers were in the KPA course, as well as in Cindy's LGD Training manual. And her extensive blog has even more helpful information, but I was always scrambling to find just the right blog post to help someone with a particular issue. I knew that a well laid out, step by step guide, including a list of her most important blog posts, would be invaluable for my clients, so I asked Cindy if she would write such a document specifically for my puppy clients. Kind of a "Quick Start Guide to Training Your Prancing Pony Maremma".
As usual, Cindy blew me away, exceeding my expectations by miles. Below is the result of that project - a step by step training manual for helping any puppy bred by me mature into an outstanding Livestock Guardian Dog. Not only did she write an amazing book but she had the covers professionally designed and the book professionally edited and formatted for both print and digital versions of the book. And many beautiful photos of my dogs as well as Cindy's were included. This book is truly a work of art, a labor of love and an invaluable tool for helping my new Maremma owners train their pups.
Please understand that this training manual was written specifically for my puppies and my program. The information in it is very useful in training any dog and I do highly encourage anyone with a Maremma or other LGD to read the book and train your dog in this way. You will find much of value here. Just be aware that the exact same results won't be achieved with a puppy bred by someone else, who hasn't had the particular early socialization and training that I give my puppies. Remember it takes three vital elements to produce an outstanding LGD - great working genetics, proper training and socialization from the breeder and continued proper training by the owner. The bonus fourth element is ongoing support from the breeder as well as other qualified professionals like Cindy. This book will provide the guidance you need to finish the work I started. Follow this plan and you will end up with a dog that's truly worth its weight in gold as a Livestock Guardian Dog! And remember if you ever get stuck or need additional advice or help both Cindy and I are available for the life of your Maremma!
*Included below are the link to the PDF document, so that the hyperlinks can be accessed, as well as photos of the cover. We are in the process of getting the books printed so that we have hard copies for our new puppy customers. If you are interested in receiving a hard copy let us know. Otherwise feel free to download the digital version for yourself. And happy training with your new puppy!
As usual, Cindy blew me away, exceeding my expectations by miles. Below is the result of that project - a step by step training manual for helping any puppy bred by me mature into an outstanding Livestock Guardian Dog. Not only did she write an amazing book but she had the covers professionally designed and the book professionally edited and formatted for both print and digital versions of the book. And many beautiful photos of my dogs as well as Cindy's were included. This book is truly a work of art, a labor of love and an invaluable tool for helping my new Maremma owners train their pups.
Please understand that this training manual was written specifically for my puppies and my program. The information in it is very useful in training any dog and I do highly encourage anyone with a Maremma or other LGD to read the book and train your dog in this way. You will find much of value here. Just be aware that the exact same results won't be achieved with a puppy bred by someone else, who hasn't had the particular early socialization and training that I give my puppies. Remember it takes three vital elements to produce an outstanding LGD - great working genetics, proper training and socialization from the breeder and continued proper training by the owner. The bonus fourth element is ongoing support from the breeder as well as other qualified professionals like Cindy. This book will provide the guidance you need to finish the work I started. Follow this plan and you will end up with a dog that's truly worth its weight in gold as a Livestock Guardian Dog! And remember if you ever get stuck or need additional advice or help both Cindy and I are available for the life of your Maremma!
*Included below are the link to the PDF document, so that the hyperlinks can be accessed, as well as photos of the cover. We are in the process of getting the books printed so that we have hard copies for our new puppy customers. If you are interested in receiving a hard copy let us know. Otherwise feel free to download the digital version for yourself. And happy training with your new puppy!
Click below to download and save this document and access the hyperlinks to Cindy's Blog:
