SILVERTON, Colo.—Turkish sheepdogs prized for their fierceness are raising concerns they may be a little too tough for the southwest Colorado communities where ranchers are using them.
The Akbash dogs weigh up to 120 pounds and are especially aggressive toward animals near the sheep they guard. But that can include hikers and other backcountry tourists, prompting debate about whether the breed should be regulated.
The Durango Herald reports that Silverton town trustees met last week to discuss Akbash conflicts (). U.S. Forest Service officials, sheepherders and outdoors enthusiasts have also entered the debate over regulations surrounding the use of the breed.
“We don’t need dangerous animals in the backcountry,” trustee Karla Safranski said. “It’s hard to believe that herd mortality is so high that it warrants these dogs.”
Town trustees here have heard from hikers and bicyclists in the Little Molas Lake area who said the sheepdogs intimidate them. The dogs snarl and, according to some reports, chase them. A number of ranchers graze sheep, under guard of herders and dogs, on public lands in the summer and fall.
Sheep ranchers are defending the fierce sheepdogs.
Republican state Rep. J. Paul Brown of Ignacio said he’s been around sheep for 40 years.
“We cut our loss to predators by 60 to 70 percent when we introduced dogs,” Brown told the newspaper. “One time before that we lost 13 sheep to bears in a single night.”
Brown is one of six sheepmen who hold a permit to graze sheep in the San Juan National Forest. He has two dogs with each of two bands.
“Sheepdogs are instinctively protective and may seem ferocious,” Brown said. “But we try to have our dogs familar with people. So if you turn toward them and speak when they bark, they may even wag their tails.”
Ernie Etchart, a second-generation sheepman from Montrose, said by telephone Friday that his dozen Akbash reduce losses to bears and coyotes by 90 percent.
“I’ve had some problem Akbash, but now we try to interact with them, socialize them, and it seems to be working,” Etchart said. “The guard dogs are important to us, but we take issues raised by the public seriously, too.”
Interaction between sheep and people is an issue throughout the West, Etchart said. A mountain biker moving rapidly toward a flock can put a guard dog on instant alert, he said.
Forest Service Columbine District Ranger Matt Janowiak attended a meeting of the town trustees last week to hear their concerns. Trustees said the possibility of encountering an Akbash is scaring away tourists, who are potential sources of revenue for the town.
“We’ve had a lot of heat over these dogs,” Mayor Terry Kerwin said.
Janowiak said the dogs aren’t inherently aggressive toward people and with early socialization they can learn people are not a threat.
“Our mission is to manage grazing and make sure flocks don’t overgraze,” Janowiak said. “But the ranchers choose the dog they use to lower the depredation of livestock.”
Trustee Pat Swonger, a Democrat who once planned to challenge Brown for the state House, said he’s had an encounter with a sheepdog.
Swonger said, “We need to know how many tourists we’ve lost.”
The signs on the Colorado Trail recommend what conduct to observe and what not to do, Janowiak said.
“If we don’t stay on top of this, it will impact recreation,” Janowiak said. “But we need better communication. We need a balance, because otherwise we can’t act.”
———
Information from: Durango Herald,
