Last July, after Sam's (our Great Pyrenees) untimely death, I wanted to wait awhile before getting another Pyr to replace him. After all, I felt too sad and thought it was too soon to find another Livestock Guardian Dog (LGD). But within a few days, I realized I needed another dog. For the first few mornings after Sam died, I led the sheep across the creek out to the big pasture. As soon as I starting walking back, all the ewes came running after me. I realized they knew it wasn't safe without big Sam to protect them. The lambs, having much less sense, were happy to stay out there by themselves. I trusted the ewes' good instinct and brought everybody back into our small pastures near the barn.

and how much I miss him. My sheep will have to live in our small pastures for awhile longer and I'll have to start feeding them hay a lot sooner. I'll continue the search for another Great Pyrenees, but this experience has reminded me how lucky we were to have Sammy