Considered a ‘guardian dog’, these pups are full of self-confidence and are an extremely independent breed which makes them highly skilled at formulating their own decisions. So, these dogs may, or may not choose to obey commands! If you have an Anatolian Sheep Dog as a puppy, they will adopt you as their ‘flock’ and will do everything they can to protect you. Just don’t let their exteriors scare you, as while their jobs are to appear intimidating, they are very calm and loving with their ‘hooman’ families. It may not be best to consider Anatolian Shepherd Dogs if you have small children, as they do have a tendency to act like a dog in a china shop and could injure or cause harm to smaller ‘hoomans’.

Anatolian Shepherd Dogs, which were developed over 6000 years ago, are named after their hometown of Anatolia in Turkey, where even to this day, they are still highly regarded (to the point that they are the face of the national post stamp!). If you fancy yourself a new bodyguard, then this is definitely the dog for you. They normally grow to weigh around 140 pounds and are fiercely loyal companions. The reason that many of these dogs were bred to have a light, creamy colored coat was originally intended to confuse predators into thinking they were sheep, and it made defending livestock a lot easier. It’s important that if you consider this breed, you think about whether you want a working dog or a family pet, as different breeders will aim to instil distinctive personality traits and values to suit the need of the future owners.