A chat with some ladies from South Africa while visiting Swakopmund, Namibia. We get to talking and I tell them about what I’m doing here in Africa and we start chatting about the Anatolian livestock guard dogs. One woman tells me that her friend in South Africa is a farmer and has one of these lovely gigantic beasts to protect his livestock. What does he do when the heat rises on this thick coated Turkish breed?

Anatolian Shepherd Guard Dog from Cheetah Conservation Botswana

Solution: He dug out a den from the earth, lined the walls with concrete (cooler, also varmints and other critters won’t seek out the den of hard material), and when it gets real hot outside he hoses down the interior with cool water. Result? Instant cool and happy dog during the summer. All the better for the Anatolian to be on point during the dusk and dawn hours when predators are active.