Russian Mountain Dog Rescues

Caucasian Ovcharkas or CO’s as we call them, are hearty animals also known as Russian Mountain Dogs, Mountain Shepherds and “Bear Dogs”.

Maybe they used to chase bears in Russian territories such as Bulgaria or Siberia, but here in Vermont their primary focus is family. They are great herding dogs, bred to protect your animals or pets, the perimeter of your property, and of course you, their people.

This is Samson, one of our studs. We have donation cans in local grocery stores plus we collect returnable cans. All proceeds go to foster these dog.

This is Bear an 18 month old pup we rescued from Connecticut. He was slated to be euthanized that day.

Not everyone can handle a CO. They tend to be very independent. It may seem they ignore you at times and have a mind of their own. Well they do. These dogs are uncannily smart and will instinctively second guess any situation. They are also extremely loyal to their people.

Russian Caucasians can be fiercely aggressive toward other dogs and people they do not know. They are very smart and also food driven. If they can get away with something like snarling at you when you take away their food dish, do not be surprised. It is wise to purchase an Ecollar for your dog so that you can easily correct them as soon as they misbehave.

This is Sheba, a 10 week old pup, too hard to resist. Now she is 8 and retired from having puppies.

It is not surprising when after a dog’s puppy hood is past, we start getting calls from owners who no longer want to care for their dogs. We rescued most of these dogs from euthanasia, and paid for everything out of pocket until this year when we financially could no longer do it.

My husband started a gofundme account under the name Caucasian Ovcharka Rescues which so far has yielded a little over $2400. But that isn’t enough to cover dog food, vet visits, kennels and animal carrier services.

Dismayed with the lack of online donations, we made canisters with a photo of Samson (shown above) and put them in every small grocery store we could think of plus the local Agway. We also collect returnable bottles — anything we can do to help these dogs survive.

Our main goal is to get these beautiful loyal dogs ready to rehome. We successfully rehomed four dogs last year: Maggie, Ivan, Little Bear and Chloe and we hope to rehome several this year. If you are willing to adopt a dog or donate to these dogs please let us know!