Dogs for after a major event

[NorthernRaider]

You keep the mutts to keep the rodents down, after a societal collapse the numbers are like to surge alarmingly from the 10 rats to 1 human ratio now, but numbers will go through the roof feasting on the rotting food and unburied dead ( sounds like Liverpool now)

BUT the mutts must live outside, plus a good ratter is also a good burglar alarm if trained right.
Not frantic barking thus giving your location away but a growl to you, or pointing or one wuff.
I know farmers who only use pairs of terriers to keep the rats out of the grain sheds and barns because taught right and given the right breed ratters will stay on duty 24/7 quite happily, but a cat will get bored and once its fed will often ignore rodents even walking past its nose. Most of the countryfolk I know say only keep terriers in pairs and they work as teams and look after each other.
At times if a terrier disturbs a nest a rat can get onto a terriers back whilst the dog is killing another rat, so if you have two one will get the rat off the others back.

Often the hard part is stopping the little buggers from eating the rats so training needs to be good and the dogs not allowed to go hungry. Teaching them to kill and drop is important.

You forgot how one rats pee can taint all your grain if its diserased with stuff like Weils disease.

Keep cats and dogs as workers not cuggly wuggly pets is a good idea, I feel dogs are better than cats cos they can be trained and will remain vigilant , and can be trained to protect the families kids. A Parsons JR with its teeth on an intruders balls whilst its partners teeth are going for the throat is a major plus. BUT they cannot come inside AFTER TSHTF, so train em, keep em as working pets, let them in during the day whilst things are normal, but they must be used to living outside preferably in the sheds or barns.

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Cats are like Socialists, just ornimental.