Are they good with families?

YES!  The villages where the Anatolian Shepherd breed came from allow these dogs to wander freely among them, hanging out with the children and the livestock unsupervised.  However, the puppies are handled and socialized early, including firm boundaries on what is acceptable behavior and what is not allowed.  Families on homesteads around the world today rely on Anatolians to keep their animals safe, and these dogs are trusted with the children just as they were in villages centuries ago.  So long as discipline is timely, firm, and consistent (all three!), this breed does great with families.

However, this is NOT a dog that does well without a very mentally stimulating job.  They are working dogs and they need an outlet for their immense intelligence.  On a farm, watching for any hints of danger on the horizon, evaluating the sights and sounds of their environment day and night, these dogs have plenty to occupy their minds.  Take them from that work, and lock them in a house with nothing to do?  They will invent jobs, without reference to whether the humans appreciate their productivity.  They are not content to be pampered pets, and indeed, they are rarely cuddly and only moderately affectionate.  Think of them as a "cat" in their independent nature; they can be aloof and need some alone time if they live in the house.

In short, a family on a farm can have Anatolians as livestock guardians, and teach their dogs to be gentle and patient with even very small children.  A family in a suburb, trying to keep one as a pet, will have to find a job for the dog--and it needs to be mentally taxing, as well as physically.

It is important to note how strong and agile these dogs can be.  Unlike many guardian breeds, the Anatolians are skilled climbers, capable of scaling almost any non-electric farm fence or gate.  Consistent discipline and boundaries will help teach them to respect fences, but modern electric collars (invisible fencing) and the mobile electric nets for rotational grazing in pastures are very helpful in containing an Anatolian.  "Recall" is inconsistent and conditional (if they decide they need to go do their job, they will go selectively deaf) so this is not a breed that can walk off-leash without fences.

Can they live outside?

YES!  The Anatolian Shepherd breed is made for life outdoors.  The Anatolian Plateau is a region with hot, dry summers and cold, windy winters, and the dogs were bred to live with their herds regardless of conditions.  Anatolian Shepherd Dogs have a range of fur lengths, from the short coat (about 1 inch long fur, but not tight or smooth) up to the "rough coat" (4 inch long fur, with longer fur at the mane, tail and feathering).  There are also two basic body types: a heavier build, more similar to a molosser or mastiff, with very broad paws and a wider chest, well adapted to the flat lands of the Plateau, and the lighter built, more agile type that performs better in rocky, mountainous terrain.  Both do well in most temperate climates of North America, although they will seek out cool shade (or even climb into the water trough) if the weather gets too hot.

Our breeding Anatolians at Sidehill Roots Farm both have the lighter, more agile build, and the long "rough coat" fur that makes them ideal for mountain homesteads.  Their coats shed, especially in springtime, but they resist matting and they are much easier to brush out than our Great Pyrs and Maremmas.  The undercoat comes free very easily, and the long guard hairs remain in place to protect them from strong summer sunshine and heat.  They visibly do better in hot weather than the Pyrs and Maremmas, and have less of a tendency to dig wallows to cool down.  Providing them with a low trough of water, or a plastic splash pool, will let them get comfortable on truly hot days and make them less likely to dig.  This is a big advantage over the "white floofs," who rarely enjoy water and generally can't be prevented from digging holes in summertime, to the detriment of the pastures.  In our humid, hot Virginia climate, the Anatolian clearly handles summer better than the "white floofs," but they still prefer winter temperatures.

The one major difference in our mid-Atlantic climate is precipitation.  The Anatolian Plateau gets about one fifth of the rainfall that we normally receive each year, and just like the goats and sheep, the dogs do need shelter from rain.  Anytime that it's too wet for the herd to be out without shelter, it's too wet for the dogs, too.  Happily, they all come in from pasture together and share the barn, so no additional protection is needed for working Anatolians.

Are they loud?  Will the neighbors be irritated?

The short answer is yes.  The primary purpose of this breed is warning predators to go elsewhere, and the primary way for the dogs to accomplish that is through barking.  Livestock guardian dog breeds all bark more than almost any other category of dogs, and the barks are deep, loud, booming barks--often around nightfall and in response to any nocturnal disturbance.  If you live in a community with close neighbors, you will want to check the local noise ordinances first, and perhaps discuss this choice with your immediate neighbors.  Anatolians WILL bark.

The more nuanced answer is that the Anatolian breed tends to bark more strategically, in response to specific alarms in the environment, and not at routine sounds or just for the fun of it.  Unlike Great Pyrs, who regularly bark at dusk and randomly throughout the night, the Anatolian is more inclined to wait for a threat to appear before bothering to bark at it.  A well adjusted Anatolian will not bark at the neighbors arriving home, or the local cat strolling up the driveway, or squirrels rustling a nearby branch--but they will bark at the sound of a fox crying in the forest, or the yips of a coyote pack, or the crashing of a tree falling or deer running by.

Livestock guardian dogs have a very beneficial impact on local ecosystems, allowing the natural predators of their environment to coexist safely with human farms, which protects the balance of predators and wild prey species.  Without them, farmers often resort to killing the predators instead, with negative consequences in prey overpopulation and later influx of more predators in response.  The job these dogs do is very important, and it depends on lots of barking--but this makes livestock guardian dogs very challenging to keep in densely settled communities.  If your location means that barking would be problematic, do not get an Anatolian.