Ahhhhhhhh!!!!! Dog Incident...

[AinaWGSD]

My advice as a dog owner and someone who works closely with dogs and other species on a daily basis is to NOT introduce her to the chicks. In fact, teach her to stay AWAY from the chicks. No eye contact, no sniffing, no approaching within x feet of them. Dogs are predators, chickens are prey. Just because some people get lucky that their dogs lack a strong enough predatory instinct to kill their birds doesn't mean that it's what happens most of the time. And a one year old dog, particularly one of a large, slowly maturing breed, has little to no impulse control, so even if they could mature and get over their urge to chase/kill chickens you can't expect it until after they have mentally matured. The safest bet for everyone is to keep the dog and chickens physically separated and teach the dog to avoid the chickens (even when they are behind a fence) and supervise each and every second when there is a chance that one could cross the physical barrier and come into direct contact with the other.

 

[BriteChicken]

Aina That's what I've tried to do but she's so intense it's hard to break her eye contact and she is not allowed to go within three feet of the brooder if she does she gets a sharp NO! and has to lay down on the rug but I haven't spanked her until last night and then she knew I meant bizness I didn't plan on trusting her at all but I thought it would be better if she at least saw and smelled the chicks (probably wrong). Have any tips on breaking her concentration?

 

[Mikeeeeeeeeee]

BB gun.
I use a Daisy Red Ryder.
About the time I pull the trigger, I also shout NO.

Took 3 shots for my 12 year old mutt.
Took multiple shots for all the cats
Still working on the new puppy. She is a work in progress.

Not strong enough to Penetrate the skin, but stings like the dickens.
How do I know?




Tested it on myself...........

 

[BriteChicken]

Isn't that cruel?

 

[babsbag]

I have thought of using an e-collar with mine. But I think they are smart enough to know when I am there and when I am not. Years ago we lost 11 to our own dogs. The dogs had been outside with them all the time, when we were around. One day we went to town and left the dogs and chickens together. Never even gave it a thought, we were young and dumb. BIG mistake.

Our chickens and goats live in a pasture with an electric fence. Even though my dogs are Border Collie/Queensland they are not trained to herd the goats so they just don't mix. IMO

 

[Davaroo]

Quote:
Cruel for whom?

I quote Mikeeeee....

"tested it on myself...."

Makes you wonder who got the worst of that deal! But one thing is apparent: Mikeeeee is only imposing that which he or she already has experienced. He's not asking the dog to suffer anything he hasn't already endured and proven to be harmless in the end. Talk about leadership by example!

Punitive? Certainly. Painful? Perhaps. Proven? Yes.
Proven by example? Most definitely.

While Im not convinced of its ultimate efficacy, I cannot help but give Mikeeees "Canine BB-gun Training Program" the Davaroo Stamp of Approval

 

[nanawendy]

Story Time: My Dad had a dog that killed one of our chickens, he tied the DEAD chicken around her neck forever it seemed

I think it worked but sounds horribly mean. I like the idea of AniaWGSD. It's workable.
I appreciate your OP as I think I've let our dog get to cozy. I have learned from you... Thank You

 

[AinaWGSD]

Quote:
If she's that intense, she's too close. You need to start at a distance where the chicks are not so much of a distraction that she can't/won't focus on you. Teach her to give you eye contact on command ("watch me") at a distance where they aren't too tempting a distraction and you can win her attention with something more rewarding (treat, toy, attention, whatever it is she likes best...for most dogs I would use a super-yummy treat like cooked chicken or bits of hot dog or something high-value like that.) Then, when she's good at giving you her attention when you ask for it, slowly work your way closer (maybe 1/2-1 foot at a time) and start from the beginning and work at it until you get the same kind of attention from her before moving closer again.

Another thing that works well for me is walking her away as soon as she's shown interest. I usually use this method when I'm working with dogs who are pulling to get to a certain location, but it can be used to teach a dog to focus on you instead of the distraction as well. Keep her on leash and when she becomes distracted, turn around and walk in the opposite direction. If you are consistent about it, she will eventually learn that zoning in on the chickens only gets her removed further from them and will be less likely to do so, at least when you're around.

And there are some dogs that are just too focused. My friend had chicks for all of one night. Her male dog (who is very well trained and generally works well even around distractions) was so obsessed over them that she decided it would be in everyone's best interest to find the chickens another home. She had them in a crate in the garage and after pulling him away from the crate, he sat at the garage door literally all night and didn't move. Not for dinner, not to go out and potty, not for anything. He kept going back into the garage and searching for them for two days after she got rid of them! It sounds like at least your girl is more workable than that.

As to the BB training method...aside from the fact that I am not a big fan of aversive training because it is so very hard to do it without breaking the animal's trust in you, you need to be very careful who sees you doing it. While it may not be any more cruel than an electric collar, in most places it is legally considered animal cruelty to shoot an animal with a BB gun and if someone sees you and reports you you could be looking at a fine, loosing your dog, or even possibly jail time (although most places have enough on their hands that they'll stop at slapping you with a fine and/or confiscating your pets).

 

[ZaneyMama]

I'd agree that chickens and dogs just don't mix. Dogs are dogs no matter what size or shape. Be it a 5-lb chihuahua or a 150-lb great dane, they're still predators.

My 25-lb terrier has a super-high prey drive, so I'm really worried. We are going to have to use an E-collar on him to get him to relax around the chickens. If he's anywhere in the yard near their coop, he shakes, pants and won't stop staring at their coop. He can't even see them because they're inside the coop, but he hears and smells them and that excites him.

We used the E-Collar successfully for prairie dogs and can now walk him off-leash right next to a prairie dog poking it's head out of a hill and he won't even look at it.

 

[wansul]

Quote:
I would suggest not shouting at the same time. They might associate it with your presence so then it would only be effective if you were around.

BB gun aside with all the encumbrant liabilities....

Ceasar Milan had a great show on how to psychologically work a dog away from the prey animal being prey and bringing them into the pack. I'm new to chickens. i have 14 3.5 wks chicks and 6 4.5 wks cornish x. So far so good.

Inside the house i have birds. When i brought them home, i introduced them both to my dog and cat. I haven't had a problem in the house and i leave the bird's cage open 24/7 (unless he misbehaves).

Outside with the chickens there has been no great interest in stalking. Initial days i was very careful to correct both. Today one of the CornishX got out. first the dog started to approach, but only with curiosity not prey drive. then the cat, a bit more intense, but not stalking. Both backed off with a word of rebuke. Needless to say, there will be no unsupervised visits.

Wanda
1 whippet, 1 he-less Tom cat, 1 Quaker parrot and 20 chickies out in the garage