are your dogs and chicken friends

[cluckcluckluke]

Speaking of good guard dogs ~ I am thinking of gettin a "chicken guard dog" sometime in the future. Somewhere ? ? on BYC I read two breeds of dogs recommended. One was a Great Pyrnonees and the other was ? ? ? Don't remember the other breed. Any one know what it is ?

Search up, Livestock guardian dogs. Mareema's are great for sheep but can also be trained for poultry.
Komondors protect mainly on instinct so take less training.

There are MANY breed of LGD's ( live stock Guardian dogs ).
Mareema's may also be a choice.

Good Luck.

 

[dldolan]

I live of 5.5 acres in CA and have never had any of my cats, neighbor's cats, feral cats, etc ever try to take on a fully grown chicken! Same with all my friends who keep chickens and cats. Based on what I have read, it would be an anomaly to have a cat killing chickens, but I'm sure it could happen if they were determined.

FGDogs are awesome. Stubborn, and used to making their own decisions regarding their flock, but awesome. NOT indoor dogs, these dogs need something to guard and are meant to protect their flocks from wolves, bears, mountain lions, etc. In Africa they use Anatolians (org. from Turkey) to guard goats against Cheetahs! I have an acquaintance who has them (always inpairs) guard her large free-range laying flocks from coyotes and mountain lions. The pups grow up with their flock and the older dogs teaching them the ropes.

 

[bayoudragon]

Once upon a time there was a dog that was kept on a chain in someone's back yard. She had no training and rarely received any attention. "Love" was not part of her life. If birds or animals were unfortunate enough to wander near, they quickly became a meal for the ever-hungry dog.



It was a small miracle when the owners decided they did not have the time or money to keep the dog, and she was returned to her breeder. Unfortunately because she had developed so many bad habits and would attack (and yes - even try to kill) the breeder's other dogs, the breeder decided to sell the dog to someone who would promise to keep the dangerous dog away from all other animals.

When she arrived at the new owner's house, her nose was partly torn off from a recent fight with another dog through a fence. It was no wonder the breeder wanted to be rid of this dog.



When the new owners "promised" to keep the dog away from other animals, they had their fingers crossed behind their backs, for they knew that with the proper training, any dog - even an older one - can change. And change she did!



With training, love and a job of her own, that dog became a very, very different animal! Eager to learn more and add to her "duties," she became a protector for both the human and avian flocks.







And it should go without saying that they all lived quite happily ever after!

Love Love Love this!!

 

[macombcochick]

I have a 95lb., two year old, flat-coated retriever named Raven. She's supposed to be a bird hunting dog. She let's her four feathered sisters rule the roost! She even let's them bully her away from choice treats and scraps from the kitchen. It's quite funny to watch her try to "run away" from them to enjoy a treat by herself.

 

[n8mont4]

How do you keep your cat from chasing & eating your chickens?

You cant. haha. I tried and failed. The only thing that helped was having an aggressive rooster to scare him off

 

[missnu01]

I have a consummate hunting cat that went after a 2 month old bantam chick but once they are grown never messes with them. Let the meat bird chicks out in the yard today and my hunter cat came over and just laid in the yard. Probably because I picked him up by the scruff of the neck and shook the crap out of him when he tried to get at that one chick thg one time...lol

 

[carrottoes]

Our dog is okay with our girls, but he sometimes turns into a predator when our babyish amerucana Peepers freaks out when she see's him. We quickly stop him and he behaves again.

 

[CluckCluck18]

When I first started chicken keeping I had 2 dogs & 2 cats. I worried about how they would get along, especially Zoe, my Weimeraner......a bird dog! I never had a single problem. They all got along from the get go and one of my dogs stayed with them so much that we called him chicken #7! It was the best and most unexpected surprise......a peaceable kingdom!

 

[Child of Noah]

our dogs are friends with our chickens as they were all raised with animals, its lovely to see them protect the chickens just like they would for any of there own! im just weary on weather the chickens will be scared of predators as they may confuse a fox with the dogs but haven't ever had any problems yet!

I wonder this too. I have a 95 pound monster dog who LOVES "her babies" (the chicks). I have two cats, one is so opulent that she doesn't concern herself with hunting chickens, the other wouldn't know what to do with one (and is more of a mammal-hunter ... great mouser). The cats and dog interact with the chicks all the time. The dog snuggles and loves them. I worry that the chickens might have a lack of safe-healthy fear of predators in the wild.

 

[johari]

Nope, my dog wants to kill them. Any tips in training her to not kill them?

The pup on the otherhand is quick as a whip and understands that she is not to go near the chicks.