Stop Chicken Chasing Dogs While Using an Electric Collar in a Fair Way

Domestic animals can be a major nuisance for those of us who want to free range our chickens. Wild predators are hard enough to deal with. Even more frustrating and heartbreaking is when our own dogs become predators of our chickens or our neighbors’ chickens. Many dogs can be taught to leave chickens alone with consistent training and supervision without the need of an electric collar. However, this is often the case when their ‘de-chicken’ training is done before they develop the habit of chasing, killing, or eating our flock members. Once prey drive takes over, it may be time to take advantage of the ‘invisible leash’ – also known as the electric collar or e-collar.

If your dog has been consistently successful at getting to your chickens, breaking the habit can be very difficult and time consuming. You must be able to stop the behavior and correct it at the exact instant it is taking place. Using an electric collar can be a great tool to condition dogs to leave chickens alone because you are able to give your dog a well-timed command and correction if needed.

There are definitely right and wrong ways to use an e-collar. The wrong way to use an e-collar would be to put it on your dog and start pressing the button when he goes after a chicken or displays unwanted behavior. Yes, this method might work some of the time. However, when you read about someone’s success using this unfair method, you probably ought to consider that no one is going to share publicly that their attempt at doing so resulted in their dog running away, scared to death. ‘But they did it with their dog and it worked’, is not a reason to be unfair to your dog.

The e-collar is a tool - one which the user needs to learn to use properly and fairly. The correct way to operate an e-collar is to properly condition your dog to its use. When collar conditioning is complete your dog will view the e-collar as nothing more than an ‘invisible’ leash. He should love getting to wear it because it means great things – I get to go on a walk! I get to go outside and play frisbee! I get to do fun things with my people! Used wisely, I consider the use of an e-collar a win for both the dog and owner. You can save the lives of your chickens, and maybe even your dog because he has been conditioned to come whenever you call him.



Improved technology has made today’s e-collars extremely adaptive to the individual needs of dogs and their people. I consider this a benefit, but having so many choices can make purchasing an e-collar a daunting task. There are several companies who manufacture e-collars, and those who do often have many different models to choose from. An electric collar needs to be durable and simple to use. The transmitter should be easy to hold and the buttons easy to find and identify. The e-collar should be consistent and reliable. A good quality e-collar offers both continuous and momentary stimulation options, as well as a vibration and tone option.

Whatever e-collar you choose to purchase, I recommend you stay away from the lower and higher end e-collars. The lower end e-collars will not be consistent or reliable and the upper end e-collars are designed for professional trainers of competition dogs. Generally, you can expect to pay a minimum $200-$250 for a good quality e-collar with basic functions.



Three manufacturers of electric collars I recommend are Dogtra, Garmin, and E-Collar Technologies. I have personally used collars from each of these manufacturers and all three met basic training requirements for my dogs. There are many other brands available, and if you choose something different, try to base your decision on reliable firsthand information from others who have used the same brand and same e-collar.

When you first receive your e-collar, thoroughly read the manual and familiarize yourself with how the e-collar and transmitter work. I highly recommend trying the e-collar on yourself, starting at the lowest level, and working systematically through several levels. Odds are, somewhere in the lower third of the available levels you will reach the level you will use for your dog. Try all the modes, momentary and continuous stimulation, as well as the vibration option. You will probably be surprised at how minimal the static shock can be.




Starting several days before beginning collar-conditioning put the e-collar on your dog every time he is outside with you. The e-collar should not be turned on at this time. You simply want your dog to be accustomed to wearing it on a regular basis. It is imperative the e-collar fits snugly around your dog’s neck just below his ears, with the receiver under his chin. You should be able to fit two fingers under the collar. Do not leave the e-collar on your dog more than 8 hours at a time. In a few days, your dog will be accustomed to wearing the e-collar. You are ready to begin formal collar conditioning.

Follow each part of this training carefully and concisely. Read through the instructions several times so you are very familiar with them. Each part after Part 2 needs to be completed to the point the dog is exhibiting the desired behavior with confidence. Do not advance until the dog is ready for the next part. You can expect collar conditioning to take more than a week, depending on the dog. Each session should be no more than 10-20 minutes and should take place only once per day.

As a word of caution, this method takes time and commitment because it utilizes low-level stimulation to keep the dog’s attitude happy and confident. If your dog is already a ‘chicken chaser’ and you believe he needs extremely high levels of correction to learn to leave your chickens alone, I really suggest you try this method first. You may find when it is done that you will not need to use high stimulation levels to keep your dog from harming your chickens. Having success depends on your dog and the consistency of your training.

When using an e-collar on your dog always use the least amount of correction needed to get the desired change in behavior. The goal of low-level collar conditioning is to have a happy, compliant dog.



After the introduction to wearing the collar has been completed, you are now ready to find out what level on the collar would be best for your dog.

Some e-collars have upwards of 100 levels of stimulation, some have low/med/high strengths for each level. This is why I recommend using the collar on the palm of your hand or forearm, so you can get an idea as to how the levels increase in intensity. With collars that have levels up to 100, you may need to skip 5 levels at a time during this part of training. It is important to be familiar with how your collar works before you start using it.

Turn on the e-collar and put it on your dog, snug around his neck. Clip a 15-foot length of rope to his regular flat buckle collar and take him to an area of low distraction – your yard will work fine. Let him explore his surroundings as he pleases.

Do not give any commands or talk to your dog at all during Part 1 – you are a silent observer. As you go through this process watch your dog closely. You are looking for a mild to moderate reaction from your dog when you start tapping the transmitter button. This could be a head tilt, a scratch at the collar, a quizzical expression, or a ‘what was that’ response. Wild jumping up, running away, or vocalizing can be an indication you are using a higher correction than is useful.

To get started, let your dog move about for a couple of minutes. You want him to be relaxed and feel free to do as he pleases - to the end of the rope, at any rate. Put the transmitter at the lowest level and ‘tap’ the momentary stimulation button three to four times, about half a second between taps. Watch him closely. If you see no reaction, wait a few seconds, and move up one level, ‘tap, tap, tapping’ the momentary button. Continue moving up the scale, one level at a time, until you see any of the desired responses.

When you see your dog exhibit the desired response, wait a few seconds, and repeat the ‘tap, tap, tap’ at that level. If you see the correct response again, this is the level you want to start your collar conditioning with. If not, continue moving up in intensity until the right level for your dog has been reached. This is the base level for training your dog. The collar level you train with may increase or decrease as training progresses. Some dogs do well with only the vibrate or pager option, so keep that in mind if your dog overreacts to the static shock.

When you have determined the best level of stimulation for your dog - with the dog wondering what that sensation was, but not overly concerned about it - you have reached the right level to start. Again, use the least amount of correction needed to get the desired change in behavior.


In this part of collar conditioning, you will begin teaching your dog how to turn off the low-level stimulation he feels from the e-collar. This will be done using the same 15-foot length of rope you had on your dog for Part 1. This session should take no more than 15-20 minutes.


Walking your dog casually, let him explore for a minute or two. Keep the rope above his back so that you can use it effectively. A couple of minutes into your walk, when he is about at the end of the rope and facing away from you, you will pull the rope while simultaneously ‘tap tap tapping’ the collar transmitter using the momentary button. Do not give any verbal or audible commands. The dog should feel you pulling the rope at the same time he feels the e-collar correction. Keep tapping/pulling until your dog begins moving toward you. Keep the rope taught. When he is moving directly toward you, stop tapping and say, ‘GOOD DOG!’. At this time, he does not need to come all the way to you. Engage him in playing for a couple of minutes to reward him and then continue walking along letting your dog explore as he pleases. Every two to three minutes tug the rope and simultaneously give a ‘tap, tap, tap’ on the transmitter button. Be sure not to give any verbal commands. When he is coming toward you, stop tapping the transmitter button. Repeat this so that you have given your dog a total of six to seven opportunities to ‘turn off’ the stimulation.

By the end of this session, you may see your dog is beginning to understand how to turn off the stimulation. If he is, you will start to see a reaction to move toward you at the instant you begin applying rope and e-collar pressure, not after. If he is trying to comply quickly and turning off the stimulation by moving toward you, he is done with Part 2. If not, the next day continue with the Part 2 procedure as described.


You will start Part 3 exactly the way you did for Part 2. Walk your dog slowly, allowing him to explore the area around him to the end of the rope. When he is focused on something other than you, repeat the rope pulling/tapping procedure that was done in Part 2. If he did not respond correctly, moving quickly toward you when he first felt the rope/tapping sequence, repeat Part 2.

Assuming he moved toward you readily when you used the rope/tapping sequence, you can now start Part 3 - adding the verbal command to your training.

You should always preface each verbal command with your dog’s name. Give the command, ‘Fido, come’, and just after you say the word ‘come’ tug the rope while simultaneously tapping the e-collar.

Before starting, take a few minutes to practice this sequence without the dog. The proper sequence is ‘Fido, Come’, rope tug/e-collar’. Proper timing of e-collar taps is very important and should happen at the same time you tug the rope.

Part 3 procedure will be the same as Part 2, except you will be using the verbal command ‘come’, along with the rope tugs and e-collar taps. In Part 3 you will also start requiring your dog to come all the way to you. If he becomes sidetracked while coming back, repeat the verbal command/tug/tapping sequence until he is once again moving toward you. Repeat six to seven times over the course of about 15-20 minutes. End the session with a few minutes of play or relaxed walk.

Repeat Part 3 once a day until he comes all the way to you each time you give the command/rope/e-collar stimulation. Part 3 is done when your dog is reliably responding to the training sequence and coming all the way to you.


Your dog now is complying with the verbal command/rope/e-collar sequence. It is time to phase out tugging on the rope. By the end of Part 4 the e-collar will be the only method of reinforcement, but you will keep the rope connected to your dog.

Part 3 and Part 4 procedures have only one difference – gradually removing the use of the rope. In Part 4 you will occasionally give the ‘come’ command without using the rope. You will continue the use of the e-collar taps after each command. This will give you an opportunity to see if the e-collar is at the right level for your dog and if he understands how to turn off the ‘tapping’. Keep the rope on him for secondary control. If he shows confusion, tug the rope to guide him while continuing the ‘tapping’ on the e-collar.

By now, the tapping on the collar should have significant meaning to your dog so less repetitions should be needed. Repeat the command every three to four minutes over the course of 15 minutes or so, ending on success (whether with rope or not). Always praise your dog for success! If you find your dog is easily complying to only the e-collar, at any time in this session, you can discontinue the session at that time.

If you see any hesitation by your dog to comply, or if you must repeatedly use the rope to remind him, you might need to go back to Part 3, using the rope in conjunction with the e-collar on a higher-level setting.

As always, use the least amount of correction needed to get the desired change in behavior.

Part 4 is complete when your dog is coming quickly without need of the rope to reinforce the ‘come’ command.


Up until now, every time your dog has heard the ‘come’ command, he has received low-level corrections from the e-collar until he complies to your request. In Part 5 of collar conditioning, you will extend the length of the rope to 30 feet and begin giving e-collar corrections only when your dog does not immediately comply with the ‘come’ command. The longer rope will allow him more freedom, thereby giving him more distractions. Holding it will prevent him from getting away from you in case he completely ignores any command or e-collar reinforcement. You may find your dog is not inclined to move away from you as much, this is a good sign the training is working. Try giving him more time between recalls (come commands) or go to places where there are more distractions at a distance – other dogs playing or walking with their owners, other people, etc.

In Part 5 you will still give the ‘come’ command every two to three minutes, but hopefully you will not need to use the e-collar to reinforce very often. You should try to get two e-collar corrections in each of these sessions, so look for ways to increase the distractions by small amounts if needed.

Repeat Part 5 training in different locations over three or four days. New places have a way of energizing and distracting a dog. You can increase the level of the collar a level or two, if needed, in higher distraction areas. When your dog is readily obeying the ‘come’ command in these new areas with only occasional need of e-collar reinforcement and no need of rope reinforcement, you are ready for Part 6.

Your dog understands and readily complies to the ‘come’ command with or without e-collar correction, but you have maintained physical control of him with the training rope up until now.

Today, take him to a large area, preferably fenced, with no distractions. There should be no other people, dogs, or animals around. Put his e-collar on and attach the 30-foot length of rope to his flat buckle collar, but do not keep hold of it. Allow your dog to move freely away from you. When he is about 15-20 yards away, focused on something of moderate interest, call him back. If you need to use the rope or to repeat the e-collar corrections to control him, go back to Part 5 and increase the collar level until he is responding well to verbal commands without the need for rope or frequent e-collar reinforcement.

Spend 15-20 minutes and allow him to free range, calling him back six to eight times during the session. Make sure your first ‘come’ command is given when the dog is relatively close, 30-50 feet away. Gradually let him range a little further before giving the ‘come’ command. Repeat this over the course of two to three sessions. Take him to different locations, keeping distractions low, but using them to your advantage. Increase or decrease the level of the e-collar to match the dog’s excitement level.

By now, your dog should be extremely proficient in coming when called and knowing how to turn off the e-collar stimulation by complying with the ‘come’ command. However, it is important that you not use big distractions like nearby strangers, strange dogs, or animals for any part of collar conditioning training. Don’t set your dog up for failure. As always, use the least amount of correction needed to get the desired change in behavior.


Now you will use every opportunity you have to train your dog around your chickens. You can do this one of two ways. You can either give the ‘come’ command every time he goes toward a chicken, correcting with the e-collar to reinforce, or you can teach him the ‘leave it’ command, using e-collar taps to stop his engagement with your chickens.

If you choose to use the ‘come’ command, put the 30 foot rope on him to start until you know he will comply reliably to the e-collar. By now he really should not need it, but an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, as the saying goes. Simply reinforce the ‘come’ command with the e-collar every time he looks at or tries to engage in chasing a chicken. He should come all the way to you if you give the come command.

If you decide to use ‘leave it’ as a new command, take a few days to pair it with the e-collar. For this training you will use a level that will immediately get your dog’s attention. Keep the 30-foot rope on him, for safe measure, but discontinue the use of the rope as soon as possible. To teach the ‘leave it’ command, you will simply say ‘leave it’ and begin tapping the momentary button continually until he turns away from the chickens. The e-collar will probably need to be a little higher than the low-level stimulation given during collar conditioning. He does not need to come to you for the ‘leave it’ command. He simply needs to stop the behavior of chasing the chickens. Do not do this training until after collar conditioning to the come command has been completed.

Having a dog that will be reliable around chickens may take several weeks or more. For several months don’t allow your dog to be unsupervised around your chickens. He should always have the e-collar on when he is outside or around them. Over time and with consistency on your part, eventually he will leave your chickens alone. I have found my chickens had managed to fly into my fenced dog yard - with 3 fully trained bird hunting retrievers for company - and the dogs completely ignored them.


If your dog is already a habitual chicken chaser or killer, I highly recommend using the following training exercise, which uses moderate restraint and moderately higher levels of correction to ‘proof’ the ‘come’ command. This should only be completed after your dog is fully e-collar conditioned to the ‘come’ command and may not be necessary for your dog if he is complying well in high distraction settings.

Now that your dog understands how to turn off the collar when you say ‘come’, it is time to ingrain the behavior a little more firmly. In this step, you are going to teach him how to comply to higher levels of correction while he is under moderate restraint.

You will need a 35 to 45-foot length of rope with a swivel snap on one end and an adult or teenage helper. You will repeat the ‘come’ command a total of eight times, increasing the level of correction with each repetition for the first four times and decreasing the level of correction the last four times. Basically, you will be moving up and down these levels like going up and down a hill or scale.

Have your helper don a pair of leather gloves for this training. He/she should hold the rope about 10 feet from where it is connected to the dog’s flat buckle collar. Your dog should also be wearing the e-collar. Make sure the rope is NOT wrapped around your helper’s feet or your dog’s feet!

Standing silently, your helper is only there to control the feed of the rope when you call your dog to you and so that the dog cannot leave its spot until you give the ‘come’ command. The rope is also to make sure the dog cannot avoid or try to get out of obeying by running off. At some point in this training, the dog will probably try to interact with your helper. He/she should not respond to the dog in any way.

First repetition - With your helper and dog situated, walk about 15-20 feet away from your dog so that your dog is standing between you and your helper. The rope needs to be situated above your dog’s back to your helper’s hands. Set your collar one level below what you have been training with. Stand facing your dog and command ‘come’ while pressing the momentary button ‘tap tap tap’. Continue repeating ‘come, come, come’ and tapping the button until your dog has reached you. Give light praise, but not too much.

Second repetition - Take the dog back to where he was originally standing and gather or coil the rope at the front of your helper so that the rope is above your dog’s back. Turn the transmitter up by one level. This will be the level you normally train at. Repeat the scenario, calling your dog ‘come, come, come’ while tapping the momentary button with each command until your dog reaches you. Give your dog a moderate amount of praise and take him back to the original spot. Praise your dog moderately.

Third repetition - Increase the collar to one level above your normal training level. This time your helper is going to restrain your dog for a couple of seconds while you are actively giving the ‘come/tap’ commands. The idea is for the dog to have to ‘work’ to turn off the pressure. The helper should restrain the dog until you give him a hand signal to release the dog. In this repetition your dog may show confusion. He may try to go to the helper or try to go in a direction that is not toward you. That is OK. Keep tapping and calling him until he is really trying to come to you then give the hand signal to release and discontinue the collar taps. Praise your dog profusely when he comes to you. Good, Good dog!!!

Fourth repetition – The procedure will be the same as the third repetition, using restraint and e-collar ‘taps’ until the dog is trying to get to you. If your dog showed confusion or a lot of worry in the third repetition, do not increase the level on the collar. Stay at that level, but still use the restraint on the rope. If he had a stable response to the increased e-collar pressure in the third repetition, you can increase by one more level. Use praise abundantly when your dog comes to you.

By the end of the fourth repetition, your dog should be working hard and quickly to get to you. You should expect to see some stress on his part, because of the use of medium level corrections.

Fifth through eighth repetitions - Starting with the fifth repetition, you will decrease the stimulation one level for each repetition, ending when you reach one level below your normal training level. There will be NO restraining of the dog while you give the ‘come’ command. Praise the heck out of your dog on the last recall and spend a few minutes playing with him. Always praise for each successful repetition.

Repeat the rope/restraint training one or two more days in different locations. For added distraction, you can do a session of this in the same area your chickens are free ranging. Generally, you will want to keep distractions low or moderate in level. When this training is done, your dog will be ready to work through higher corrections, if needed.

Note: If the dog goes around your helper, wrapping him/her up with the rope, your helper should silently and with the least amount of movement get the dog untangled/unwrapped. Do not continue any commands or collar stimulation until your dog is unwrapped from your helper.

If you do not have a helper, as an alternative, you can use a 40 to 50-foot length of rope looped around a smooth metal post. Place your dog a few feet in front of the post, rope taken back to the post, looped behind it, and then to you. Wear gloves, since you are the one controlling the rope.



Again, the restraint method of e-collar training is ideal for dogs that have already developed a ‘chicken issue’. Not all dogs will need this training. When complete, your chicken chaser will understand the necessity of returning to you immediately. He will also know how to properly respond to the higher levels of correction that may be needed when he is actively engaged in ‘chicken chasing’ behavior.


With fair and well-planned training, your dog understands how to properly respond to the e-collar when given the ‘come’ command. Now your chickens and your dog will be safer. Be vigilant and remember, your dog will not be fully conditioned to leave your chickens alone for several weeks to several months. Be patient, fair, and consistent with your dog.

Collar-wise - Don’t make your dog collar-wise! A dog becomes collar-wise when he is given a command that is not reinforced, and he doesn’t comply. This is especially true during the conditioning stage and several months after. You need to be 100% consistent about putting the e-collar on him EVERY TIME you let him out the door.

Warning - The e-collar is a valuable training tool, but it works only to the ability and knowledge of the person holding the transmitter and to the level of training and understanding the dog has. E-collars should never be used to correct problem behaviors like fighting or resource guarding. Those behaviors require one-on-one training with a skilled professional trainer.

Confusion - If your dog seems confused or is not progressing you should simplify his training. Go back to the previous step he was successful at and repeat that step until your dog is not confused. Do not put your dog in a position to fail.

Nagging – If your dog is repeatedly requiring e-collar corrections to elicit the proper response to the come command you probably need to increase the level of stimulation. Too little stimulation will result in a dog ignoring your commands. The results will be that he will gradually require higher and higher levels of correction. When collar conditioning is done, you should very rarely need to give your dog a correction.

Collar intensity – Throughout collar conditioning, you may want to increase or decrease the level you are using. Don’t get stuck on one level. High distraction situations may require higher intensity levels. Always check what level you are training with before pushing the button.

Praise – Use praise judiciously but don’t be stingy with it. If your dog has worked hard let him know you are happy with him! Get excited about his success!

Attitude – Begin and end EVERY session on a good note! Get a successful repetition, no matter how easy you have to make it. Your dog should have a good attitude throughout this training. Spend a few minutes before and after every session just playing with your dog.

More Information - For further information and helpful articles about raising puppies around chickens, or dealing with neighbor dogs or other predators, you will find many useful articles on BackYard Chickens website and forums page! Be sure to check them all out!

• Predators and Pests | BackYard Chickens - Learn How to Raise Chickens
• (1) Raising Chickens 101 - Chicks, Breeds, Coops, Tips | BackYard Chickens - Learn How to Raise Chickens
• (1) Articles | BackYard Chickens - Learn How to Raise Chickens