Adopted a hound barks at chickens all day

[shanam]

Hello! I adopted a hound, maybe it's a red Coonhound? He barks 8 hours a day at the coop. If I introduce him to the flock on a leash, do you think he will pounce or bite the chickens? He is 9 and has no teeth. He was used for hunting I believe.
My neighbors are going to have an issue with this. My poor chickens are probably stressed out.
Thoughts?

 

[50-45-1]

Your hound may just be a barker. He may be boored and wish to go hunting. They have incredible hearing and a powerfull nose. He may be barking at your chickens, but if he is trained for hunting i doubt it. Trained hunting dogs are to a specific target, racoon, fox, coyote...
He may not be a good fit for your situation.
Changing the behavior and focus of a 9 year old dog will be difficult.
For him and you.
If he could become an inside dog, that would be the best for this situation.
Thank you for rescuing him and i wish you good luck!

 

[azygous]

Your neighbors will be more stressed out than your chickens at the incessant barking. The chickens will eventually become accustomed to the racket and just tune it out, but your neighbors will be gathering to plot your untimely demise.

And no, do not play around with "introducing" the hound to the chickens. That will definitely unsettle them. When chickens are subjected to any noise, they will usually become wary and alert to possible danger. If the dog remains outside of a threatening space occupied by the chickens, they will settle down and accept the noise as non-threatening as long as the dog stays where he is.

However, if you bring the dog into their comfort zone, it will ratchet up their stress. The dog is a predator by nature. Chickens understand this on a very primal level. The dog also understands the chickens are prey, and any interaction with the chickens is capable of unexpected consequences.

The bottom line is until you can train and control the dog, and this includes the incessant barking, you will not be able to control the dog's reaction to the chickens, and the dog will remain a threat to your flock.

 

[townchicks]

If he's barking for 8 hours straight, he's probably not barking "at" the chickens. He' probably barking because of stress, boredom or loneliness. Hounds are bred to be vocal, and they'll pretty much tell you about it a lot. He needs more exercise, training, attention, play.
As far as having no teeth, he can still hurt the chickens. Train him first, to come to you, away from the chickens, then let him look at them, and call him to you. If he can focus and come to you with the chickens in front of him, then it may be ok to try him with them, on a leash, of course. Does he really have literally no teeth? Nine is not that old.

 

[VyeFye]

Hello! I adopted a hound, maybe it's a red Coonhound? He barks 8 hours a day at the coop. If I introduce him to the flock on a leash, do you think he will pounce or bite the chickens? He is 9 and has no teeth. He was used for hunting I believe.
My neighbors are going to have an issue with this. My poor chickens are probably stressed out.
Thoughts?

In my experience hunting dogs are the WORST barkers. They bark all day. They bark all night. They don't care if they are reprimanded. They just bark. I think it comes most from the way they are trained and then most of the time they are just kept in a kennel with very little interaction unless its hunting season. - like I said, simply my experience with hunting dogs.
He shouldn't pounce on your chickens. He might chase them, but hunting dogs are not made to spring on prey, they are taught to chase it out and bark at you to tell you where it is.
I would take him out there all day long for a couple of days. Whenever he isn't barking at the chickens, give that hound dog a treat!
I used to train dogs for a breeder. My biggest piece of advice to you is this:
TRAIN HIM TO BARK! I know it sounds dumb but it is the first step on training him to be quiet. If he can be taught to bark on command he can be taught to be quiet on command.
Best of luck to you and I hope your neighbors learn to love your dog!

*edited to say - this is from a dog owners perspective, not a chicken owners. I am new to the chicken world. Please listen to everyone else's advice about the wellbeing of your chickens.

 

[cmom]

Maybe you can somewhat train him with his favorite treat. When he does good he gets a treat and when he doesn't, he doesn't get a treat. Most likely it will be a slow process but eventually he may come around.

 

[Bamabexchicks]

Dogs are animals that need to be part of a pack. If you have a single dog then you are his pack. Having said this, I wonder if he would be better off being trained to be inside the house instead of left out to bark?
Take him inside on a long leash and at first keep hold of it so he wont soil or destroy anything. Then,as he becomes used to this you can gradually let go of the lead and watch him. When teaching dogs consistant reinforcement is everything; no always means no. Yes always means a treat.

 

[AnimalGeek23]

Agreed with previous posts. Also, redbone coonhounds were bred to hunt. So maybe that's why he's so into the chickens--he wants to hunt them. Or maybe he's never seen a chicken before and he's curious.

 

[aart]

Now you know why he was up for adoption.

 

[VyeFye]

If he is an outside only dog, you will have a very hard time getting him not to bark, even if he is completely isolated.
Hunting dogs do not kill the animals they are hunting. They are used to drive out, track, or retrieve a specimen that has been felled.
That being said, there is absolutely nothing that would stop a bored dog from killing a chicken. Make sure you are keeping your new guy entertained at the very least so he will be less likely to destroy your birds from boredom.