Anyone have REAL free range chickens and a dog too?

[Guinea Goonie]

The dog is in there somewhere....

 

[Miss Lydia]

I have had chickens since august, but I've had ducks for longer than my 3 dogs that I have now are old so they learned from the ducks what is acceptable behavior. Then I brought home the chickens, whole new adventure, I would not trust my three 2 are mini dachshunds one mixed JR-beagle alone with the chickens at all. They are much more acceptable of them now than at first but theres always the thought in the back of your mind, it would only take a minute. It's not worth it to me. My chickens free range my dogs don't!

 

[justmeandtheflock]

My 5 yo border collie / black & tan coon hound runs past the chickens and into the coop to eat their food

My neighbors chubby lab is fine with them too but my 1 yo basset hound / black & tan has had birds in his mouth when he's gotten loose and my other neighbors lab would wipe out my whole flock in a matter of minutes if he got the chance.

 

[BarkerChickens]

We have 3 dogs, 1 cat and 30 chickens that free-range together.

Don't get me wrong...it took a few weeks of introduction since our three dogs were adults long before they ever saw a chicken. They hadn't a clue what they were! Our dogs are all between 40 and 55 lbs as well, so they're not teeny dogs (a few of the hens have established dominance over the dogs though, so the dogs know better. Being bit in the nose by a chicken beak hurts!).

 

[Marlinchaser]

Quote:
I see the dog, looks like someone stole its tail.

 

[Marlinchaser]

I should add, I have 3 dogs, and they are very protective of THIER chickens(actually 2 protect, the 16 year old just sorta lays there most days). Mine will go after anything else that enters the yard. Only real downside of this is that the chickens are not afraid of the dogs, and a fox looks an awful lot like one of the dogs, I watched it walk out of the woods, grab a hen that made no attempt to escape, and get back in the woods before I realized what happened, the next time I saw the fox, it got chased back into the woods with buckshot.

 

[vfem]

Mine free range with our cat, I leave the dog tied up.

However, I only tie up the dog because he chases the ducks and not the chickens! Then I end up with a wet dog from being in the pond. But she knows better to leave the chickens alone. AND she's never actually caught a duck.

 

[frankenchick]

We free-ranged our chickens for 2 years before we fenced in an acre. The dog (Pit/Lab mix) chased a chicken once, then learned that mama gets really mad. I spent days outside with her at the beginning, harshly shouting "No! mama birds!" every time she looked at them. For the most part, she ignores them -- though she still enjoys the occasional round of Bowling for Chickens. They have even chased Pepper out of her foxholes so they can use them as dustbaths.

That said, I still don't leave Pepper alone with the chickens for long; thousands of years of instinct are not that easily overcome.

 

[cap1717]

my collie has no issues with the chickens, except that if they get excited and run/ fly, he will think they want to play. I reinforce corrections for this behavior whenever I witness it, but he shares the yard with the chickens all day when I am not present, and there have been no problems. My RIR likes to peck at him and she "chases" him frequently. The others just ignore him. I do need to watch that he doesn't steal their food, but he is much more a chicken protector than predator.

 

[Fancie]

my dog can't be around the babies... but he is fine with adults