Are Dogs and Chickens OK together?

@EllenWolfe , My current dog, a newfoundland and every dog I've had prior to him were trained to sit and wait until I say "Okay"...including with their own food. My dog is also trained not to take treats/food from strangers unless I say "Okay". He will sit and stare at me if someone else offers him something, waiting for my command (my previous dog, a great dane/bull masstiff/rottie mix wouldn't take food from strangers at all...even with my "okay"). He doesn't bother with chicken droppings at all and won't touch their food either.

Have your pup sit and stay until you have placed his food down and had the chance to stand up and take a step back. Don't allow him to rush at it and push you aside to get it (speaking from getting shoved over by multiple 160-180lbs dogs prior to training). If he gets up before you've said "okay" then give him quick "aht-aht" and have him sit back down and stay until YOU say. Do this with every feeding. "Leave it" is another important command. This should apply to everything you don't want him to have. Put him on a leash and when he goes for the chicken poop or scraps, give the leash a little jerk, simultaneously tell him to "leave it" and then redirect his attention to something he can have.

I would also recommend not just putting the scraps out there until the chickens are actually around to eat them, like a treat right before they go to roost when they're getting closer to the coop for the night anyway. Food being left out is too much of a temptation for the vast majority of dogs and unless it's during a training session, he should be kept away from the scraps entirely.
 
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Thanks. I tried the "wander around with him while he has a leash on and correct him when he goes for the chicken poop" approach for a few weeks, but as soon as he's off the leash he's back at it. But my Britt is developing a pesky habit of trying to go after our people food, and has managed my son's muffin and most lately my son's ice cream Sunday left unattended for a few moments. (The whipped cream on the whiskers really gave him away). So I'll work with the dog regarding taking others' food, and I appreciate the recommendation about just leaving the scraps at night. I often do that, but the chickens are too full from grazing or too interested in heading in to roost to always eat all the scraps. So the scraps end up being in their pen the next morning too.
But all good suggestions! Thanks very much!
 
It took a loooong time to trust my dogs with my chickens. I have 3. My German Shepherd really just wanted to play with them, but that isn't a good thing since he's so big. Our little old terrier mix is blind and doesn't even know they are there. But my Jack Russell mix really has a high pray drive. Fortunately he also is a very desperate people pleaser. I started going out with him every day to play Frisbee (which he was much more interested in than the chickens), watched him closely, scolded him when he got too interested and praised him when he left them alone. The first day I decided to trust him was hard, but he came through. Life is much easier when I don't have to worry about it. My German Shepherd still likes to go chicken bowling now and then, but mostly ignores them. Sometimes he likes to guard them.

Strangely, my mother in law's Beagle could care less. Lol
 
I've been reading through this forum and haven't really found what I'm looking for yet. I have an almost 1 year old golden retriever/husky and unfortunately we lost our 7 year old dog last week in an accident. Our 1 yo has been fine with the chickens up until last week when he became an only dog. Now he jumps the fence, chases them down and mouths them. He hasn't hurt one yet but I'm afraid he will soon. I'm not sure if this has started because he's lacking a playmate or what? I have been taking him out amongst the chickens on a leash with a muzzle on to work with him a but but its only been a week so we aren't making much progress. Also I'm thinking the muzzle will just cause more excitement and frustration for him. Can anyone give me a step by step process for changing his behavior? We are raising the fence but we free range the hens so I'm sure it's just a matter of time before my little Houdini escapes to run them down.
 
I almost bought a goose at a swap meet yesterday to protect the flock. . . . I'd love to see one kick my dogs butt when he tries to go after the hens. But Ill see if the rooster we are raising is enough to keep him at bay.
 
I almost bought a goose at a swap meet yesterday to protect the flock. . . . I'd love to see one kick my dogs butt when he tries to go after the hens. But Ill see if the rooster we are raising is enough to keep him at bay.



Patience. Work more on training the dog and letting it mature. The goose and roosters will not stand well against dog, especially if it is determined. My chicken protecting dogs would kill a goose in short order if it came on to us.
 
NO! I Had Hens And Chickens But They Both Died Cause Of My Dog!!! They Do Not Blend Very Well Together! Your Parents Are Right! If You Want Chickens Then You Should Keep Them In A Cage That Your Dogs Can Not Reach, But The Problem Is That If Your Chicken Could Get Too Skinny And That's The Bad Thing But I Recommend You To Keep The Dogs In The House Or Room And Let Your Chickens Run Around And Have Fun!


ps.They Poop ALOT
 
We have several dogs and most ignore the chickens but we have 3 that are going to be a problem. Our chicks are about 5 weeks old so they are still in the brooder box. Yesterday I took two of the chicks out to the newly built coop and put them in the run. I let the dogs outside and our 2 Beagles went absolutely berserk. One kept jumping on the hardware wire and scratching it to try to get in. The worst thing was that they both barked loudly and continuously. My neighbors already complain about the barking so I had to carry the dogs back into the house where they continued to bark.

I have tried some of the tricks like taking them out and letting the dogs smell them but when they start to go for them like they are going to eat them I put them back in the brooder. I also tried saying a resounding "No!" but they just ignored me and kept barking.

I don't think we are going to be able to free range them unless the dogs are locked in the house but I am just worried about putting them in the coop and run in a few weeks. I worry about whether the one dog will be able to get into the coop. We do have hardware cloth on all four sides of the run ad are going to bury some in the ground before putting the chicks out there for good in a few weeks.

Does anyone have any other suggestions other than what is already in this post? Mostly how do we get them to stop barking when they are around them? Booth of the problem dogs are fairly small, around 20 pounds or less. I am hoping that maybe when the chickens get full size they will loose interest. The chickens now are about the size of squirrels which the dogs go after and sometimes catch.
 
I have a vibrating shock collar that I used for the barking. I have the vibrate setting on high and use it a few times as a warning and if she keeps barking she gets shocked on low. It took 2-3 times and she doesn't bark anymore at the chickens. The shock doesn't hurt (I have tried it) but it distracts her from barking and is unpleasant so she doesn't want it again lol.
 

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