Best dog breed around chickens? UPDATE post #117 Thanks all!

[tnchickenut]

megcpat... did you get your crosses from a breeder or just a farmer who happens to get pups now and again? I'm looking for a trusted, tried and true, poultry guardian. I have a neighbor very close so I can't have a dog who will bark too too much. I have never had a preditor issue... I have a neighbor issue. I need a good dog who will not kill the chickens, love to be with them 24/7, and will be a BIG deterant for humans to get within my perimeter.

I started a thread in preditors... if anyone has input it is labled "Anatolians/Great Pyranese - LGD for poultry"

 

[lilbabychickens:)]

I got to go with Goldens here. Mine is 5 and we just got my chicks about 2 mos ago. They weren't mine they were HER chicks. She looks at them, then wags her tail. My friend tried to get her to eat one, and actually put one IN her mouth (shortly before I almost killed him for messing with my chicks) but she spit it out! To this day she just loves watching them.
That being said, she is also certified at an international level as a therapy dog, so training is NUMBER ONE to any dog. No dog will be perfect with chicks with no training whatsoever. You can see her at : http://www.facebook.com/pages/Maggie-the-Reading-Dog/116394501712929?ref=mf
I know its off topic, but please join! We are trying to get books for her kids and we need proof of support of the program!

 

[megcpat]

Things our 2 five month old, 50lb Anatolian Shepherd/Great Pyrenees puppies have chewed up in the three weeks that we have had them: 1 garden hose, 1 extension cord, 1 trampoline, 1 measuring tape, 1 pair of adult Dansco leather clogs, one BRAND NEW pair of children's croc shoes, 1 fence post (a fence post!), 1 plastic bike, three pacifiers, and (100?) raw hide chews. These are only the things we know about......

 

[megcpat]

Quote:
We bought them from a breeder. The two dogs have very, very different personalities and the breeder was able to quite accurately describe to use what each one would excel at. A lot of breeders perform temperament testing on their puppies and this can very useful in finding the right dog for you. Good luck!

 

[tnchickenut]

Quote:
We bought them from a breeder. The two dogs have very, very different personalities and the breeder was able to quite accurately describe to use what each one would excel at. A lot of breeders perform temperament testing on their puppies and this can very useful in finding the right dog for you. Good luck!

Thanks! If my whole 3-5 year plan goes as suspected I will need another one in that time frame, so finding a good breeder who does these temperment tests would be invaluable to me!

PS... the things they chewed up doesnt' even come close to what my two boxers in the house have chewed. lol. I had my livingroom set for less than a month and hadn't even made the first payment before they chewed a complete hole in the arm of the recliner! Be thankful. That is only the begining of my list of things. Puppies. lol.

 

[kimb]

it's going to highly depend on the dog ... less so than the breed...

with that in mind - when you speak to a breeder (I MEAN a LEGIT breeder - not some backyard yahoo) or the rescue you're looking for a LOW prey-drive dog ... someone on here said they have 7 pitties ... and they're all great (well today, had I not been home, out doing my afternoon check - my sisters pitt would've EATEN my gold-laced standard cochin) this is a dog that has been around my chicks & chickens since he was 6months and just exhibits a very high prey drive - he's not mean, but if it moves - he's going to eat it

... my mom's gsd/lab wants to eat them, but is getting older and now just enjoys barking at them from her side of the fence. My ACD who I introduced to chicks for the first time at 1 yo has been amazing and GREAT with them since day one! (but an ACD is NOT a good "family" dog - in that it requires A LOT of physical activity, exercise & daily interaction, it's highly intelligent, very trainable but you have to be the leader - they have to be trained right, no questions asked - but they're the breed for me!

) I have 3 neighbors = 2 yellows & 1 choc lab - with NO training of poultry/birds and none of them have been phased in the least by my chickens ... but my bf's choc lab can be trusted with you around - but leave her alone and she's found the neatest squeaky toy x(

If the dog is reactive to sudden noises, running cats, squirrels, chipmunks, birds - then definitely don't think it's going to be good with your chickens ... As for a dog to leave outside to protect against fox - something LOUD and assertive, with my mom's gsd/lab bark - nothing comes in the yard. But leaving dogs outdoors unattended, and w.out you home is an entire topic I don't condone - too much can happen while your not there to intervene (not so much with the chickens, but what if something gets in it, or worse it gets out?)

If I were you I'd first look for a dog that's good with children, then discover if it's going to be good with the chickens... and a bonus would be good at guarding when no one is home.

*As for training: as was mentioned earlier ... There are a lot of different techniques used - I believe in "positive reinforcement" training (like clicker training)...

with any dog you are introducing to chickens ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS have it on a leash - (have treats available to reward the dog any/every/all times it may have some form of "contact" (visual or physical) with the chickens. The idea is to reward the dog for offering an "ignoring" behavior towards the chickens. Make sure you have a REWARD cue also (if you clicker train - use the clicker and treat, if you don't say "good" and treat) the idea is to "mark the behavior you want" as good ... the basis is that ALL dogs can learn from positive reinforcement, while only few dogs learn from deterrence (negative reinforcement) and some dogs even project the deterrent-illiciting behavior into a hatred towards the object,person,place or thing that causes the "negative" effect on them ... so beating a dog because it chases, bites at, bites, catches or kills a chicken - could potentially create a greater "dislike" of the chicken, the chicken pen or the yard in which it was beaten and it can react negatively and more severely next time it encounters the chicken (and the behavior gets worse and worse after each beating).

If your chickens are in a pen at first (this is safest for them) ... walk out with your dog until it recognizes the chickens then STOP, allow it to look at them, study them - but NOT react to them. If the dog looks at the chickens, then looks at you, REWARD (with piece of a cookie, or a piece of kibble - something it likes

) if the dog reacts - try to get it's attention (by a gentle tug, and ask for a behavior "sit" "down" etc. if the dog obeys - REWARD ... if the dog is still highly reactive, retreat to a place/point where the dog is no longer reactive, regain it's focus by asking for "heel", "down", "sit", "touch it" ... whatever you do to get focus ... wait a minute or 2 (as long as the dog is still focused on you) and try again ... making sure to STOP before the previous place that you know is the "reactive zone" for the dog - ... make sure you stop before the dog reacts (if you can't sense this/ or can't tell) only walk 5' or so and then stop, see if the dog responds to your STOP (if so REWARD) if it reacts to the chickens and you can't regain focus in a second, retreat again - focus - reward - try again only 3' and "focus" ... a highly reactive dog is probably going to take a few days to get to the point that you can walk UP to the chickens, STOP and get the dog to ignore them and focus on you (I recommend short and positive training sessions) 10-15minutes at a time 2-3x a day ... For a dog that is less reactive that lets you walk right up to the chickens before it reacts - then be sure that when they offer to "ignore" the chickens you REWARD. . . the idea is "baby steps" ... keep progressing slowly until you can "walk through" your flock of chickens with your dog and keep its focus or in the least- have it "non-reactive" to the chickens ...By "reactive" I mean that heightened state that is or is the first step that gets them to that stage where they are in "prey drive mode" - they can "look"at the chickens... but if they "launch" at them, that would be a "reaction" ...

Only let your dog off leash once it no longer displays any desire to "react" to the chickens (you can often graduate from the regular leash to a 20' leash to allow your dog to have more roaming room - to see if it's going to react to the chickens if it's further away from you) ... and to give yourself a bit of a "catch rope" (I'd tie a few knots in the rope so that you can grip it better should you just let it drag on the ground) ...

Only you can tell how your dog is progressing - some dogs can't and won't ever be trusted around chickens or other prey animals ... some adapt but shouldn't still be left alone with them - and others treat them like a comrade or even others have the instinct to protect...

Good luck

And always remember it's always going to be on an individual dog-dog basis

 

[megcpat]

Quote:
Oops! Yes, puppies, what can you do? Except that this time I even said something to my husband, when were getting things ready for the dogs, like "Well at least being outdoor dogs we won't have to worry about them chewing on things."

Yes, I really was that nieve.

 

[ojuliana]

our border collie gets them back into the pen. But when she was young, she killed one accidentally, so you ahve to suoervise for a while. now there is no problem, only help.
sharon st louis

 

[bad]

I have an Austrailian shepherd who is great at working cattle and horses, but has also taken on the duties of chick herder. He definitely makes sure that nothing bothers them. He is really great with the chickens, but I agree in that any dog can learn to get along with them you just need to make sure that obedience training has been taught. It always makes it easier.

 

[megcpat]

So, we've had our Anatolian's for about five months now, are right in the thick of predator season, and I have to post an update because I need to sing the praises of these two dogs!
If it were not for Casper and Callie, we would have no chickens left at this point - the fox have been unlike anything we've ever seen before. When the fox first showed up for the season, I didn't think that even with the dogs we were going to make it free ranging our 60+ birds. I watched more than once as a fox would make a run for it, catch the dogs attention and race for the back of the property with the two dogs in hot pursuit. Once this chase was under way, one or two more fox would show up and begin chasing the now unprotected flock. I spent about four days out there with the dogs and chickens, barely leaving the animals long enough to use the restroom. It was intense, but after spending all that time working with the dogs, and after the dogs got a good feel for their opponent, I have no more worries about leaving the chickens out with the dogs when I go on day trips to the city. The fox will still sit on the edge of our property and dance around the fence line, but I haven't seen one try to cross that boundary line (I'm sure they do every now and again) and the two puppies (90 + pounds now) are getting better and better at patrolling, at chasing and returning right away, and I've even noticed that they herd the flock out of the extreme corners of the fields and back to safer ground.
One of my greatest concerns when we brought the Anatolians home was that they would become too protective of our property and/or our children. I really worried about the boy, Casper, when he right away took to our daughter, now 22 months old, and attached himself to her anytime she came out of the house (literally, his nose or shoulder was bumped up against her shoulder at all times) . I have never experienced anything like the extreme protectiveness of a guardian dog - it is something to behold. My daughter can do no wrong in Casper's eyes, I once found her smashing him over and over again on the head with a rock and his only reaction was to hide his nose under his arm and squint his eyes closed tight. When I jumped to scold her, and she dropped the rock, he wrapped himself around her to shelter her from my anger. He seems to understand the size difference between the two of them and adjusts his play to compensate for her comparative fragility.
We immediately began having guests over to the house and the property, children as often as possible, and watched every move those dogs made around the company. The idea was to teach the dogs to accept any strangers that we welcomed to our place and to show them that rough play between kids was fine with us and therefor, it needed to be fine with them. I'm always alert when we have people over, but I have seen nothing whatsoever that worries me about the dogs being overly protective; Callie especially is just a great big lovable bundle of fluff who wants only to be scratched on the head. We also make sure that the chickens were EVER PRESENT and did everything in our power to bond the dogs to the flock. For a while it seemed like we may have over done the family bonding and the dogs took the family protection as first priority, with the flock as secondary. Once those fox arrived, however, and gave them a focus for their energy, they made the adjustment just fine.
The biggest down fall of the puppies is their reaction to heat. On extremely hot days, during the hottest hours of the day, they are practically comatose out there. The only saving grace in this scenario is that the fox also seem to go to ground during this time...... so far anyhow. Also, the night time barking is not the most pleasant thing in the world, but I have learned to wake up only when they are doing their "I'm really serious this time" barking. I also, sometimes, find them guarding the poultry feeding stations FROM the chickens.

Anyway, we love the dogs and thank you to all of you who wrote in and pointed us in their direction. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.