best dog breed around chickens?

[Rosalind]

Serial posting to add: My Pyr came from a show dog that had won several working dog show championships as well as Westminster Best of Breed and Working Group. His mother was an active working dog that guarded terrier puppies for a dog breeder, and a US/Canadian champion in her own right. His breeding for working, and his upbringing around terrier puppies and the neighboring farm's critters, was phenomenal, the best money could buy. He still needed training and lots of patience with his regressions as a teenager. He still needs re-training, and I expect he will continue to need re-training periodically for at least another year and a half. It happens.

Agree, they definitely respond right away to positive reinforcement. I often think that to them, negative reinforcement other than withdrawing from them, is not something they perceive the way a smaller dog would. They see you are upset and unhappy, they sense that you are not exactly scratching their ears and telling them what a good dog they are, but they're never going to have the fear of god the way a smaller, more Velcro-type dog would. You can't really use a choke or a prong collar on them, as it will get caught in their fur and not work quite right. But with a pocketful of treats, mine will do any command, or a whole series of commands, in about four tries.

What I am trying to say is, if you are used to velcro dogs that do exactly as they are told, if you want a frisbee dog that can get off the ground and sprint, if you want a dog good with small children, if you want a dog that does a huge repertoire of humiliating tricks, or a dog that takes minimal training like Lassie, then a Pyr is probably not the dog for you. They are independent, tough as nails, BIG, and they need training like any other dog.

The plus side is, they do train quickly even if you have to repeat it several times, they don't eat a whole lot for a big dog, and as adults they get a lot calmer and become speed bumps. They also bark like a demon-wolf out of a Norse myth, so if robbers or attackers are a concern, a Pyr barking will scare them out of their pants. DH works nights, and more than once I have been mighty glad to have a giant snarling white wolf protecting me.

 

[earthnut]

I think I'm still tending towards a small dog. If I lived out in the country, a very large dog might be fine, but I live in a small house on a city lot, and even if I didn't have chickens, I don't think there'd really be enough room for a big dog like a pyr. They're lovely dogs, I'm sure, but I don't think they're the right fit for us.

And yes, I've been thinking of ways to divide the yard so that I don't have to trust them together, or setting up the indoors so the dog could be a house-dog. I want to get a goat too, so I'll have to divide the yard anyway for her so she doesn't strip my fruit trees. 4 chickens, a goat, a dog, and a beehive in 3000 sqft? I should really move to the country...

 

[CUDA]

I hope you didn't think I was trying to say your dogs are junk, if I did, I apologize Rosalind. I just know some people buy dogs that are from a line of dogs bred as pets, or show dogs, instead of coming from a line of working dogs, and expect them to be good chicken dogs. Not saying they couldn't be, but a dog that comes from a line of real working dogs will train much easier typically, but every dog is it's own dog, and will need a different amount of training. I agree that GP's don't make good pets, but it's hard to find a dog that will be more protective of your flock when properly trained, and mature. But to each their own, just my opinion. I would love to see a pic of your dog BTW!

 

[mandylovespets]

I have 2 Yorkshire Terrier's. The boy, Baxter 2 yrs old, LOVES animals!!! I have 2 dwarf hamsters and he loves them he will sit there and just stare at them! I have 2 ducklings which he loves even more, a rabbit which he also loves!!! He has naver tried to bite them, in fact he sits right by them like he's watching over them as if they are his babies that he has to protect!!! We taught Baxter to be calm around other animals by holding them and letting him sniff them for a while, hell even lick them like he's kissing them!!! It's adorable lol!!! And Lola, my female Yorkie, loves my rabbit! She licks its face and ears! She also loves my little blue chick!!! She is sooo good around the other animals and has NEVER tried to harm them... As long as you have patience training your dog to "be nice" to your other animals they will learn not to harm them. Like I said my dogs ( Yorkshire Terriers) love our other animals as if they are THEIR babies! Good luck!

 

[Rosalind]

Oh CUDA, that's fine, I just didn't want anyone to get the impression that you can let an LGD bunk with the chickens in a crate and somehow the genetics will take over. The breeder I got my puppy from gave me the Spanish Inquisition about how I planned to train him, because she'd had lots of inquiries from folks who figured that just like herding cattle comes natural to border collies after they learn basic obedience, guarding livestock would come naturally to a Pyr. It doesn't really work like that, they need to be taught a lot about keeping calm and how to react to a situation, such as roos fighting or mating. They get so bonded to their flock that they will try to break up fights and keep a doggy version of "law and order," they have to be trained out of that. A big cow can handle a 120 lb. dog nipping at it when it's fighting other cows--a chicken will get mauled by the same behavior. So there is some training needed to break them of that behavior. And as puppies, they will try to play with everything, and that behavior needs broken too, so they know how to work. Getting those behaviors broken is not easy with an independent-minded dog who understands that his job is to keep the property and its contents safe.

 

[northerncitychickens]

Quote:
We have a pitt bull mix - she's been great with the chickens since they were chicks. We had to watch her closely at first, she was curious more than anything. But now she doesn't care about them at all. Sometimes if they are getting a delicious snack that she things she should have she will dive into the dish, but that's about it. She is non-aggressive towards other animals in general (always wants to play with the cat). Friends have a rat terrier who came over one day and was clearly interested in attacking one of the hens (even though it was larger than her). There is a lot to consider when you've committed your chickens! We just started a new blog about the pros and cons of city chickens - http://northerncitychickens.blogspot.com/ - how they fit in with your other animals is really important. For their safety and your sanity!

 

[noahsgeese]

Border Collies are the BEST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! They do wonderful around the chickens!

 

[synoviaus]

First I wish you the very best of luck finding a puppy. Second, I commend you for starting out on the right track by doing your homework. There's so many folks who make the mistake of choosing a dog based on the cuteness factor, and end up making a mistake. I raise Bluetick Coonhounds and they can consider my chickens prey especially if they see them running around and screaming. It appears to be great fun to chase them, so training is a must. So, I train the puppies early by letting one of my game hens teach them chickens are scary. LOL. It doesn't take long for them to learn chickens are off limits. There's a wonderful site called dogbreedinfo.com. It has both purebreed and mixed breed dog profiles. You can find a ton of information there. Once you find a couple of choices I would go to www.petfinder.com and search for a shelter/rescue. As earlier mentioned, I would stay away from hunting dogs especially retrievers and spaniels. I'm thinking you might enjoy a Boston Terrier or mix. They are small/medium sized, easy to groom, intelligent, quiet, and get along with most animals.
Amy

 

[cat1994]

hi, i think mutts are the best, my Evie is a mutt but is the best at keeping all my animals safe, if you get a pup and it grows up with chickens running around, it will will be used to them. like my Evie is

here she is looking after the chickens, geese, ducks, and bunny on one of their outings

 

[Lostbody]

We've got a rescue lab/pit mix. He's been great with the chickens so far.