Best Dog Breed to Double as Both Housepet and Chicken Guard?

[The Moonshiner]

We have Australian shepherds.
Great family dog. Our male even lets our 3 year old stand on his back so he can get snacks off the counter then they share them.
We free range in our yard where the dogs are. I know many would say they are great flock protectors but I honestly think they're only protecting the property but that works out for keeping the birds safe too.
Mine are pretty protective of us so they would fight a stray dog that would come onto the property. Not an issue when we're out in public with any of them so sure that issue could be modified but I like them keeping other dogs away when kids are outside.
Ours are from working lines and also herd goats and sheep for us.

 

[lazy gardener]

Lab.

 

[chickens really]

I have 3 trained Dogs...A Maremma who lays with my Flock as they free range..An Aussie/Golden retriever who patrols my property and chases of Fox, coyotes and Ravens..Then my little Yorkshire Terrier that is trained to wrangle my Ducks and Chickens back to their Coops and Runs...Depends on the size and the job you want the dog to do...Best wishes on your Dog hunt....

 

[The Moonshiner]

Ours are great keeping predators away. Did have a couple problems with fox. Our yard area is 3 1/2 acres with the house kinda in the middle so blocks some of their view. Its all fenced but fox are so sneaking they can get in nab something and get back out without being spotted sometimes.
We actually start herding training using our ducks when they're puppies. Ducks move together just about like sheep and goats so it works well. Chickens don't herd so well. They like to bolt or scatter. Fun times watching them try to out flank them and get them back in a group. Never works though.
Aussie are very smart and I believe they could be trained to do about anything if you know how to go about it.
Great dogs imo.

 

[Creteloc]

Even though poodles were trained as duck retrievers, mine is super protective of my chickens. He loves to sit outside of their run and watch them. He follows them around when they are loose and will cuddle with them when they come to him. He was freaking out, crying, scratching, and barking at the door when my two little girls were taken from their coop this weekend. We thought he was being obnoxious, but now we realize he was trying to save them.

Maybe it's not the breed as much as the temperament of the individual dog.

 

[PirateGirl]

Wow, this thread has come a long way and you've gotten some great advice!

I want to confirm you can have both, a dog that's a good family pet and a good working dog. My dogs sleep in the house, next to my bed. Last night my dog woke me up at 4:00am. At this hour it usually means the dog has to go out and pee, but the dog wouldn't go out. You need to learn to read your dogs (as well as them learning the things you train them to do). I know my dog would not wake me in the night for no reason. I know my dog would not refuse to go out given the opportunity. I need to know/learn what my dog is telling me, and it takes a minute to process at 4:00am sometimes, but what my dog is really telling me is that the coyotes are here. My dog is working even in the middle of the night while sleeping next to my bed. She alerted me the coyotes were here. I can go turn on outside lights and look at windows and check the chickens. Dogs are smart. Do not ignore them when they are trying to tell you something.

You also asked about training. The basic training is the same. The techniques are the same. You are training your dog to "ignore" things that are exciting. This could be running kids, cars, the trash, the food on your dinner table, and the CHICKENS. You are teaching calming behaviors and ignoring stimulus. Encourage being calm throughout the day, even when there is no exciting stimulus. Its easier for dogs to learn to be calm when there's nothing around to excite them, then you can slowly start adding distractions for them to ignore. Lot's of sitting and staying and laying down and petting and treats and talking in a soothing voice. If you are calm your dog will read this and understand that there's nothing to be worked up about. We did lots of sitting next to the chicken coop (chickens locked behind a fence, could be seen and heard by the dog), and being calm. I'd just sit there in the lounge chair daily and make my dog sit next to me and pet her and tell her how good she was. Whenever she would get up/get excited by the chickens I'd make her come back to me and sit next to me (but you need to teach come and sit first, without chickens around). Once she could be calm around chickens I moved to giving her a job to do and pairing it with a command. Now in the morning instead of just asking the dog if she wants to "go out" I ask her if she wants to "check the chickens" and together we go straight from the front door to the chicken coop. She now associates this phrase with going to the coop and I can tell her to do it and she will go to the coop without me. When we are at the coop together we "check the chickens" and we walk a full lap around the coop and run. This is all very exciting for my dog and she is automatically rewarded by eating chicken food and chicken poop that has come through the fence (dogs love it, I can't stop it, it reinforces the positive behavior of circling the coop so I just go with it). After doing all this with me repeatedly, she knows to go "check the chickens" on her own, I can just send her out the front door and she runs out and does a lap around the coop. She will sound the alarm if anything is amiss and I don't even have to go outside.

I hope some of this helps and you can see the training steps and transitions. You'll get there and it will be rewarding for both you, the chickens, and the dog! Good luck.

 

[Nardo]

We have three lab rescue mixes and they kill squirrels, opossums, snakes, an occasional dove (sigh) but they do not hurt the chickens. They chase off anything that will hurt the chickens and are a great hawk deterrent. The 'bad' things they do are more of a personal annoyance: they will persist in trying to sniff the butts when a hen just laid an egg and they like fresh poop. But the hens only wariness around the dogs is to keep out of the way when the dogs begin chasing something. The girls have learned the tone of barking/growling that means intruder and they run for cover right away. I agree that it is about discipline and trust and also about the dogs accepting the alpha/top dog rules. That is me and they want to please and do not want to break the rules.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

let me know if I missed anything important or if getting the best of both worlds is downright impossible. Haha.

Hi, welcome to BYC!

It is NOT impossible to have the best of both worlds.

All my dogs are mix breed shelter dogs. 1 lab/pit, 1 hound mix, and a Queensland heeler. They leave the chickens alone yet don't let other dogs, even their friends get too close. This has been going on for 8 years without incident and the dogs were here first. They are very much family pets and do sleep with us at night, regardless of what others think!

In addition to that I have had many friends over with strange dogs that have been taught to ignore the chickens. Chihuahua, maltipoo, and a couple heeler mixes. You have to be able to read the dogs and redirect their focus. But dogs I invited are much different then uninvited stray. Dogs are smart, they are territorial, and they know the difference between friend and fo. All my dogs are fixed, because it saves lives. But I don't think that has any baring on their interaction with the prey animals. My dogs hunt everything else that comes on my property and with 3 they are pretty effective. They still have to discern a chicken in the bush verses some other birds or cat, gopher or whatever.

If you have the time and opportunity, there are lots of pure breed dog and good mixes at sooo many shelters! I suggest getting an idea of dog type and visiting several times until you find the one that's calling your name!

In my family, we like to let the dog choose us instead of just grabbing one from a litter. We go hand out for a while. Some will come and interact while others will have zero interest. The zero interest ones are not for us.

I will say that in MY experience, females are much more human oriented and males seem to be more independent and property oriented. Too fluffy will be too hot for indoors, maybe try to find a happy medium. Avoid Jack Russel's or really any terrier for your best result with chickens. I agree that young pups may have a harder time and used to think older dogs wouldn't bond to you. But they do and become just as special as one that's been with you since puppy-hood.

And your old dog may or may not appreciate the company. I personally would get the opposite sex. And something not too hyper.

Dogs and chickens are both great pets! I hope you find one that works really well for your family! You sound fairly smart and discerning, I'm sure you can.

 

[Michael P]

What you describe is the classic farm collie, a land race that was common on American farms through the 1800s until the mid 1900s. Here is the web site of the American Working Farmcollie Association http://www.farmcollie.com/

Any of the collie-derived working breeds are possibilities. Modern border collies are often too high energy and simply can't resist herding the chickens all the time. I've had Australian shepherds and their mixes, and they have done a great job for me. The breed tailor made for this purpose is the English shepherd http://www.englishshepherd.org/, but these dogs are uncommon and you will need to be prepared for a waiting list.

You've gotten good training suggestions already. I will only reinforce the fact that these breeds do not mature quickly, and usually don't become "responsible adults" until they are two and half years old.

 

[PeepersMama]

Even though poodles were trained as duck retrievers, mine is super protective of my chickens. He loves to sit outside of their run and watch them. He follows them around when they are loose and will cuddle with them when they come to him. He was freaking out, crying, scratching, and barking at the door when my two little girls were taken from their coop this weekend. We thought he was being obnoxious, but now we realize he was trying to save them.

Maybe it's not the breed as much as the temperament of the individual dog.

Couldn't agree more