The other day two of my four week old chicks found their way out of their yard and into the yard with my Golden retriever and my pitbull. We found them both dead, sopping wet but with no marks on them.
My Golden retriever is trained to hunt goose, and is an excellent retriever- but he watches those chicks like they are tennis balls being shot out of a automatic ball machine. Can't trust him at all- we worked too hard on him, trained him too well to expect him not to retrieve them.
My pit is only 1 1/2, he has been through four obedience classes, and when I go outside he looks guilty- lol. However, of my dogs, I would probably be able to trust him the most with my chicks. But, I don't trust him, he is too big, too strong-and one swipe of his paw, even on accident, would kill a young chicken.
The same day, inside my house- my wiener dog managed to break into my brooder. Within seconds- soon as I heard chicks crying- thought one had gotten trapped/stuck/etc somehow, I walked back into the bedroom to see- within seconds- she had slaughtered nine babies. Didn't try to eat them, just bit through their heads. They were all over the bedroom. Pure slaughter. I could have easily killed her at the moment, and put her outside for her safety so I wouldn't. I still cant even look at her. My daughter loves that darn dog, so she stays- but is forever banished from the bedroom. By baby gate. And she barks all night to be allowed in there. She learned nothing by the whipping she got- she would do it again in a second.
Dogs will be dogs, and its my own fault they all died. My fencing has been reinforced with half-inch hardware cloth now. Babygate blocks the little babies. I know dogs will be dogs, but I blame the weiner dog much more than the Golden and Pit. Hers was just slaughter. Pure and simple. I have my own hang ups, because that is the one I can't even look at now, even though she no longer knows why I am upset now.
My Golden retriever is trained to hunt goose, and is an excellent retriever- but he watches those chicks like they are tennis balls being shot out of a automatic ball machine. Can't trust him at all- we worked too hard on him, trained him too well to expect him not to retrieve them.
My pit is only 1 1/2, he has been through four obedience classes, and when I go outside he looks guilty- lol. However, of my dogs, I would probably be able to trust him the most with my chicks. But, I don't trust him, he is too big, too strong-and one swipe of his paw, even on accident, would kill a young chicken.
The same day, inside my house- my wiener dog managed to break into my brooder. Within seconds- soon as I heard chicks crying- thought one had gotten trapped/stuck/etc somehow, I walked back into the bedroom to see- within seconds- she had slaughtered nine babies. Didn't try to eat them, just bit through their heads. They were all over the bedroom. Pure slaughter. I could have easily killed her at the moment, and put her outside for her safety so I wouldn't. I still cant even look at her. My daughter loves that darn dog, so she stays- but is forever banished from the bedroom. By baby gate. And she barks all night to be allowed in there. She learned nothing by the whipping she got- she would do it again in a second.
Dogs will be dogs, and its my own fault they all died. My fencing has been reinforced with half-inch hardware cloth now. Babygate blocks the little babies. I know dogs will be dogs, but I blame the weiner dog much more than the Golden and Pit. Hers was just slaughter. Pure and simple. I have my own hang ups, because that is the one I can't even look at now, even though she no longer knows why I am upset now.
