Build it and they will come ...

[toredano]

Quote:
We are adding heavy stones around it. I thought about running wire into the ground but we have a drain field below the coop and not sure on the depths of the drain hoses. The coop itself weights around 500 lbs I would estimate and cant be lifted by anything now besides the jolly green giant..lol
But yeah we are making sure nothing can dig under it for.

The dog isnt a problem.We had the talk and she agreed not to have snacks.

Seriously tho.. slow introductions and her staying away for now is prolly a good idea. Even tho I know how she acts around other dogs ,cats etc.. I am sure she would prolly love a chicken drum or 2. I just have to play it by ear and see how she acts once they get bigger. I am hoping a good peck on the nose will cure her of any mortal thoughts.

Petra

 

[Lorimary]

Just from my experience, I had a very peaceful Lab that was a perfect lady while I was home with the new ducks we had a few years ago, but while I was gone for a few minutes, she killed them. We have new baby chicks that will soon be out in a fenced run but I will put secondary fencing around that to make sure she can't pull a wing or some other extremity off through the wire. Smart dogs (and yours looks like a pitty) which are smart will sometimes outsmart us. Mine being a Lab (BIRD DOG !) DUH. was smarter than me.
Quote:
We are adding heavy stones around it. I thought about running wire into the ground but we have a drain field below the coop and not sure on the depths of the drain hoses. The coop itself weights around 500 lbs I would estimate and cant be lifted by anything now besides the jolly green giant..lol
But yeah we are making sure nothing can dig under it for.

The dog isnt a problem.We had the talk and she agreed not to have snacks.

Seriously tho.. slow introductions and her staying away for now is prolly a good idea. Even tho I know how she acts around other dogs ,cats etc.. I am sure she would prolly love a chicken drum or 2. I just have to play it by ear and see how she acts once they get bigger. I am hoping a good peck on the nose will cure her of any mortal thoughts.

Petra

 

[toredano]

Yup , she is a pit bull.

She isnt an outside dog ,she stays in the house with us . Will only have monitored visits with us. I am sure it will work out

She had encounters with some other barnyard things before and was fine with it. But I am sure her prey drive is there and we have to be careful.

Petra

 

[BorderKelpie]

I'm glad to hear your hubby is recovering. Here's hoping for a full recovery for him.
The coop is amazing, may I borrow your hubby to build me a few? Pretty please?
Great coop, beautiful dog, and welcome, I do hope you enjoy your stay here as much as I have. These people here are awesome.

(side note, my BC is also an inside dog - she managed to pull the head off a chicken with me standing right there, so be very, very careful - mine is trained to work livestock but she 'oopsed' with the chicken, I had to explain to my 12 YO DD that Rain didn't mean to kill her pet chicken. Chickens are just too tempting.)

(edited because with my senility, I forgot something important.)

 

[Anny]

Looking good! I like your huge branch roost you put outside. I am also in love with your dogs ears. They are so cute!

 

[toredano]

Thank you

We will be very very careful of course. I hate for something to happen to the birds.. for sure. I would hate to have to call Cesar Milan come out and give us a lesson ..lol


Borderkelpie.. You can borrow him anytime. But he is high maintenance .He requires alot of work .. backrubs.. massages.. allmost daily driving to doctors ect... You sure you still want him?

Annie .. Thank you

her ears are a hoot. They flop to and fro and really give her a softer look. We dont like the look of cropped ears and I think its unessessary to say the least. We bred pit bulls for years and never ever cropped any ears. I think the ears are beautyful.


Petra

 

[Chicken Woman]

I just read sooo many stories of family dogs killing chickens. All dogs have a natural preditor instinct and the way chickens flop around is a real attraction for them even if they just want to play.

My golden retriever was 18 month old when I got my chickens and I only let her outside when I could watch her from inside. I used a shock collar so when she went within 10 feet of the run I would shock her. I worked with her for about 6 weeks and she got the message pretty good. I do let her outside when the chickens are in the run but I don't let her out when I am letting them free range in the yard as I don't want to tempt her to much beyond that natural instinct.

She does keep other preditors out of our fenced acre and I like that.

Enjoy your chickens and new coop.

Preditors of all kinds are always a concern with chickens and one is neighbors dogs as well so keep a close eye out Ok !

 

[hungryhensfarm]

As noted in my signature I own a mini dachshund named Lily. Lily is quite a handful to say the least. She's always into something.

We recently moved to a new place and had to start over in the coop building department. At our old place Lily couldn't see my red sex links because the bottom half was lined with tin. The new (temporary) coop is just chicken wire. Lily has been beside herself and she wants to play with them something awful.

Last night she was walking and running around the coop barking and just acting crazy. This morning my husband knocked on a window to get my attention as he commonly does when he's outdoors piddling in his workshop. When I walked out he pointed out that Lily was inside the coop with the chickens. I was horrified.

I can't say that she would never have hurt or killed them but I won't take that chance. When I got to them she was having a tough time defending herself against three of them at the same time. I managed to run her out but it's obvious that I need to reinforce the bottom. She didn't even have to dig. She flipped the wire up to get in. I know this because I caught her trying to get in again later. She got locked up in her pen after that.

It made for an interesting and busy day.