Chickens and dogs

[Aub]

Do you let your dogs and chicken hang out together? Today was the first day that the girls got to spend the whole day outside. The coop was serviceable, no doors, windows, or nest boxes yet, but it was safe.
I'm a little leery of letting the chickens out in the yard with the dogs out. Well... I'm nervous about them just being out in the yard period. They are almost 6 weeks old and I know I should "cut the cord" and put them outside but they're just babies!!
When do you let your chickens out to free range.

Oh... and I'm right smack in the middle of town!

 

[nicokl502]

i have two dogs one is very old and great with the chickens and the other one is only a year old and at 1st he want to run after the chickens but what i did was put him on leash every time he would want to go after him tell him off! now he's great with them, he runs and plays and doesn't care too much about the chicken at all. sometimes he goes up to them smell them and the chicken run away from him lol!!! but i would say to just watch you dog with them for awhile and see how it does and in time they won't even care about the chicken.

 

[Aub]

I thought my Coonhound would be the problem but she got a few zaps from the e-collar and steers clear of them. It's my crotchety old Shar-Pei that looks like he's going to eat them!
I only let the girls out when I'm out there with them.

 

[dawg16]

I have a Pitbull....I have been training him for 3 weeks now. It can be done. I have labs also. They are tougher if you can believe that. It just takes patience....

 

[love-my-wolves]

My Husky/Eskimo mix is so protective of the baby chicks, she sits day and night under the brooders and if they start peeping real loud, she'll start whining. If anyone holds the chicks, she's right there, making sure they are ok until put away. Do I trust her? Not a lick. She runs after the older hens, but she's so fat, she'd never catch one, but I never give her the chance, I'm with her 100% when she's around the chickens. Its funny that she will run after the hens but "mother" the babies.

 

[columbiacritter]

I have greyhounds, both fully trained racing hounds and they learned fast chickens were a no-no. I have no worries about leaving them loose in the yard with all the chickens and ducks. the word is training, careful, constant training until you know you've gottent hrough to them.

 

[ikatiemay]

I have a standard poodle and she is the chickens protector. If they stray where she doesnt want them she rounds everybody up and brings them to the coop area. We have a sick chicken now and she worries about her too!

 

[cafarmgirl]

Generally I'm not a believer in dogs and chickens mixing, even though in the past I owned two dogs who never bothered a chicken in all their years, which was 14 for the oldest. If you read in the predators and pests section you'll read a lot of threads about dogs that just killed a chicken, or all the chickens. Or the dog who was great with the chickens, until they day he wasn't.

If you have a lot of close neighbor's, you mentioned you are in town, do their dog's ever run loose? Or maybe your yard is fenced? Even if your own dog is ok I'd be worried about everybody elses!

I have two dogs now, one is ok when I'm around, easily called off when she gets interested. Alone and bored, I think she'd turn one into a new squeek toy. I suspect the other dog would slaughter them all the minute my back was turned.

 

[F106A]

My four-year old lab "Lucy" watching over her babies in their brooder. Whenever we ask Lucy, "Where are your babies?" she makes a b-line towards the garage door! When our other dog Kodiak, a nine-year old beagle mix goes out there with Lucy, she will NOT let him near the brooder. Lucy gets aggressive over it in fact! We'll see what happens when they move outside into the coop/run.

Mark

 

[Aub]

We do have a fully fenced in yard. I won't be leaving the girls out with the dogs. I don't want to risk it.

Mark- It looks like your lab wants to snack on your chicks