chickens around dogs

[sydney13]

do your chickens tend to be nervous around big friendly dogs? I just got two chickens who have never seen a dog until now and although they are great with people they are scared of my dog who just tries to sniff them. Do you think they will always view him as a big predator because of instinct or in enough time will they be fine near him?

 

[Daidohead]

If you are lucky they will always be a little nervous. Mine will walk right up to my dog with no problem. One day they will walk right up to the wrong dog, then there will be a problem.

 

[ranchhand]

I don't trust any dog around my birds. Eventually, instinct will trump training. Found it out the hard way, hope you won't have to.

 

[Daidohead]

Quote:
It's just a matter of when

 

[Christine S]

I'd be nervous of a dog if I were a chicken. Dogs are actually the #1 predator of chickens...and they kill them just for the fun of it.

 

[churchx3]

Dogs and chickens don't mix.

 

[CrazyWestTexasFarmGirl]

My chickens are leary of my dogs but will walk right up to them and snatch food away from them... even out of their mouths if the dogs arent fast enough. Now my first go round of raising chickens and ducks and turkeys.... hubbies Heeler used to be a notorious chicken killer and had to be watched like a hawk and I lost many a bird to him if we slipped up... now hes the most trustworthy dog we have after he jumped the fence and took off one day and got shot by someone..... Instant personality change after he was patched up. My big aussie ignores them and if they get to close he gets all scared looking at them and slinks away... My Red aussie.... she thinks they are fuzzy toys but it learning to leave them alone.... she hasnt ever killed one, but she has yanked feahters.... luckily the mouthful of feathers are just as interesting and fun as the self propelled squeaky toys they come off of.....NOw I once had another aussie girl.... she KNEW better than to mess with them she just couldnt HELP IT....It took years to break her even a little bit of killing my birds.... she would escape(I have a houseful of very intelligent escape artists....) kill a few birds and then HIDE in the back of my pickup shaking and whining because she KNEW she had done wrong....

 

[leenie]

Some dogs and chickens DO mix. Now my Dog will tell you cats and Her chickens don't mix and will do anything possible to prevent that from happening.

 

[newchicksnducks]

Love the photo leenie!

I have a 4 yr old golden retreiver. When the chicks were little last year, she was kept seperate from them. Not that she would TRY to hurt the chickens, but Rory would just want to "play" too rough. As the birds grew bigger, I would let them free range w/Rory on leash. Then w/Rory next to me, off leash. Then they were all allowed to roam the yard as long as I was out with them. My husband just commented yesterday how the chickens would stay outside the open coop free ranging near dusk when the dog was outside. As soon as the dog came into the house, all the birds went into their coop. He thinks they actually feel SAFER outside with the dog than without her! All dogs have different temperments...and I guess the birds might too. Every situation with a dog is individual.

 

[chickenlady08]

I have a Black Lab, an Irish Setter and recently acquired my parents Golden Retriever. I have never had a problem with my Irish Setter or the Golden trying to mess with my chickens. My lab however thought one was a ball and tried to pick it up and I had been feeding the girls bread and had the loaf in my hand and out of impulse I popped the lab in the head. (now he wasn't hurt it was more loud than hard) He has never even looked at them again. He won't even come out inside the back yard while they are out. The Golden has always come to my house for weeks at at time so she has always been around them. she comes inside the coops with me and helps me gather the eggs each nite. LOL. She comes out each morning when I open the doors for them to come out and she comes out when I close them up at night. My Irish Setter is also very laid back and has never tried to hurt them. He comes outside when they are out and they all live in harmony.

I do beleive it depends on the type of dog someone has. We had a dachsund and she killed a chicken and attacked several others back in 2008. Needless to say she doesn't live with us any longer. I refuse to have any of my pets kill another one and me continue to pay for a murderer. (even if it is in their "nature")