Chickens for 10-20 years or more? Pull up a rockin' chair and lay some wisdom on us!

[armorfirelady]

Quote: Very true statement. My oldest dog (7 years) is a lab/austrailian shepard or maybe BC mix from the SPCA. Always on the run when outside checking out whats going on everywhere. I have an electric fence for him so he can run to his heart content. Very good on a leash but I cant ever let him off leash outside our yard because he would take off & while he eventually would come back he does not listen to the return command. Even in the yard it takes awhile to him to return. He knows the whistle to come but chooses to ignore it if their are critters, deers or people with dogs walking by. Very protective of his yard & me, & he barks at people walking across the street with dogs but as soon as they pass he stops. My neighbor always asks why I dont correct him & I told him I want to know when someone who isnt a friend is in the area or coming into my yard. I am a single women at home that dog is my security. And he doesnt bark for hours just a few minutes. I have had him in many obiedance glasses & I work with him as much as I can and on leash he is awesome. But so much anxiety in him. Always has been. When I first got him when he was 10 months old & I used to crate hime. He broke one wire one, chewed through a plastic one & the 3rd metal one chewed so much on it I came home to pools of blood on the floor. I ended up using gates & after a few months he was free to roam the house. That behavior told me there was much to his past. As he gets older I see more anxiety coming out. Hates little dogs. loud noises & if he cant see me he goes nuts. I actually bought him a Thunder shirt and use it occasionally. It worked wonders for 4th of July.

My 2 yr old Austrailian cattle dog we got as an 8 week old puppy from the SPCA. Lily is a herder dog. But so laid back. I can take her off leash anywhere and she listens to commands and return to calls & whistle. She is cautious around new people and dogs but never aggressive. She growls when we walk at dogs coming near her & people think she mean until she either hides behind Bear or me as the dog approaches. But when friends bring their dogs over she will warm up to them. I am a big believer in puppy dates so that both my dogs dont have aggresive behavior towards other dogs except those who come in our yard unwelcome. Thats only happened 3 times. Neighbors dog behind me came in yard after me and only got about 5 ft in over the electric fence before Bear was on her. Neeedless to say she hasnt come back. The other 2 were just walking thru and posed no threat so Bear just chased them out of the yard.

If I ever got another dog it would be an Australian cattle puppy. Best dog I have ever had. Yes Lily has chased the chickens but the chickens were here after her. She could care less now when they are in their pen. She has also killed baby rabbits & brought them to me But she listens well, food motivated & except for counter surfing (did I mention she LOVES food & her nickname is Monster?) is a great dog. I think if I started a puppy with the hens early I could free range the hens again. Only downfall is Lily doesnt seem to see well at night or is afraid of the dark lol
Bear on the other hand just stares at them intensley & I know he would kill them. I have been trying Bees method of *MY CHICKENS* loud at him and sometimes he backs off sometimes not. But lately he is not spending all his outside time drooling over the chickens so its a start. And he will leave me alone as I work in the pen. But Bear has managed to get rid of any squirrel that dares to come in my yard. Any critter for that matter but Squirrels are the ones he stalks the most. All you have to say is *wheres the squrriel* and he is off to the closest tree...

 

[Beekissed]

Found him for ya, Bee: http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/24648100
I believe we have some Canadian friends here on BYC.

he has a sister available too, but she's got shorter hair so may not be as suitable for outdoor life 24/7, according to the organization. Road trip!

What an adorable pup! Would LOVE to have him but these organizations require you to have 6 ft. fencing and will not consider electric containment systems like I use. Jake has about the shortest hair a lab can have and excels in the winter cold way better than my GP mix ever did. He LOVES the cold and would sit with his hairless butt in the snow while she was tucked into the doghouse! This is my sweet Lucy in her last years...about 14 years old in these pics and Jake a mere 3 yrs old.

 

[NikkiMiChickie]

I, too, have considered a rec harness for pulling. My female would have also made a pretty great agility dog, I believe. She clocks out at 27mph, and can maintain that speed for two laps around a 35-acre hayfield that is not flat (welcome to wv! Lol). I point to the top of our 25 foot tower of hay and both dogs climb right up (I often use them to chase the chickens down when I'm trying to close up the barn). She walks on teeter totters, runs through tunnels, climbs ladders and slides down slides. And then, just before she turned 4 last spring, she started favoring her back leg. 2-3 days of being 3-legged, and she started to bear weight again but still a little off. Never cried or whined once. Took her to the vet a couple weeks later when she still favored it by running 3-legged, and she had a ruptured cranial cruciate ligament (equivalent to human ACL). The vet - well, both vets as we sought out a second opinion and a surgical option - were amazed as they twisted and turned that leg, that my girl never so much as flinched. How did we know there was pain? (besides the fact that the vet explained that any "normal" dog would have screamed in pain as he twisted and pulled, or even by bearing full weight). Her tail stopped wagging. That was all! Never once, through a $2500 surgery or a 6 month recovery did that dog make a sound. My vet wants to use her as a blood donor dog- says they usually have to sedate the donor dogs to keep them still enough for a transfusion. Not my Sue. She has a fan club at the vets office now! Lol. She's back to normal now... Only clocks out around 23mph now, but I don't push it. She's a beast, but she's an all-around amazing dog.

I think I'm going to put a cart on my Christmas list. Something that I can use around here, but something the dogs can pull as well. I think that sounds like a perfect job for them!

 

[Beekissed]

Sounds great! Now for my big fear. What if it doesn't work out? What if it turns out just not to work around chickens? I had already thought Anatolian might the be breed I needed, but I wasn't sure, not being the dog lover that many are and not trusting my own judgement here. I don't want to get any dog and give it flowers and promises of a forever home then end up having to "dump" it off somewhere since it didnt' work out. I am not a dog lover and don't view them in the best light that can be, but I do have compassion. Are the chances of what I'm fearing high should I choose a calm, not bold but yet not retiring individual and then raise it around the birds so that it bonds with them rather than us pretty much (while keeping it in a crate or pen when unsupervised so that as a pup, it won't be able to kill any by "playing" too hard) ??

A person pretty much gets what they expect in most cases. If you expect the dog to be a disaster, most of the time they will pick up on your indecisive or nervous vibe about their purpose or presence. Visualize what you want out of this dog and then research how to make it happen. If you get a 'Tolian, get it from a working dog breeder and ask them how best to get them where they need to be with your flock. Then LISTEN and do it. Explain that this dog will be working close up to the home and family and will need socialization as well as bonding with the flock and the owner should be able to give you pointers on how to get this dog in the groove. The Anatolian breed is perfect for this very kind of work...they are very good around children and aren't so independent that they cannot be trained for a human alpha but still be able to bond with and guard the flock effectively.

If it doesn't work out, most reputable breeders will gladly take that pup back and find it a good home where it fits. No harm, no foul. You can always send it to me.....

 

[bruceha2000]

First of all I wanted to thank all of you that posted on this thread. The information is invaluable to someone new to chickens.
ReplyQuote Multi

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forums/posts/add/threadId/723743/editorType/basic

I think posts like yours and the fact that this thread has TWELVE TIMES as many views (four hundred and four THOUSAND!) and TEN times as many posts as the next highest ("Think its too cold for your chickens? Think Again ...") in the "Managing your flock" forum suggest just how important this one is.


So thanks for starting it Bee and thanks to all who post the useful info.

Bruce

 

[NikkiMiChickie]

  What an adorable pup!  Would LOVE to have him but these organizations require you to have 6 ft. fencing and will not consider electric containment systems like I use.  Jake has about the shortest hair a lab can have and excels in the winter cold way better than my GP mix ever did.  He LOVES the cold and would sit with his hairless butt in the snow while she was tucked into the doghouse!  This is my sweet Lucy in her last years...about 14 years old in these pics and Jake a mere 3 yrs old. 

Oh Bee, she was beautiful! I'm biding my time until I can have a "real Pyr" to live with my chickens full time. Made a new friend recently with an 8 month old male, and it made my desire to have one that much stronger. I've read up on them, and even bought a Pyr book... Question: would you say a Pyr is another breed that requires an alpha owner? The girl I met who has the male is getting run over by him. Already. I feel like she's allowing him to dominate her, she thinks she's the Pyr expert since he's her second, and they need a gentle hand in training. He nearly bit her last weekend... He was in pain, granted, but I explained to her that I've dealt with many dog injuries (that recent leg injury being one of them) and my dogs do not exhibit "pain aggression" when I am helping them. She keeps excusing his behavior. So since I've never actually owned a Pyr, I wondered whether they need strong leadership and a firm hand (which is what I feel inclined to provide to ANY breed of dog) or if they truly do require a softer touch?


*and I agree on the fencing requirements, etc of shelters... It's more difficult to adopt a dog than to adopt a child, I'm finding as I have a friend finishing up the dhhr process to adopt a child and she's not suitable to own a dog..... I know more than one person who was turned away from a shelter straight into the arms of a backyard breeder happily patting their pocketbook as they sell a less-than-quality purebred for a very pretty penny!

 

[bruceha2000]

If it doesn't work out, most reputable breeders will gladly take that pup back and find it a good home where it fits. No harm, no foul. You can always send it to me.....

Dang, I was going to offer that, you now have first dibs

They look like great dogs but the price! Oh my aching wallet.

Bruce

 

[Beekissed]

I think posts like yours and the fact that this thread has TWELVE TIMES as many views (four hundred and four THOUSAND!) and TEN times as many posts as the next highest ("Think its too cold for your chickens? Think Again ...") in the "Managing your flock" forum suggest just how important this one is.


So thanks for starting it Bee and thanks to all who post the useful info.

Bruce

It HAS been somewhat popular, hasn't it? You're quite welcome and I'm glad that someone can sort out the tidbits of good info from out of all the noise on this thread!

If you'll notice, that other thread is a year older than this one as well, so it has had longer to garner posts and hits than this one has. Ya oughta slide on over to the Road Less Traveled thread if you want to see a thread that has skyrocketed into popularity...it's pretty funny to watch it keep going into the blue!

Oh Bee, she was beautiful! I'm biding my time until I can have a "real Pyr" to live with my chickens full time. Made a new friend recently with an 8 month old male, and it made my desire to have one that much stronger. I've read up on them, and even bought a Pyr book... Question: would you say a Pyr is another breed that requires an alpha owner? The girl I met who has the male is getting run over by him. Already. I feel like she's allowing him to dominate her, she thinks she's the Pyr expert since he's her second, and they need a gentle hand in training. He nearly bit her last weekend... He was in pain, granted, but I explained to her that I've dealt with many dog injuries (that recent leg injury being one of them) and my dogs do not exhibit "pain aggression" when I am helping them. She keeps excusing his behavior. So since I've never actually owned a Pyr, I wondered whether they need strong leadership and a firm hand (which is what I feel inclined to provide to ANY breed of dog) or if they truly do require a softer touch?
*and I agree on the fencing requirements, etc of shelters... It's more difficult to adopt a dog than to adopt a child, I'm finding as I have a friend finishing up the dhhr process to adopt a child and she's not suitable to own a dog..... I know more than one person who was turned away from a shelter straight into the arms of a backyard breeder happily patting their pocketbook as they sell a less-than-quality purebred for a very pretty penny!

Answer: X10. They crave and need direction and a strong owner...intelligent and eager to please but can be independent and strong willed if not finding the right kind of owner.

 

[smyers32]

Wowza!!! The dog thing really took off in my short absence!!! Took the pack out to the barn to tuck the chicks in and violate the hens. Kept the nutter butter on a leash (will be doing this always, until i get a little more respect/attention from her) Took about 1 minute of corrections to stop her walking ahead of me, then she happily walked on a loose leash by my side. Tied her up by the barn door when I got there, so I could work more efficiently. After I violated all the layers, I took the last one out to her and let her sniff it, she wasn't too interested. I decided to up the ante and just held the hens legs, letting her sit on my hand and flap her wings. I fully expected the switch to flip and see 'that look' in the pups eyes, but instead she lowered her head and tail and diverted her eyes, then just walked away!

I was truly shocked. I guess there is hope for her afterall.


So allow me to steer this crazy train back on course for a minute. I have identified my 3rd layer and I can see a difference in the vents of the two that I haven't felt an egg in for 3 days in a row. Should I cull those two, or wait till spring??

Bee, I saw a litter of american bulldog/GP pups for sale on craigslist today.. cute little buggers.
http://bloomington.craigslist.org/pet/3414277856.html

 

[Beekissed]

Wait until spring to cull for laying. Winter is never the best time to judge a layer.