This is gonna be long, but I have to tell you how I got lucky with my amazing bestest good Boxer boi, Max. When I first got chicks, I had them in the house in a brooder. I held the chicks up completely enclosed in my hand, one by one, several times a day and let him sniff them while telling him....these are babies, look how little, we love the babies (in a very calm child-like voice). Max would then start going to the brooder and wait on me to get the chicks out for him to sniff. As they got older and I couldn't hide them completely in my hands, he would lick them on the feet or their beaks while I told him they are little babies, be nice, we love babies, etc. By then, we called sniffing babies "Lick-a-chic" and he loved to play the game! If he got too rough or excited, it was game over and he didn't get to sniff them anymore. It became something he looked forward to. When the chicks were older and started jumping on the side of the brooder box, Max would gently nudge them back in the box. He watched them all day just to get the chance to boop one back in the box. Max sleeps with me, so to my surprise one morning, I woke up because Max was whinning. He needed to go potty. I looked down and he had 3 chickens asleep on his back and 3 nuzzled under his chin. He was being such a good mama chicken! They had flew out of the brooder and found a warm spot to sleep lol. He never chased or hurt a chicken and defended them from children, butterflies, or whatever he saw as a threat to them. When the chickens were about a year old, I rescued a Beagle puppy. All the beagle wanted to do was chase the chickens, he didn't hurt them, he just wanted them to run, but Max quickly taught him not to mess with his babies and taught the beagle to chase those mean butterflies instead. We are expecting new chicks in a few days and I hope Max remembers how to play "Lick-a-chick." It's been about 5 years since we played the game. I have the brooder already set up in my living room (this time it has a closed top) and Max goes over and looks inside several times a day looking for chicks so I think he still remembers. Hopefully Max is still able to keep that crazy Beagle in check. Max is almost 9 years old now.
