Do you play "Musical Animals?"

[chickintexas]

I've got chicks in the brooder, eggs under my broody, big girls in the run, and a proven chicken killing puppy on the property. I play "musical animals" from the moment the sun comes up til dusk. The big girls are herded out of the coop in the morning so they don't steal my broody's eggs and possibly damage them. I lock them out and have a dog crate set up in the run so they can lay eggs in there for the rest of the day. In the evening, I put my psycho puppy in the house to let the big girls out to free range for a couple of hours. While psycho puppy is in the house, I've got everyone keeping an eye on her so she doesn't take an interest in the chicken nuggets in the brooder. At dark, I herd the big girls back into the run and open the coop back up. By that time, puppy is more than comfortable in the house and its another fight to encourage her to go back outside because I can't trust her to stay away from the chicks in the house while I'm asleep.

Does anyone else here have to play this same game just to keep their birds safe??? I'm working on Chu Dhub (Gaelic for "black dog" and pronounced "Coo Doo") with a shock collar and other commands to stay the hell away from the birds!! So aggravating! But what ever it takes to keep my feathered, two legged babies safe...

 

[lilchick]

When I first started keeping chickens I had 2 dogs. A cock-a-poo and a beagle. They were very sly about chasing mine whenever I was in the house or when I was out of sight. They went to a no kill shelter...

I now have a jack russell and a rott mix that actually guard the flock and I trust them when I am not outside. Life is too short to have a dog that does not fit in.

You may love yours dearly and care more for it than the birds.... Hard decision for some I know.

 

[eenie114]

I play musical goats...
In the morning, we've got the babies seperate from mommy, and so I have to milk mommy goat, then get her to her babies without bottle lambs getting out of the baby pen, then lead mommy and babies across the yard (and it's a big yard) to the day pen. Then at night, I have to be the Bad Guy and carry babies across the yard to the baby pen again.

 

[MuranoFarms]

I feel your pain!

We play musical ducks! lol If the blue swede is out, the call goes in the run. If the call is out the swede goes in the run. There used to be khaki campbells in the mix too, but we finished their duck house/run a few weeks ago! The call is so much smaller then they others that all the drakes think he's a girl and ummmm......well, he needs separated for his own protection!

Occasionally we play musical roo's. Right now a "I wanna fight everyone" silkie roo is separated and a "I wanna breed with everything" D'Uccle roo is in yet another pen.