Dogs and chickens

[1964MarkP]

We've got two small dogs- chihuahua/jack Russell and chihuahua/Italian greyhound. Both are chasers very interested in squirrels, chipmunks, jokes and bunnies.
Were getting birds sometime soon and obviously backyard harmony is a concern.

Will the dogs always need to be separated by fence from the chickens?
Will an adult hen defend herself or outrun/ outfly a dog?

All 3 individuals in this photo are not always this calm

 

[nuthatched]

Keep them separate and start training.

 

[Hungry Chicken]

I would suggest they always be separated. Dogs and chickens can live in harmony but both have to adjust and get used to it. If they're together they should be monitored and you should be able to intervene at a moment's notice. I doubt a hen can defend/outrun a dog. Even though the dogs are small they are bigger than hens. Maybe having a rooster will help protect the hens/scare the dogs but you'd have to check local regulations. Hope things work out for you!

 

[Prince and Pavo]

It’s really hard to say, to be honest. Every dog is different. As far as if the chickens will be able to escape, the answer is probably not. Dogs can be trained not to attack or chase chickens, but it takes lots of work, patience, and time. My two border collies used to chase my birds whenever they would find a way into the dogs’ area. I was able to save some of them if I caught it fast enough, but unfortunately they killed one of my Guinea fowl and one of my favorite young peahens. At one point though, they suddenly stopped attacking them. To this day I still don’t understand why. The chickens have been perfectly fine with them ever since then, and I don’t worry about them at all anymore. Sometimes I even keep my dogs in the chickens’ area at night to protect them from coyotes.

 

[NatJ]

Will the dogs always need to be separated by fence from the chickens?
Will an adult hen defend herself or outrun/ outfly a dog?

You will not know for sure until you try it. Some dogs can be trained to leave chickens alone, and some cannot. For the dogs that can be trained, it often requires a long time (months) and a lot of time from the person. There are some dogs that are introduced to chickens and are immediately fine, but those are pretty rare.

Some hens will defend themself (more likely if they are broody, especially if they have chicks to protect) but most will not.

Some hens can outrun or outfly a dog, but that is stressful for the hens, and the hens might go up a tree or over a fence where you cannot easily get them back. The hens might even get caught by some other predator after escaping the dog. And if the dog chases the hen around and around an enclosed area, the hen might get too tired to run and then the dog will get her. Or the dog might get the hen cornered and grab her there.

I would definitely start with a fence and some dog training, and see how it goes. If the dogs reach a point where they are calm around the chickens when separated by a fence, and the dogs obey the commands you give, then try taking one dog on a leash into the chicken area.

 

[AinaWGSD]

It depends on the dog. Some dogs can be trained to ignore chickens, others can never be trusted with them, and a rare few are fine even without training. My past dogs (german shepherds) could be trusted off leash around my birds, but I won't trust my current dogs (also german shepherds) because they have been too excitable around prey animals.

Terriers and sighthounds often have high prey drives and low biddability (ease of training/"desire to please" their people) so with those mixes I would be extremely cautious. You'll definitely want to keep your dogs separated from the chickens to start with. Based on their reactions you can decide where to go from there.

 

[Mrs. K]

The rest above are being polite, I am going to be forthright.

No, I don't think this will work. They are chasing dogs, chasing bunnies, chipmunks, and are going to respond with a chase when a startled hen starts running away. In their mind, these new birds are impinging on their territory and it will be fun to drive them away.

The dogs are bigger than I expected from their breeding, and they appear older. Older dogs are more difficult to train. And I would bet that when one starts chasing something, the other one is right their with them.

They may even stand by the fence of the run, and dart at the hens and bark incessantly when they spook.

I see this as being kind of miserable for you, the dogs and the birds. It is going to take a lot of work.

Mrs K

 

[RojoMarz]

We have a JRT that we adopted when he was 5. He is very prey driven and will spend hours trying to get a mouse, rat, ground squirrel, vole, etc. After a lot of supervised interactions and training, he doesn't not bother the chickens (including the one that constantly escapes and free ranges.)

We also recently adopted a then 8 month old Chihuahua Min Pin mix. She loves to "help" the JRT, but is not nearly as prey driven. She also has been trained to not bother the chickens.

Depending upon the actual dog and your consistency, it can be done.

 

[The head hen]

I lost 3 chickens the evening of July 3rd. We have 2 great pyrenese/border collie mix 2 year old dogs who have been trained and are with our chickens all day every day since they were 6 months old. The dogs are in and out of the house at their will via a dog door.

This last chicken attack left the 3 chickens dead without any obvious marks, cuts, puncture wounds, etc. Not even a lot of feathers scattered.
My husband is convinced the dogs killed the chickens, but I am not!

We live on a wooded ravine near a creek. The girls were free ranging in a fenced back yard. There are 6 hens left. Anyone ever seen a dog kill a chicken without any marks?

 

[Mrs. K]

How old are you chickens that died? They can die of natural causes, but three in one night seems to be predators. In my experience with predators:

• coons attack at night - tear birds apart, often times pulling off their heads, often times more than one coon at a time, and will kill multiple chickens - may wipe you out.
• coyotes in the day time tend to snatch one bird, and the bird is just gone. However this time of year, a mother with pups can also come in and get a lot of birds. Again, the dead ones are just gone, but sometimes a few escape. They will come back to the coop, but you can tell they have been highly stressed and missing feathers.
• Hawks will get one in the daytime- usually you will find a pile of or a few feathers.
• Dogs will just catch one, and I think the bird dies of a heart attack, or pressure from the dogs mouth. In my experience, they seldom tear them up or eat them. You find them with little damage done to the carcass. Once the bird is dead, the game is over.

I am not saying it was your dog, but I would keep a pretty close eye on them.

Do you coop them up at night? Do you have a run?

Mrs K