Dogs and Chicks

[barg]

When I was a kid we had the most friendly little dog you ever saw, didnt know at the time but she was a border terrier mix.
She was a very affectionate dog , loved all people and especially kids.
We also had two seabright bantys.
Took her all of half a second to break the neck of the hen, she was so proud.
If you own a border terrier do not let them near your chickens, they are bred to kill small animals and its an instinct you can't stop them from. Later in life I discoverd what bread my dog had been and read that their instinct to kill small animals Increases as they get older, they are known to kill anything from cat size and smaller, and they are very efficent at it.
Just a warning,

(think ive posted this story before but it was worth repeating) The whole insident shocked me at the time, I had no idea that she was capable.

 

[Zenbirder]

From the day I brought my chicks home I held them up often to let my Catahoula Hound Bub-Woo sniff them. I talked to him - he is smart and "gets it" that they are part of our family now. About a week ago my Mom brought her dog Pepper over, a little mut that we knew would want to chase the hens so they were in their yard securely. Well Pepper chased around the pen a minute or so till we caught her and put her back in the truck. Poor Bub-Woo wanted in with his chicks, he went to them and sniffed them to make sure they were OK! He doesn't chase the bunnies, or deer, but if a hawk is around he will run it off. This was his behavior long before we got the chicks. There do seem to be huge differences in breeds of dogs and individual dogs.

 

[montverdechick]

My Catahoulas are not that way. My female (just turned 1 year) gets a little excited and sometimes bays at them when they are in the run. But, if I tell her "no", she will back off. She only gets out of hand when my male (2 1/2 years) is out. Sometimes he leaves them alone and sometimes he runs (and Catahoulas are FAST!) the perimeter of the pen until they all run into their coup. He is better than he was when they first started going out (used to bark loudly and try to dig under the wire). It's getting better as the weeks go on, so maybe one day it won't be a big deal to them. Also, now some of the hens just stand there and look at him instead of running, too funny. For right now, the dogs stay in their 6x12 kennel while the chickens have outside time in the run, then the ladies go in their coup while the dogs have time in the yard. I don't think I will ever let them out in the yard together. I'm sure that if we had the chickens when they were little puppies, it would not be an issue now. But, Catahoulas are hunting and cattle dogs, so who knows...

 

[chickenfeathers]

Chesapeake Bay Retriever...no problems.

 

[robbobbin]

I just wanted to add the I think perhaps your golden retriver was planning on a little snack

My golden retriever has been very courious. The other day I had left the door open to the back room where I have them. All At once Reno came tearing out like his tail was on fire. I ran to see what he had been up to. He had taken one of the 2 day old chicks out of the box and put it on the floor. The chick must have started peeping and he got scared. It wasn't hurt just a litte wet.

He probably did get spooked, but I'd worry about him picking it up like that.​

 

[iopele]

I've got a 15-month-old German Shepherd and there's no way in the world I'd let her around the chickens without careful supervision. She's just far too playful. There was a wild Guinea who used to hang around here (the last of its flock, the others were killed by a skunk) because I think it wanted to be around my father's chickens--we live right next door to him. Anyway, it got into our yard by mistake and Simi killed it before I even knew it was out there... and if you've been around Guineas and know how incredibly loud they are, that'll give you an indication of how fast it happened.

When I got our Araucanas on Thursday, I let her sniff each one as I took it out of the box and put it into the brooder. At the first sniff, she sat right down and tried to shake hands--exactly what she does whenever she thinks she's about to get a treat--gee, think she considers these as food? I growled at her and held the chick close, and she looked really confused, then seemed to understand that these are mine, not hers... but I'm taking no chances.

My cat is the mighty hunter, though, and he's not playful about it at all. He's always catching birds, mice, snakes, lizards, and he kills to eat. He'd snarf one of my babies in a heartbeat. That's why I'm using a converted dog crate (enclosed wire cage) as a brooder, and lined it with 1/4" hardware cloth. No way one of his paws is getting through there! He doesn't bother the big chickens, though. He ran afoul (heh, pun) of Tiny Tim, our Langshan roo, and got his kitty butt kicked all around the chicken yard! Served him right, too... no chicken dinners for the pets!

 

[CoyoteMagic]

I am a dog trainer. In addition, I have an Aussie Cattle Dog who is actually a certified Service Dog for my handicap. She will drop to a sit, down, stay at a look. The parents at my school want me to train their kids to mind like my dog.

Still, there is no way I would leave her alone with my birds. Aussies have a high prey drive. It's just the way they are. I tell her to leave it, and she backs up from the run. But I swear her eyes are spinning around in her head watching the birds. She knows she isn't allowed in the run and doesn't try to get in anymore. However, as soon as we head out the backdoor she runs to check them out.

I go thru this all the time with people on my service dog groups. People expect dogs (even service dogs) never to make a mistake. HELLOOOOOOO!!! It's a dog, not a computer. It is going to react to it's environment and to it's breeding. Some dogs are lower key and not so effected. Some like, Spook, have to be given a job to keep them out of trouble.

Trust me, I have done all I can think of to get her used to the birds. Let her sniff everyone of them. Let her stick her head in the brooder when they were little to check them out. Still she licks her lips the entire time. Has not made a move towards them in any negative way but she is a DOG!!! I trust her with my life, not my chickens! (I did the dead chicken around the neck thing with one of my other dogs, didn't work)

Protect your birds, protect your dog(s), keep them separated unless there is someone with them at all time.

 

[blue fire]

I have a LAZY golden retriver, german shepard, chow mix. He is the best dog I have ever had. At first he snapped at them when our chicks were in the brooder, but I stearnly told him no and he sort of lost intrest, he is very sensitive . Now, 5 weeks later, he sniffs them once and a while, but for the most part, he has lost intrest in the chicks. Most of the time he pays more attention to neighborohood dogs than the chicks. You just need to get the dogs used to the chickens so the don't think they are the greatest, most yummy looking things on earth. I think the chickies even think he is their mommy!

 

[cknmom]

We have a border collie/german shepard/boxer mix puppy that's almost three months old. we have had him running around with our free ranging chickens and roosters since he was about 6wks. He is getting better about not going into the chicken yard while we feed them or check for eggs or take them in or put them away. He is pretty good about not chasing them, but sometimes he just can't help it, he is a puppy after all, and the chickens look so funny when they run. Sometimes they come up onto our deck to eat the puppy food or drink his water, he is aloud to chase them off then. He usually will just chase them to the stairs, but occasionally he will chase them further. They are coming on the deck less often now. I don't think that he is trying to catch them ,he just wants to play. Our 10yr. old rottie walks among the chickens all the time. The other day he was laying under the trampoline and the flock was all under there searching for bugs. The only problem we have is getting the puppy to stop eating the chicken poop!

Monica

 

[tink]

One weiner dog, one jack russel, one pit, 10 chickens, 2 goats, fish, 3 kids....numerous frogs, lizards, and birds......one big happy family Priceless!!lol
Tink