Dogs that are good with chickens?

[MadamContrary]

I have a Boston Terrier, he's 6 now, he's always just been around the birds while in thier runs. We made no real efforts to train him other than to tell him no when he seemed too interested in thier food or activities. They past few years it has only been quail, but this year we got chickens again. The youngest (12 weeks) just started getting to roam the backyard freely, normally when I let the dog out I put up the chickens first. Well the inevitable happened and my husband let the dog out without checking for the birds and thankfully everyone was fine. So I put the dog on a leash and took him out with me the next time to see how they were reacting to one another. Complete indifference! So I think like many animals, familiarity makes the biggest difference. Obviously no birding breeds or anything with a huge prey drive like rat terriers, and there's always the temperament of the individual dog, but I think applying the same see no touch kind of scenario we do with introducing chickens to one another is very helpful. If you want to adopt you could always consider taking a chicken in with you to see the dogs reactions most rescues allow you to bring current pets as long as they're up to date on a vaccinations and I don't think that applies to chickens

 

[Melontine]

No recommendation in breeds, they all have their ups and downs. I’d say just focus on finding a dog who meshes well with your family and the rest will come.

My household has four dogs. All of them are relatively good around my cats and chickens.

I have a terrier mix who is quite protective of our house but she surprises me with her ability to know which animals I want protected and which are ok to chase. New cats, kittens, chicks, and chickens are to be protected, but she’s okay to hunt rats or chase off a raccoon.
If cats are fighting she’s allowed to break it up, or if cats are stalking the hens she’s allowed to tell them off but not chase them.
She picked up these skills later in life with no one really training her, but she’s in tune with our family and knows what will get her scolded and what would get her praised. Even when we’re not around.

Next we have a Pomeranian and a chihuahua who couldn’t care less. Sometimes the chihuahua will follow the terrier, but generally she adores tiny animals and is happy to watch over them from a safe distance.

And our new puppy, our Australian Shepard. She’s a good puppy, her only issue is she loves to make our rooster mad. We’re still working with training her, and she’s quick to come when called. I worry about her energy and prey drive, and her picking up bad habits. But so far as I take her out with me, she’s doing very well around our flock.

 

[Studabird]

You never had a Malamute or a Husky.

Touche’ I have actually had a husky and wouldn’t have left her alone with chickens if I wanted to come back to them. She thought all things that lived and weren’t me should die or go far far away.

 

[addctd2plnts]

Hi everyone,

I'm looking to adopt a dog who can be left with chickens, as well as a pretty long list of other factors to consider. Does anyone know any breeds that fit these? Also have just been informed by dad that he can't stand drooling haha. I know a lot of these are dependent on the individual dog - I will either be getting a puppy and training it well or adopting an adult dog that seems to fit these characteristics. Still, knowing which breeds fit the general criteria helps narrow things down a LOT.

I live in a small town in the countryside. Low traffic, low crime rates etc. Lots of nice trails nearby and a good dog friendly park down the road.

LOW PREY DRIVE (ESSENTIAL)

I have chickens that have full access to the back garden. I will try to supervise as much as possible and keep seperate where possible, but f I'm going to have this dog for 10+ years, it's bound to get out when I'm not looking at some point. I need to know I can trust the dog around them as well as a cat. It can't just TOLERATE the cat, they have to actually get along decently because I don't want to risk stressing her out. Appropriate measures to ensure they have separate "safe spaces" will be taken. Dog also needs to be trustworthy around young kids.

EXERCISE REQUIREMENTS

Right now, I go running for 30 minutes every day and can squeeze in a decent walk too between family members. We would probably also do a long (2-4 hours) walk once a week. One hour walk a day (+ run) is the absolute maximum for daily requirements. Would probably prefer less but an hour is doable. Also do not want a couch potato dog that we'll have to drag everywhere.

TRAINING

Would LOVE a highly intelligent dog. Must be moderately easy to train - obedience is a must.

BEHAVIOUR (these are preferences, not essential)

- A dog that loves to swim would be amazing. During summer we take weekly beach trips and regularly go paddleboarding.

- Dog will pretty much never be left home alone since my mum works from home.

- Some barking is tolerable but I have a neighbour who loves to complain, so nothing excessive.

- While it is important for the dog to be good with kids and NOT overly aggressive, a moderately protective dog would be good. I am a 5'2 female who runs alone, sometimes at night, and a protective dog would make me feel a lot safer.

So far I've looked at livestock guardian dogs, but they all seem to have huge exercise requirements. Does anyone have personal experience with them?

Also, I hear golden retrievers are great with cats & chickens but also that retrievers have a strong impulse to catch and kill? Same with vizslas and other pointer dogs. My dad LOVES vizslas but I've heard mixed things about their impulses. People seem to either say they're great with chickens, or one of the worst breeds.

Anyway, thanks so much to anyone who has read through this. If any breeds come to mind, or any advice for training, I'm all ears.

Issy x

I've fostered for rescues for 20 years. I have also owned Leonbergers and Pyrenean Mastiffs.

Leonbergers LOVE to swim. Ours swam every day with my children. They are a breed that is gentle and kind once fully grown. I like that they can have a walk, then plop down for hours. They LOVE people and children. Only one of mine had a real prey drive and the breeder knew it and warned me the Dam had a high prey drive. When you raise them with ducks/chickens, you never let them start paying any extra attention to them. And you never leave them alone for the first 6 months, till you are very sure they are calm with the birds. They are smart, not like a Doberman smart, but very perceptive with when you're in danger. They aren't known as protective dogs, but I've had two do outstanding things, when people in the family needed to be protected. It's rare they need to. They are huge and for some reason the black mask they have scares the bad people. It's nice because they are reliably friendly and you when they aren't you really know the person is trouble. To learn about them and find a reliable breeder, go to The Leonberger Club of America website.

The other breed I've had that is actually a livestock guardian breed, is the Pyrenean Mastiff. Mine was kinda a handful in the guard dept, but he was a rescue who depended on male Leonberger to be the pack leader. When "Aslan" died, the PM, "Rutger" was not secure enough to be the leader of my pack. But PMs are known for being reliable watchdogs. I miss Rutger's bark SO MUCH! When you heard it, you knew the biggest dog you'd ever see was coming LOL He was 165 lbs of pure muscle. He didn't have a flock to guard but he watched over my children. If I left them to run to the store, they said he got up off the couch every 20 minutes, walked to ever window and looked around till he was satisfied everything was good, then went back to the couch for 20 minutes LOL I plan to get another one for inside the house and one to guard the ducks we have. Rutger was the only dog I've had in a 1000 fosters, who would actually die protecting me, and he was a formidable force. He was also very good with our children, all 8 of them. He liked swimming but I think it's because all our dogs followed what the Leos did LOL

Anyway, I thought these would be two breeds you haven't heard of. Giant dogs do absolutely require you take them to training classes, but so do highly intelligent dogs. All the dogs we get in rescue are dogs owners never trained. Hope you find a neat breed. I love the breed differences! BTW Dobermans might be one to think of....

 

[mschickiemama]

Hi everyone,

I'm looking to adopt a dog who can be left with chickens, as well as a pretty long list of other factors to consider. Does anyone know any breeds that fit these? Also have just been informed by dad that he can't stand drooling haha. I know a lot of these are dependent on the individual dog - I will either be getting a puppy and training it well or adopting an adult dog that seems to fit these characteristics. Still, knowing which breeds fit the general criteria helps narrow things down a LOT.

I live in a small town in the countryside. Low traffic, low crime rates etc. Lots of nice trails nearby and a good dog friendly park down the road.

LOW PREY DRIVE (ESSENTIAL)

I have chickens that have full access to the back garden. I will try to supervise as much as possible and keep seperate where possible, but f I'm going to have this dog for 10+ years, it's bound to get out when I'm not looking at some point. I need to know I can trust the dog around them as well as a cat. It can't just TOLERATE the cat, they have to actually get along decently because I don't want to risk stressing her out. Appropriate measures to ensure they have separate "safe spaces" will be taken. Dog also needs to be trustworthy around young kids.

EXERCISE REQUIREMENTS

Right now, I go running for 30 minutes every day and can squeeze in a decent walk too between family members. We would probably also do a long (2-4 hours) walk once a week. One hour walk a day (+ run) is the absolute maximum for daily requirements. Would probably prefer less but an hour is doable. Also do not want a couch potato dog that we'll have to drag everywhere.

TRAINING

Would LOVE a highly intelligent dog. Must be moderately easy to train - obedience is a must.

BEHAVIOUR (these are preferences, not essential)

- A dog that loves to swim would be amazing. During summer we take weekly beach trips and regularly go paddleboarding.

- Dog will pretty much never be left home alone since my mum works from home.

- Some barking is tolerable but I have a neighbour who loves to complain, so nothing excessive.

- While it is important for the dog to be good with kids and NOT overly aggressive, a moderately protective dog would be good. I am a 5'2 female who runs alone, sometimes at night, and a protective dog would make me feel a lot safer.

So far I've looked at livestock guardian dogs, but they all seem to have huge exercise requirements. Does anyone have personal experience with them?

Also, I hear golden retrievers are great with cats & chickens but also that retrievers have a strong impulse to catch and kill? Same with vizslas and other pointer dogs. My dad LOVES vizslas but I've heard mixed things about their impulses. People seem to either say they're great with chickens, or one of the worst breeds.

Anyway, thanks so much to anyone who has read through this. If any breeds come to mind, or any advice for training, I'm all ears.

Issy x

My Labrador retriever was good with the chickens. Sprayed her face with water when she first saw them so she knew to be nice. She let the chickens lay and sunbathe right next to her. Our current goldendoodles also are nice and our standard poodle chased them as a puppy but not anymore. He did nip one of my hens before when she tried to get some food I put out (I saw small blood spot on her comb) so I'm just careful about food.

 

[McChooky]

Oh my! I'm so sorry. I agree about small dogs not being well suited for this. My Maltese wants to eat my chickens so I don't have them around each other. I tried letting him sniff my jerk rooster and he was a bit intimidated but still just wanted to eat them. He has to walk by my small flock of ducks every day for over a year now and I still keep his leash close to me knowing that he may bolt after them at any moment. My little girl Maltese is very timid around the chickens and ducks but that doesn't mean that wouldn't change if I wasn't there to guide her. I'm so sorry this happened to you. What makes it even more difficult is knowing that the dog isn't bad, so we're left dealing with more emotion.

My neighbor has basset hounds. They escaped their enclosure and came to visit my chickens. They wanted to play and could have easily killed several of my birds but they didn't (my chickens were terrified and didn't find their surprise visit fun at all, neither did I). Of course I do not trust these dogs around my flocks, but I believe this breed could be trained to behave around them. Of course I don't own one and can't say for sure, so I only mention this in case you find more information. They're sweet dogs around my daughter as well.

Not everyone is successful at training dogs (esp those with a high prey drive) I tried to train my Husky not to kill animals for years but had to re-home him.

 

[Whatthecheep]

Runner here as well . I have a black lab (a year old now) who is great with chickens and ducks (he tries to share the pool with the ducks but they shoo him out). He is also an amazing running friend. I take him off lead alot on the trails, but he is good with a leash as well. Loves to swim, and do anything that your doing. My best friend. I also have two huskies (amazing running partners ON lead lol), but I wouldn't trust them for a second alone with any kind of bird (one has proved herself countless times, but I still don't trust it). I think it basically boils down to time, training, trust and patience with any dog. Some are easier than others, even if it is the same breed.

 

[Cupcake1243]

I have a cane Corso which was always good around our hens, also good around the cat, ( he just wanted to play with them but didn’t know his own weight !) He learnt to accept them as part of the family. But on protective basis, they are very protective especially of little kids!

 

[JaeG]

Our Lab cross mutt, Honey, was an adult by the time we got chickens. She's always ignored them and I would trust her if I had to leave her unattended with them. She's only interested in their eggs (yummy!) or poop (yummy!).

I had a tiny bantam hen who was raising a lone duckling for me, and they decided Honey's kennel was better than where I'd been letting them sleep. I think they would have willingly shared, but Honey didn't like that idea and so she would sleep outside or under the house.

I think she was well trained, first by our old cat who didn't take any nonsense from dogs, and then by our younger white cat who strongly dislikes dogs (her nicknames include Shredder, and The White Demon). I think Honey just figures it's easier to mind your own beeswax!

I taught her not to bark unless a stranger is entering the property, and then she's not allowed to bark excessively. She's also obsessed with food (what Lab isn't) so very easy to train.

In our old neighbourhood we used to walk past a Viszla. Scariest dog ever! But I'm sure a well trained one would be lovely.

 

[Mrs J]

We have 3 dogs, a french bulldog, saluki whippet cross and an American bulldog crossed with a canarian mastiff. They are brilliant with our hens/cockerels. I must add, they have all been spayed (as soon as they turned 1yr old) which might have something to do with it, but they have also had obedience training and we have socialised them with our flock, countless cups of tea sitting outside on our fishing chairs! ️ I don’t think you need to worry IF your dog is properly trained. As my grandad said (it’s mostly the owners that need training..not the dogs) Good luck