DOGS!!!

[Birdy Buddy]

Maybe someone has a little advice introducing two older big dogs to my two month old flock. Both dogs I think are born chicken thieves. One is a German Shorthair Pointer who intently watches the chickens inside their run while standing like a statue. He will stand there while the chickens go about their business. The other dog is a big galoot that looks like a black Irish Setter. He loves to startle the chickens and all those wings flapping and loud clucking is awfully exciting to him now.
My chicken area is dog proof but I hope to train them to ignore the chickens to the point where I can eventually open the back gate and let them free range together. It would be nice to have the dogs in the back of my lot to keep the squirrels out of my fruit trees.
They learn fast but I am not too optimistic about them getting along for a while. Any suggestions on introducing dogs to chickens?

 

[DuckGirl77]

Ok guys,I might get a new dog if a get rid of my dog.my fav. Breed is a German shepherd.are they nice?for a family pet?

Yes, but keep in mind that proper training is very important if you want a well-behaved dog. Even a GSD can behave badly if he is not trained.

thats fair. i hope he finds a good home, tho
and german shepherds are pretty well tempered and intelligent, i think, so getting one would probably be fine but idk id do some research first

x2

Maybe someone has a little advice introducing two older big dogs to my two month old flock. Both dogs I think are born chicken thieves. One is a German Shorthair Pointer who intently watches the chickens inside their run while standing like a statue. He will stand there while the chickens go about their business. The other dog is a big galoot that looks like a black Irish Setter. He loves to startle the chickens and all those wings flapping and loud clucking is awfully exciting to him now.
My chicken area is dog proof but I hope to train them to ignore the chickens to the point where I can eventually open the back gate and let them free range together. It would be nice to have the dogs in the back of my lot to keep the squirrels out of my fruit trees.
They learn fast but I am not too optimistic about them getting along for a while. Any suggestions on introducing dogs to chickens?

Awww they are gorgeous! I love German Shorthair Pointers! As far as introducing the dog to the chickens, here's what I did: I decided to take him with me when I went out to take care of them, but I put him on a leash so he couldn't chase them (they were in a fence; he couldn't actually get them.) He got used to them and learned he couldn't get them since they were in a fence, although he still sat near the fence and was definitely not to be trusted. One day, a chicken flew out and he almost caught her. I stopped him, grabbed him by the collar and took him somewhat close (not close enough to scare the living daylights out of the frightened chicken, but close enough he could see what he was being punished for), and I corrected him. I'm pretty sure I used a choke chain to do that, but there are better collars that would probably be more effective. That's what I had at the time, and it worked very well. Eventually, I decided to free range the chickens. That was a big step, since he would have the ability to go after them now, but he did not bother them too much. However, he was a little too interested still. He wanted to sniff them, and then they would run away and he'd chase them. I had to correct him for this behavior. Finally, he wasn't chasing them much, but he was still very curious, especially when I got my ducks, which he had never seen - or smelled- before. I didn't mind him smelling them, but he was not allowed to chase or injure them. He didn't really want to catch them; he just wanted to sniff them, but they ran away every time he tried, so he chased them. I had to correct him and tell him "no" when it got out of hand. Now, they all free range and I never have to worry about him bothering them. Even if I go inside and leave him out there alone with the chickens, he never bothers them.

 

[Hackle Master]

Halloween last year for my monsters lol

 

[DuckGirl77]

Quote:Haha nice!

 

[howfunkyisurchicken]

Dogs can get samonella from eating raw eggs or.... We still let our dogs eat the raw eggs & have not had a problem. Just a heads up of something to be aware of & watch out for.

My dogs eat poop. And dead stuff. And all kinds of other things I don't want to think about. I'm not too worried about an egg, lol!

 

[evanicole]

I have 6 dogs 3 toy poodles 1 lab boxer mix and 1 lab Shepard mix

 

[DuckGirl77]

I have 6 dogs 3 toy poodles 1 lab boxer mix and 1 lab Shepard mix

Wow! That sounds like Heaven ....

 

[Hackle Master]

My little Winston in his new bed we brought it home and went right to it and laid down and fell asleep with his ball in his mouth lol

 

[Hackle Master]

My baby girl Cabella lee like my bed tho lol

 

[DuckGirl77]

My little Winston in his new bed we brought it home and went right to it and laid down and fell asleep with his ball in his mouth lol

LOL Awwwww!

My baby girl Cabella lee like my bed tho lol

Haha! She's so gorgeous!