Dogs

[sloper74]

Make sure the dog gets plenty of regular exercise, a tired dog is less likely to attack (though not impossible).

We have an Australian cattle dog that killed one when we first got her, but hasn't since. We have 12 ducks and 70 chickens and she just lays there and watches them. Some of our chickens are so bold to go right up to her and pick flies off her. She seems to know now that they are not food.

Our neighbors dogs are a different story....

 

[chicken_love]

so they just have to get used to having the chickens around. And get exercise and training.

 

[sloper74]

Yeah, I think exercise is huge. But you can train them easily. First train them to sit by your command. Then take them out near the chicken run and have them sit. Have someone else go in and handle the chickens and you sit by the dog, making sure she is sitting. Then, you can bring a chicken out with your hands and walk nonchalantly around the dog, not making a big stink about it.
Then, with the dog on the leash, put the chicken on the ground and continue to expect her to sit (hold the leash in case she doesn't). Let the chicken run around and graze while the dog watches. Then you can take the dog in the chicken coop and do the same thing.

It is a process and isn't easy. If you exercise the dog first before the daily training lessons, it will help. Honestly, I wouldn't get another dog until you have the 2 current dogs trained.
Our neighbors dogs are not trained and we have no leash law, and they've killed at least 5 chickens. We have told them if we catch them again, we will shoot the dogs (animal control here told us we could shoot the dog if even he was in our yard and had a hx of killing chickens). They've been better since then, thankfully, but we always try to keep a watchful eye. Right now the dogs are more interested in our chicken feed than our chickens.

Then you have the stray hunting dogs that come through...coyotes, raccoons, snakes...the list goes on. There's always something that thinks a chicken would be a good meal. Periodically, walk your fence/coop line to check for gaps, that might help as well, at least for the dogs.

 

[EboyDog]

I'm working daily with my golden retriever, when I get home from work, she gets a treat and gets tied up to a cable, then I let the chickens out to free range the rest of the evening until they go back into their coop.

If I let my dog loose, she goes nuts for about 20 minutes, running around the house and the coop so I have started taking her on a lease when I let her off the cable and we take a calm walk around the house and even into the coop were she sniffs around and the chickens pretty much ignore her.

After we leave the coop and lock the gate, we sit down and watch the chicken for a bit then we walk (all this calmly) back to the house.

So far this has had good results to the best that I can see, the dog is young, just about a little over a year old and FULL of energy so anything he reacts in a calm manner I reward her with a treat.

With this approach I use I feel that I am showing her that these are "our" chickens and impress that they are not her play things. THis dog mind you has killed two chickens, never really eaten them and held a little bantem hostage until I rescued it and so far I feel I finally getting though to her.

The best part is that the lawn chair that Missy and I fight over (it's like musical chairs then we are near it and I must "fight" to get the right to sit in it!!) but I moved that lawn chair out near the coop and despite coon, possums and skunks everywere around the area, so far I have not had preditor raid the coop as she sleeps at night in the chair.

I goal is the be able have both the chickens and dog loose during the day and given the young age of both the dog and the chickens, I am sure by the end of the summer, I will get that point!

(Let's NOT talk about the two rabbits I had in with the chicks a couple months ago....)