English Shepherd as Poultry Guardian

[centrarchid]

Pattern evident with single pups much more pronounced with a litter. Each day as the pups get better at causing trouble, they have to be reminded what the boundaries are. As a "pack" they are much quicker to go after chickens. Penned chickens that are calm or like most game rooster inclined to fight through wire are not of interest to pups. Birds that got flighty got harassed until I intervened. With free-range chickens a couple of pups like to go bowling by simply running through a flock making them part. The pups are getting to associate sights, sounds and smells as they relate to chicken behaviors.

We are investing in this with pups in a much more intensive manner where free-range interaction goes for at least 2 hours per day. Kids playing a major role although I have to watch kids too.

What I am looking for are opportunities for pups to be introduced to a raptor or better yet a fox / coyote. Adults go bonkers over those stimuli. Pups will be shown the bad guys and riled. The problem is that in actual practice coming across those critters is comparatively rare. Hopefully the adults will bag a raccoon so pups can chew on carcass. We have not even seen a raccoon on cameras for over 2 months (before pups where born). Lots of owl action, but none in barn where pups are kenneled at night.

 

[centrarchid]

Today I took litter out to woods where I sat in a chair for better part of an hour. This was after they got hard run with kids around house for a similar amount of time. I neglected to stop male pup from following his father on a patrol around property. I assumed Ben was going just for short stroll before coming back. In reality Ben took the pup for a 20 minute walk, long enough for me to become very concerned. When I was looking for a good 15 minutes Ben came in from direction of house without pup. Panic set in. I got get kids and took balance of pups back to barn with kids in the lead. Missing pup was excitedly waiting between house and barn. Little squirt. Focus now to keep pups interested in things not chickens away from yard proper.

 

[centrarchid]

Early this morning Ben and Lucy engage other dogs in a running battle down the road running north of house. Lucy for some reason hung back although she was showing attitude. Pups in barn where doing some limited barking in concert with adults. Otherwise the pups are generally quite.

There has been a marked increase in the number of dogs in the area. Someone is rearing pups in trailer just a little over 100 feet past barn. Both neighbors to N increased their number of dogs by two each. None of the dogs serve a purpose beyond fertilizing yard. Most of my dog investment is to keep all those neighbor dogs off my chickens.


This was today.

 

[centrarchid]

We just took out a Virginia Oppossum. Lucy treed it, I shot it out. Lucy went still mouth when I got close.

 

[centrarchid]

German Shepherd female and Wolf Hybrid got into fight with neighbors' dog to north. Then dogs came into hour yard briefly as kids released Ben, Lucy and puppies. Only male got into fight with neighbors dog. I had trouble calling Ben back. Neighbors dog did damage hybrid although neighbor may have helped out. For some reason neighbor thought those dogs where mine. Those dogs followed his vehicle as he attempted to bring them back to me almost getting a fight going again. I penned all my dogs. Rifle will be used to settle if they come back. Point of origin appears to be a bar about 3 miles away. Too many dogs and most do nothing.

 

[centrarchid]

Three adult females. Pups harassing their father Ben behind me.

Pups were great all day until they came across hens placed into quarantine pens. Pups apparently realized the hens were not something they were told no about they they wanted some quarantine hen. I had to say no. Then we walked through multiple groups of "our" chickens they knew with minimal issue.

 

[centrarchid]

 

[centrarchid]

75 days old. Behavior of pups changed markedly in one day. Up to now, when pups released they have been constantly running about getting into one issue after another. Today pups much slower being more careful to investigate stimuli. They were careful to closely inspect when their father treed a Fox Squirrel and when Lucy found a family of rats in a log. Some pups watched as Lucy tried to flush rats while others stood with Honey as she waited for rats to flush in her direction. Pups clearly watching adults. When Ben and Honey went to mark territory perimeter pups came back to hang with my son, Lucy and I. Lucy does not mark in conspicuous areas like intact adult dogs of high rank; a trade off with neutering.

Very soon we will start taking pups out singly to initiate training to leash and learning basic commands. Pups running together does not work at all for that, at least not with my skill set. The pups and adults still acting as networked individuals.

 

[aart]

Behavior of pups changed markedly in one day.

Cool. Might include age in weeks as you document?

 

[centrarchid]

Cool. Might include age in weeks as you document?

Started with edit of last post.