Feeling Very Guilty...Need Advice

[Ringcraft]

Excellent point/reminder! Pitbulls used to be called nanny dogs because they were (still can be) excellent with children.

Unfortunately this is actually a myth. The American Pit Bull Terrier was never a nanny dog, this was a rumor started during the days of the early internet with the goal of getting more adopted from shelters. While the American Pit Bull Terrier CAN be an excellent family pet, it's important to remember that these dogs are strong, energetic, and typically have very high prey drive (including dog-on-dog aggression).

Pretending that a dog is something it isn't is a disservice to the breed. Love Pit Bulls for what they are. Don't try to turn them into something different.

 

[lbgreenfield]

As a dog lover and trainer, I am sorry about your situation. This is what I know.
A Border Collie is bred to have a High prey drive and a Pit is bred to hunt and attack the head. Like in hog hunting.
When you have the two breeds together, you have what you adopted. Now, with that being said, as a puppy the obedience training (that obviously did not happen) needed a strong Alpha handler that could work the pup multiple times daily in a balanced obedience method. Unfortunately, none of that happened.
Your grown dog that you adopted, has many issues that are in the two breeds themselves and has been permitted to mature into unruly behavior.
Only with advanced skilled training could you break said dog from the herd/kill mind set.
Training, training, training.
My advice to you is this.
RETURN THE DOG.
Get yourself a pup that you train to be the dog you desire.
Vicki
Your life will return to a normal fashion without heartache.

Read my update posted on 24 Nov

 

[beezerbrit]

I dont think you need to feel guilty, but if you do, maybe I should too! We have a newfy puppy who has been through every training program possible, and we have tried EVERY SINGLE THING we can but he has gotten 3 chickens so far and we just couldn't do it anymore.

We put a fence up on the side yard and that is the chicken zone. They free range and go all over the yard when the pup is inside, and get corralled into their zone when the dog is out. They are able to free range in their part of the yard (our side yard) and the dog has the backyard. Although after a couple weeks, they picked the side yard clean, which is why we give them access to the rest of the property as much as we can!

He is not vicious with them but he is 140 pounds and doesn't play gently. I wish we could get them all to coexist or just at least ignore each other. Good luck!

 

[Folly's place]

Any new dog is going to be a real risk to your chickens!
You did pick a sweet guy, who hasn't had a good life, and he is going to be a challenge. This is a marathon, not going to be fixed in two weeks, so TRY to relax and think LONG HAUL, but worth it.
Every interaction is a training interaction! He's smart, stressed, and looking for direction, and that's you. He's also, if actually the breeds mentioned, going to have that very high prey drive, and very high need for exercise, and walking on lead isn't enough. Too bad you don't train for marathons! A tired dog is a good dog...
Actually, if you do have a friend who runs, maybe they would like a running buddy, and could take him out for you. Dog parks, maybe, but they can be danger zones, especially with a new dog who's not really bonded to you yet. And off lead except within fencing, no way!
One of my rescue dogs couldn't be crated either, and we had to literally chain him to a metal post in the garage if we left him alone, until the house training was good.
It can be possible to crate train through this, and deal with the separation anxiety so many rescue dogs experience, and it often takes meds with the retraining to work. Your vet is a resource here, and if there's a veterinary behaviorist available, find out!
Mary

 

[RedLionChooks]

UPDATE: 24 November 2020

Hi everyone. I wanted to provide a ~6 month update for Meatball (dog), the chickens, and how everyone is doing. And my oh my, what a difference time and effective training make!

Shortly after I wrote my original post, I invested in a SportDog e-collar and it has been a true lifesaver. Meatball responded so well to e-collar training with me and knows about 8 commands now (sit, stay, come, heel, lay down, place, shake, and emergency recall). It took about 4 weeks of multiple, short (less than 10min) daily training sessions with and without the e-collar for him to be able to learn all these things. He doesn’t need the e-collar on to respond to these commands too! I actually did all the training on my own after watching the videos that came with the collar and a few YouTube videos. He’s been socialized with a few family and friend’s dogs and he is great with other dogs, loves to play and be around everyone.

As for the chickens and Meatball, he has learned that the ladies are 100% off limits. He will never be a poultry guard dog but he is so much more well behaved now than before. We just recently got to the point where we can let him off leash (but still wearing the e-collar) and let him be outside the fence when the chickens are out free-ranging. He actually is more interested in chasing squirrels than the chickens! When I was doing his “intense” training, I would make him sit and stay right by the run/coop with the chickens inside while I would go collect eggs and clean the coop. I think doing that every day got him used to seeing/smelling the chickens. I would inch him closer to the run fencing every few days until he’s to the point now where he’s laying right up against the run fencing. I don’t think we will ever get to the point of letting him off leash with no e-collar with everyone free ranging but I’ll take what I have now!

Anyways, thanks for everyone’s encouragement! I’ll leave you with a photo that sums up Meatball’s progress

What a great follow up story! Very inspiring and encouraging. Congratulations on your determination and consistency for a great outcome for everyone! Meatball is THE CUTEST!! Thanks so much for taking the time to post, and best of luck with future training!

 

[Folly's place]

Excellent news! Persistence has payed off, good for you.
Mary

 

[LateBirdFarms]

I would personally build a chain link kennel if the space and resources were available, that way the dog can have the see but don't touch introduction and the chickens could have their yard time.

I know a lot of people don't agree with the use of a static training collar, but I would use one in this case. Most dogs are clever and will learn really quickly that if someone pushed the vibration or beeper button, if they don't stop what they're doing there's going to be a little zap next! And that's training you can do while your rescue is in a kennel or tied out away from the chickens. Anytime your dog lunges at a passing chicken dinner, you press a button ... eventually you might be able to trust him to be free around your chickens (with supervision of course!)

 

[Heatherella]

Don’t feel guilty! You are doing the very best you can and the fact that you feel so guilty just shows what a caring and kind person you are!

I am a veterinary technician with almost 20 years experience, and I implore you to be proactive with your new dog. I would schedule a vet visit to discuss the separation anxiety/ behavior issues. If handled early, this can be manageable, but if left without intervention, dogs can become increasingly destructive and problematic. It can be a very difficult disorder to treat. Be proactive! This behavior is very common in dogs who are high energy and have a difficult start in life. You have not done anything wrong at all! Your veterinarian will have recommendations and advice, even medications if necessary. I am not sure where you live but all veterinarians were essential in my state, and we stayed open with certain precautions in place. Call around and find someone who can see you ASAP or ask for a phone consultation. I would I would also ask your vet for referral to an animal behaviorist. Be sure to ask a lot of questions and trust your instincts. You want a trainer that does positive reinforcement training. There are a lot of bad animal behaviorists out there, so be careful!

With patience and time, you can teach your dog balanced behavior around the chickens and when alone in the house. That said, he may always be a dog with a prey drive too high to quietly sleep while the chickens roam about, but you can manage it! I have a Standard Poodle, and he loves nothing more than chasing my chickens. Oh, it’s such a fun game for him! I’ve not had any luck working with him on it. So, he stays inside while the ladies free range some of the day, then they all go into their run and are perfectly happy.

Best of luck to you!

 

[lbgreenfield]

Your dog sounds like our dog...who is a lab crossed with some other hunting breed and wants to hunt our cats...we've managed to keep them alive so far, but we know we can't get chickens with her around. Somebody else in a thread about a lab said that when their dog killed a chicken as a puppy they did a jeckle and hyde thing where they picked up a chew toy in one hand, dead chicken in the other, and was nice to them and played with them when they went for the chew toy, but yelled at them and was mean when they went for the bird. Their dog gets along great with chickens now. Of course your dog doesn't like chew toys at all...so you'd have to substitute something else, and u don't want the dog to kill a chicken, but if it does end up happening u ight as well try it. If you can find the dog another home you may have to, and be more careful when picking your next dog if at all possible.

If we do rehome or surrender him back to the dog pound, I don't plan to get another dog/cat/etc. I will stick with chickens.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

What are you using for treats when training? If he's losing interest quickly, either your treats are too big or they are not high enough "value." Or both. Try tiny bits of hot dog. And only give one per right response. Make him work for it, and quit while he's still motivated. Don't work to the point that he loses interest. Several short sessions a day will bring you success much sooner than one marathon session that leaves him bored.