Herding Dogs trained to herd chickens

[mauigirl]

Have been considering a mini aussie that has been trained to herd chickens or i can train to herd chickens. Anyone out there that has feedback??

 

[JLGauntt]

My chickens are allowed to free-range in the backyard in the mornings for a couple of hours before I leave for work. My border collies (who were already trained on sheep) help me to gather the chickens back into their coop. It's been a very good arrangement for all of us -- calling the chickens to treats kind of worked, but a dog helps me get the job done in a minute or so even if the chickens are not inclined to get back in the coop at that particular time. And the border collies enjoy the work.

 

[chickchick8]

I have an Aussie and she is a wonderful chicken herder! We go at it a little differently than folks who herd hoofstock, but it works for us and our situation. She moves chickens up and out of 'prohibited' areas as well as pushing them out of the woods when they get too far away and won't come when they're called. (This is not chasing, it is calculated behavior.) I can also tell her to 'take care of it' if there is a fight in the barn yard or a rooster is just getting a bit too obnoxious around the hens. The birds aren't afraid of her but they respect her and generally fall into line. She is never physically aggressive with them.

I love watching her work, especially when she drops her head and moves very purposefully. It's amazing how the prey drive can be shaped. She loves working the birds. Lately, her favorite thing is escorting the guineas off the porch!

Granted, Pheobe comes from working stock with a very high drive and it took a few years to get to this place where I trust her without reservation, but the work was worth it. (She never killed any birds, but as a puppy/young dog she had two speeds: wide open and stop, neither of which were predictable around stock.) She is four years old now. She does check back with me, but most of the time it's from a distance. They don't all feel the need to come back to you every time if you teach them early on to wait for direction on the out.

Aussies are like humans with fur, especially after they become mentally mature. You'll never find a more loyal or intelligent all-around dog in my opinion. They are both farm dogs and lap dogs. Ready to work or play anytime but they know when to turn it off and just chill.

The thing about training herding dogs is to not throw them into it before they can mentally handle it. Puppies only understand what herding is in relation to chasing. They know it's fun and their instinct tells them to go for it. Should something happen and they get corrected, perhaps many times or over zeallously by their human or the stock itself, a diminished desire to work could form. OR the opposite and they just become dangerous around stock. OR, they learn all kinds of bad habits that are hard to work out once the strategic training begins. Keep in mind, you are working on modifying the prey drive. That is what herding instinct is all about. Most working dogs aren't put into training until they are at least 2 years old. They may be introduced to stock, even had instinct testing done, but as far as allowing them to run with the animals or attempting to teach them herding as a whole- that's not a good idea. They just aren't mentally developed enough to handle it.

 

[KristyHall]

People in the herding group say you can't herd chickens but I disagree. I have an australian shepherd who herds them. The trick is, he cant go at them like he does other live stock. he has to larn to keep his distance so they don't scatter.

he is a wonderful dog,and I love ausies. They are great family dogs, usually good tempered, and very devoted to their humans. The only trouble I have with the breed is that they can get so devoted they have to constantly come back to their master to "check" on them while working, so you have to constantly redirect them back to their job, they can be hard headed (but all herding breeds can be heard headed), and you have to be careful with them during the heat if you live in the south like I do. I shave his bely, under his legs, chest and bottom to help him stay cool

 

[Nmarine1057]

This shouldn't be hard to do as long as the dog knows not to hurt them. My Boston Terrier was easily trained to herd my chickens, she liked to chase them in the first place and I would tell her to leave them alone once she learned they weren't food I started to give them command "Get Em" and she would run after them. The chickens aren't stupid and immediately head toward their coop. Now any time my chickens are being bad and destroying my wife's garden I can easily round them up. You can also try to teach your chickens to come when you call, just say something like "Here chick chick" every time you feed them it wont take them long to recognize this call as the dinner bell! Hope this helps

 

[pdsavage]

No need to get a dog when they will run to you if you have a bucket or treats.

 

[Baymule]

I've had several Aussies, but never herded chickens with them. Where I bought my first Aussie, the breeders started their pups on ducks before moving them up to small livestock. Aussies are incredibly smart, no reason why they can't be trained to herd chickens. Knew a fella one time who sent his Aussie in the coop to gather the eggs, one at a time.

 

[debilorrah]

My border collie would herd anything from legos to children. No worries.

 

[Crazy4mypeeps]

Our blue healer / Aussie mix helps quite frequently. He's pretty gentile and doesn't get over zealous about running at them. I'd say it can be done with a bread that has the instinct to heard.

 

[gamebirdboy]

My border collie will herd chickens, rabbits, and lawn mowers...

He chases our rabbits around the deck, my brother's rabbit follows him all day long. He'll always herd silkies, he never bites anything, he just nudges them with his nose. The chickens aren't scared of him anymore, its pretty funny.