How fast do your chickens stop laying in autumn vs dog scare

[Bantam bell Wood]

You are right, my thoughts of fury aren't going to feed a hen until her senior years. From my experience, local law interprets full damages as "cost to make how it was before" (homeowner's insurance didn't want to pay to replace our flooded flooring with the exact same thing after water damage, we had to get picky on their contract verbiage). As it would cost me chick, shipping, heat lamp power, bedding and feed until laying maturity to replace any of my hens, I don't feel I would be exaggerating the cost to replace. Not when any of us could break down the math and produce receipts. I pray it doesn't come to this, as I don't want to lose any hens, nor frankly make an enemy of my neighbor.

My neighbor did sound especially concerned about the dog's interest in chickens. Many dogs (including ours) will bound along the fence, sniff at the silly chickens, then move on. I'm hoping this dog will be the same and only scared my hens so badly due to the barking, which the seems to do when confronted with anything new. The other kind of dog, that won't stop until it has dispatched chickens, isn't really trainable.

A friend of mine suggested I buy a can of bear mace or a pepper ball launcher, which while both would be unpleasant, would offer similar effect to the education offered by a skunk. My concern then is if vapors got too close to my chickens.

I've got my clay pellets and slingshot, and hopefully my neighbors cooperation. I'm praying this all comes to nothing.

I’m really sorry to learn about the dog situation, my neighbors thankfully are all aware that I have chickens and we cooperate. They’re responsible to a fault, I like to think that I am too. Only one funny or troubling thing about my birds.

A friend/neighbor with a Blood Hound, who has also kept chickens was visiting in the garden the other night. Said dog is not a chicken attack dog, although of course is a dog and curious about the birds. I let them free range sometimes when I’m home for a half hour or so before sunset if I’m outdoors with them. They were meandering around in the background while I played in the garden.

Flipping chickens (!) are walking right up to the dog and looking at him just as curious as a chicken could be. My neighbor changed his harness position, to make sure he couldn’t bolt. The dog stood there wining and sniffing while the chickens just out of reach pecked around as though he was a squirrel! My girls are cute, but maybe a little light in the head.

I hope you figure your dog situation out. I couldn’t cope with that kind of stress!

I haven’t finished reading all the threads, but have you considered your water hose with a high power nozzle? The water wouldn’t hurt your chickens.

I personally would call the animal control warden instead of trying to mace or pepper spray someone’s dog. Knowing that you feel this cornered by the situation seems to warrant intervention. An “untrainable” dog in the hands of someone who allows said dog to terrorize your chickens is probably a threat to others including vulnerable adults and small children. I’d take it to the next level pronto. My son and DIL’s adopted dog was also untrainable. Something terrible happened to her while she was still a puppy. Probably Staffordshire Terrier mixed with Chihuahua (?) small-ish, powerful, natural guard dog, cranky, and completely incorrigible. They decided to keep her and it was a part time job for about 9 years. She’s finally old enough and acculturated to family life enough that she’s not a constant threat. We still have to watch her, but big picture about three to five years in she became “trainable.” Your neighbors aren’t being responsible for their pet. Don’t abuse the dog, call the warden. It’s not the dog’s fault.

 

[Bantam bell Wood]

Thank you all for your responses. In addition to your good ideas, sometimes just being reassured my feelings are valid helps me feel better.

Last night while fuming, I researched what our local ordinance is regarding dog harming chickens. In a lot of cases regarding dogs, I feel the dog is punished when the owner should be. Frustratingly, dogs at large are punished more severely than dogs harming chickens. Chickens are an exception to the livestock laws, which are appropriately harsh. The only justice is the owner of the dog that has injured or killed chickens must pay full damages within three days of receiving the request of payment.

You've heard of malicious compliance? Behold, malicious accounting.

In addition to whatever damage would be done to my enclosure, they would need to pay not the "value" of each chicken, but to *replace* each chicken. That's peeps, the crazy cost of shipping peeps, their bedding, the stupid amount of food they waste oh by the way we only feed organic, heat bulbs, power to keep the heat bulbs on, supplements we have receipts for, treats, allll of it. Plus eight of nine birds are uncommon colors, so pullets of lavender or chocolate orpington would be extra. If it was our buff, a five year old hen might be viewed as less valuable from a production perspective, but she's the darling derpy baby. It may only be $6 for a buff pullet peep, but I'd insist on five years of food to "replace" her.

None of it could replace a lost chicken, especially to something as preventable as a domestic dog's irresponsible owner, but I'd make it hurt.

Update:
I had another encounter with this dog while taking the trash can to the road. We are close enough to services we have weekly trash service, but rural enough that wheeling the bin down is a walk. I had our dog with me off leash, as she obeys verbal commands. I had our dog sit on my feet (she feels safe there and I can still lift her 50lbs in an emergency dog-carry away from danger if needed). Strange dog barked and growled and tried to sniff our dog, but wouldn't get close to me. I tried the dog owner roommate and neighbor who owns the house on my phone, no response. I sent a text (I even said please!) asking the owner to call the dog home. Unsure if this dog was friendly, I left the can in the driveway and had our dog heel as we walked back home. Once our dog was inside, I went back to get the bin to the road. Strange dog was gone.

The owner called me ten minutes later. I'm actually glad he did, as I was calmer and could state my case politely. He adopted the dog less than two weeks ago and as it's been so well behaved, he had no idea is was coming here. I explained that I can't yell at it in the afternoons if it comes back due to my husband's sleep schedule for work. He told me I'm welcome to do anything short of shooting it to get it to go home. I explained that I'd only get physical with it if it was threatening my chickens again (in which case I will grab the nearest garden implement and turn into a berserker). The owner says his sister has chickens and that he knows she'd be pissed if a dog was harassing them. I expressed understanding that it can take time to train a dog, but it needs to stay away from here. He sounded like he understood my message, and says he will be using a tie cable when the dog cannot be closely supervised. While I'm definitely going to be vigilant, at least I have verbal cooperation.

I'm not going to let my guard down and I'll get my slingshot and clay pellets handy, but I'm feeling better. As far as egg production, I can't rule out shorter days so I only used it as an example of our birds fright instead of complaining about the income loss. We also jumped back up to normal laying today with six eggs. None from Lucia, but she looks so rumpled I hope she starts her molt soon just so she can get it over with before it gets too cold. At least the lavenders snuggle on her roosting bar will still be super fluffy to use as down comforters.

Added bird tax.

Geez, I had no idea chicken laws were different than other livestock laws! I have to check our ordinances. I hope that since you started posting this that the situation has changed. It’s terrible.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

The other kind of dog, that won't stop until it has dispatched chickens, isn't really trainable.

I disagree. Trained dogs for +/- 20 years in Farmington, NM up to about 1993 through San Juan College, then a 2-year community college. During that time as a private trainer, I corrected a number of confirmed chicken killing dogs of various breeds. They would surely have been "put down," that is to say, destroyed, had my methods not worked. My methods worked. Anyone interested in learning these methods is welcome to ask me about them via DM.