How To Train Your Dog Not To Kill Chickens

[flockman]

What is it about standard poodles? ;-) I have lost 2 chickens to my poodle.. My chickens are in a secure run with an electric fence around it to keep dogs and other things from bothering the chickens. I have lost 2 to the dog because the stupid chickens found a little spot to get out and ran into the dog. I have 4 dogs and only the poodle kills them. This is an obedience trained, rally titled therapy dog who just plan wants to kill these birds. Some dogs trained or otherwise can never be trusted to be with small critters.

My standard poodle also is a chicken killer. She just wants to catch them. Chickens don't really like that though. Lots of work on recall and drop on recall taught her to listen the first time when called. The issue used to be when my kids did not shut the door or my neighbor kids. The birds are all fenced for their protection. The only birds she could get to are the geese. She knows not to mess with Boris an increasingly hormonal gander.

Poodles are water retrievers/bird dogs. It is a part of them I guess. Lots of training and supervision.

 

[NCReb]

Is there any way to rehabilitate a psychotic mutt that wants to kill everything smaller than her? We don't free range our hens because she goes berserk if something smaller than her is wandering in the yard.

She's a chow/husky mix, as far as we can tell, and she goes nuts if a chicken makes distress noises.

 

[Mav and Marls]

My question is for Chicken Obsessed. I have an alpha Plott Hound who has suddenly become obsessed with my chickens and also turns out to be a reincarnation of Harry Houdini. I am picking up an electric collar today, on loan from a friend, and am happy to hear you had such quick results with your training experience. My question is this, did you need to have the collar on for your poodle to continue to behave appropriately? In other words, at what point, if any, could you remove the collar and still have the command as though it were still in place? And, at what point, again if any, did your dog curtail this behavior all together?

Any advise you could offer would be appreciated as this is the first dog I have ever had to resort to using the collar with. He's also the first Hound so possibly the bread along with the dominant characteristics has something to do with it. I have always been regarded for how well behaved my dogs were but now am faced with a challenge I've not been able to overcome with my usual training methods.

Thanks!

 

[Blackcrest]

My question is for Chicken Obsessed. I have an alpha Plott Hound who has suddenly become obsessed with my chickens and also turns out to be a reincarnation of Harry Houdini. I am picking up an electric collar today, on loan from a friend, and am happy to hear you had such quick results with your training experience. My question is this, did you need to have the collar on for your poodle to continue to behave appropriately? In other words, at what point, if any, could you remove the collar and still have the command as though it were still in place? And, at what point, again if any, did your dog curtail this behavior all together?

Any advise you could offer would be appreciated as this is the first dog I have ever had to resort to using the collar with. He's also the first Hound so possibly the bread along with the dominant characteristics has something to do with it. I have always been regarded for how well behaved my dogs were but now am faced with a challenge I've not been able to overcome with my usual training methods.

Thanks!

If you are using shock collars, Use it for a month or two and when you think the dogs trained, Take it off and place a collar on him that has a 9volt battery taped to it. This will let the dog think it's the same collar and work with him like that. I hope you are using hand signals with the shock collar. the dog will tie the command, shock, and hand movement of you to the feeling of dis comfort. When you switch to the 9volt weight collar the dog won't have the discomfort, But will see and hear your commands, After some time, you can lose the 9 volt and the dog should accecpt and act like the collar is on.

 

[Peggi]

Year ago, I knew a guy who trained and competed Field Trial Retrievers. He had a banty rooster named Fred. For more than a year Fred was launched from a remote launcher and retrieved by the dogs. While not the most pleasant thing for Fred, it was very telling that the retrievers retrieved with very soft mouths -- no holes or other injuries to Fred, who earned retirement (alive as someone's pet) before his second year was up.

While this is not training to leave the flock alone, it directly focuses on hunting/prey drive. Prey drive is sky high in dogs who work as Field Trialers.

On the other hand, when prey drive is kicked in without training/guidance, most dogs will kill poultry. Hopefully, we are aware enough to be there and in control with a plan when the dog first gets acquainted with poultry. And we need to be there to mentor/train/guide each and every time the dog is near poultry until they become adjusted enough to leave them alone (or best case, adopt the flock as pack and begin protecting them). (-:

 

[aussiechicky]

Dachshunds were breed specifically to hunt badgers. It's a dog with a very high PREY DRIVE as are most burrowing and hunting breeds.

I agree that training and constant re enforcement and practice is the best way to train a dog but in some breeds the prey drive is hard to overcome and it becomes even more difficult if you have more that one dog of that same breed since they compete with eachother.

One of our dogs has a strong prey drive. She is very obedient when I have eyes on her but I would never trust her out of voice distance and she is never allowed near farm animals without supervision.

PS: I just heard (somewhat frantic) "singing"...I think that a RIR just laid her first egg! Our chicks hatched around 4/1 and started laying on Tuesday. Now we have three laying and this would be out 8th egg.... Almost enough for a $500.00 omlet!

BAHAHAHAHA! So true... I had the similar revelation back in feb (our summer here in Australia) with my mango tree.... I bought $40 worth of tree netting and only managed to get 3 mangoes off the 2 trees! And I was away and didnt even get to eat them - had to give them to friends

...then yesterday when i bought a few more hens i realised these were the same thing! GOLDEN EGGS

Hope the omlete was yummy? I boiled my first egg yesterday and gobbled it up

 

[legohead01]

i have a 2 year old pitbull. got my chickens 6 weeks ago or so. he didnt like this at all. so he was chained to a tree in the garden as the chickens walked around.ever half hour put on his lead and walk about the chickens. few days doing this my dog was walking as near as 1ft away. while ask him to sit "so he/she can still take orders". 4th day he walks by my side. within a week . he never bothers. he even rounds them up for me.

 

[Trefoil]

I have two Mountain Feist, bred to hunt just about anything. They have been paying way too much attention to my coop, now that I moved it inside their fenced domain. They bark and go crazy anytime the chickens are in an uproar about something, and they have made my chickens really skittish so that I can't get them to cozy up to me when I bring treats. Yesterday, I had the coop door closed but not latched and one of the hens got out and was promptly killed by the dogs. My yoga instructor told me an old country solution to this problem worked with her dog. So, today when Larri started barking and being aggressive towards the chickens, I went and got that dead chicken and wired its feet together. Then, using a carabiner, I hooked the wire to his collar. I am going to make him drag it around all day and then let him loose tonight. As you can see in this photo, he was instantly shamed and he has hardly moved since then. This is a wonderful (although gross) punishment because I didn't yell, hit, or scold. I'll letcha know how his behavior changes after this experiment!

I haven
t finished reading through the rest of the thread, but I had to laugh when I read this. Years ago my weim killed a chicken and someone told me to do the same thing. She went nuts trying to roll over the dead chicken attached to her collar. I can't remember now if that was what finally worked or not. I think it was the banty with chicks that finally taught her a lesson.

 

[Thistlelady]

Or first chickens... We just got two 6 week old chicks today & I want to start introducing the dogs to them. They are in a port a crib in my office & I brought the dogs in to smell. The 8 month old Yorkie started barking and going crazy, so I took him out of the room. Our 4 yr old Labradoodle just laid on the floor looking in wagging his tail. I think he thinks they are new toys. What else can I do so they get used to the birds and don't try to eat them?

 

[kkelsh14]

So sorry everyone is being so rude on here! This must not be the typical BYC group I'm usually reading posts from. Yes, the dog must be taught not to hurt them, just like not peeing in the house. You may lose a few chickens in the process of learning, and sometimes a dog just won't change his ways once he gets that taste of blood, NO MATTER WHAT BREED. Keep doing what you're doing, trying things out and seeing what works best for you and your dog.