I don't know what to do with my dogs!

[FarmerDenise]

Our trainer said not to let a dog "practice" bad behavior. Therefor make sure the dog cannot act out the bad behavior. Then put the dog in a well controlled test situation and start aversion training. We created a short run with temporary fencing for the chickens and when the dog came near them I squirted her with a water bottle. I did this over and over for more than two weeks. Eventually she lost interest, at which point she got a treat for good behavior.
I believe this worked with our dog, since she wasn't actually trying to kill the chickens, she saw them as toys. It is now a year later and we are able to let our dog and chickens out at the same time, but usually one of us is out with them. We don't leave them out together all day unless we are out there too.
Our dog still likes to run after a sole chicken that gets out, especially the roosters. And she is a quick plucker!!! So we rather not take chances.
Good luck!!

 

[jhm47]

I'm likely going to make some unpopular statements here, but this is my opinion: Why in the world does anyone "need" more than one pet dog? I read many avatars here with people who have 5-6 and even more dogs. WHY?

My dearly departed grandfather told me many times that a person can have a great dog, or he can have two dogs, and have half a dog, or he can have more dogs than that and have nothing but a bunch of trouble.

If you have ONE dog, it will bond to your family, become a member of your "pack", and it will do anything in it's power to please the members of the pack. If you have two dogs, they will consider themselves still members of the pack, but will bond to each other much more strongly than they will to family members. If you have 3 or more, they form their own pack, and will do whatever the pack decides is fun at the moment.

I've had many dogs, and many breeds of dogs in my life. By far, the best dogs that I've had were "only" dogs. Yes, I once had more than one, but they don't stand out in my memory nearly as well as the "only" dogs that I have had. My "only" dogs were better trained, smarter, much better behaved, and certainly more loyal than the multiple dogs that I owned. And, the "multiple" dogs likely would have been just as good as the "only's" if they had been "only dogs".

Just my opinion. Disagree with me if you wish. Good luck

 

[2manyhats]

My dogs are my worst predators so far. I lost two of my favorite chickens last week to my own carelessness. I feel horrible. I apparently didn't get the latch on the run secured when I left and two of the birds wandered into the dog yard. I agree that if you can secure the coops and be diligent about safety, you can have both the dogs and chickens. My dogs were just being dogs. I take the blame.

 

[KellyHM]

jhm - Just wanted to say that I have 3 dogs and they do not have their "own" pack and they are all extremely well behaved...I wouldn't put up with anything less. That's like saying you should only have one child b/c if you have more they'll come up with more mischief. While that is probably true, that's an absolutely ridiculous reason to only have one child or dog or cat or chicken or anything else. As long as you train your pets and take care of them there's no reason not to offer a good home to more than one of the millions of homeless dogs. Just MHO.

 

[Buster]

I am sorry for your loss. I worked with my dog, a red heeler, right off when I got chickens and slowly introduced them to her by making her stay out of the coop when I was in it. Then when she knew it was a place she wasn't supposed to be, I started calling her in. She was so paranoid about getting in trouble that she didn't worry about the chickens at all. She doesn't bother the birds at all now (except to herd the ducks back out of the road). If my birds are out of the coop free ranging, then she is outside too because while she doesn't care about chickens, she HATES other dogs and keeps them all away.

Keeping dogs with poultry is possible, it just takes a lot of work. If you don't have the time to work with the pups, it's probably best to find good homes for them.

 

[amazondoc]

Quote:
Why does anyone "need" more than one chicken? Or more than one goat? Or more than one horse? Or heck, more than one child?

It's a personal choice. I do doberman rescue, and I always live with a large pack of dogs. Right now it's 15. And trust me, ALL the dogs are bonded to me and see ME as the pack leader. It's a matter of training and management.

That said, I would *prefer* to live with three or four dogs. 15 dogs is a lot of work!

 

[ruth]

I have four dogs that have free run of our farm as do the chickens. The dogs do not bother the chickens. I did have one of the dogs kill 6 ducks when I first got ducks and she had never seen them before but now she does not bother them either. So it's not true that once a chicken/duck killer always a killer.

The way I've "taught" my pack is that when I got each one and that now includes two that are still 7 month old puppies (a GSD and a minpin) I introduced them to the flock by taking them out on a leash while I feed chickens/ducks/goats and they go in and out of pens and fences and coops with me. If they try and lunge for something they get a tug and told "no". I also pick up the chickens/ducks/goats and let them smell them and lick them to settle their curiosity. After a while of the leash training and when I know they will mind me with just a "no" I take them out off leash. I still don't let them stay out unsupervised till I'm confident that they now know the other animals are part of the farm and they don't bother them.

I had four cats (now two) and four dogs and they all live happily with free ranging chickens and ducks. The dogs keep the predators at bay and are necessary for free ranging in the middle of thousands of acres of woodlands. A livestock guard dog is of no use if tied up or fenced in and with so many individual fences and gates around our property it would be impossible to keep them confined anyway so I found the only way that works is to let them interact with the other animals so they too become part of the pack. Dogs need a job and need lots of excercise. Amazondoc is right - exercise your dogs. We go on long walks and I throw balls for hours. The puppies especially have energy to burn. I also take them to the pond where they run and play and swim.

Work with your dogs and you may be able to transform them into wonderful guard dogs yet. I don't think any dog would not kill or at least chase chickens when first exposed to them and if kept confined it just waits for its opportunity. So put them on a leash and take them into the flock while you work.

 

[redhen]

Quote:
Now that you have "beat" the dog..they ARE prone to bite people now...they will now(and forever) associate a human with being hit..and they may someday bite in what "they" deem self-defense aganist a human....the problem is..it may be a child going to pat it on its head to quickly, and the dog gets scared..and instinct takes over, and then the kid as gotten bitten....i'm sorry about the chickens..i would be very upset also!...but, beating the dog wont help at all..sorry....now, tying a dead chicken around his neck...i know my grandpa used to do that..they say it worked(as alot of others on here have said also)..but, i have no experience with that..so, i dont really know..i'm sorry, and best of luck to you, Wendy

 

[Chicken Woman]

I have a golden retriever that is 2 yr old. When i first got my chickens she would go up to the run and smell and I would sternly say NO ! She continued to be way to interested for my liking.
I put a shock collar on her and just watched her from the house when i let her ouside, when she went within 15 feet of the run i would shock her. She would turn around and walk away. I did this for about a week. I never had her outside and loose unless I could watch her so the correstion would be consistant. She now stays completely away from the run. I free range when i am out in the yard and she doesn't go near them. She just watches from a distance.

 

[Poulets De Cajun]

Quote:
First off, your dogs are NOT stupid, THEY ARE DOGS! Second of all, it is YOUR responsibility to make sure that your coop is safe and secure. If the dogs find a way in, then you haven't done your job properly.

And lastly, if you dont have the patience and time to properly train them, or enroll them in obedience classes, then you have no business having dogs to begin with.....