I have lost 6 of my 7 chicks. Completely Devastated, Not Stupid!!!

[Chicken Nugget]

My entire big yard is fenced in, but within that I have a smaller fenced area for the dogs. That's the only place they are allowed. This keeps them away from the chickens and the garden, and keeps the dog poop out of the children's play area.

We have only had an issue one time, when one of the hens flew over the five-foot chain link fence that surrounds the dog area. My black lab got to her. She was injured but recovered nicely. That was about eight months ago, and it is the only time any of my chickens have ever flown over that fence.

 

[keeperofthehearth]

So sorry for your loss but please don't get rid of your Sheltie. Shelties in general are very smart and your's can make a good watch dog for your chickens against other predators. Just keep them separate as others have mentioned. Try retraining if possible. I always introduce each of my chicks, if possible, to my sheltie when they are little peeps and tell her "don't bite". Shelby is facinated with them when they are little ones but I never just leave them with her. She started after my ducklings when I had them outside for the first time and they were running off. I had to tell her "no, don't bite!" and that was enough for her. I hope you can forgive your sheltie and work at training her/him to "don't bite" the babies or any other crittter you don't want to be bitten.

Shelties are such sweethearts. Good luck on your future chicks and dog arrangement.

 

[okiemommy]

I'm so sorry for your losses!

 

[SpottedCrow]

Sorry for the loss of your chicks...sounds like everyone's advice is sound...keep everyone seperate.

 

[Hiedi]

I am sorry about your loss. I am dealing with a similar situation with my German Shepherd. My biggest threat with predators right now is my own dog. He has not hurt any of my pullets yet, but he has definitely shown signs of aggression and wants to chase them. I do not trust him one bit, but I have no intentions of getting rid of him. We recently built a movable chicken coop (spent a good bit of money on the material), and he even chewed one of the cross beams. I guess he was trying to get inside. He does not seem to want to bother them when they are in their run in the daytime. I have been bringing him inside at night so I can watch him more closely, and I am also working on training him better. In addition, I am most likely going to move my chicks into a separate area in my yard that is fenced off that my dog does not have access to.

 

[wilds of pa]

Yup training is the way to go..we got 2 labs here and both needed training that chickens are no no's.. i use an electronic collar and have used them for many years to train labs... which when used right works great.. I use it also when we walk on the mountain as a training aid for corrections...

Charlie

 

[steffpeck]

Thanks!!

 

[MsBentleyboy]

Next time it might not be a dog... raccoon, coyote, or who knows. Just fix the coop/area where the babies are. You can try again next time and just learn from this experience.

 

[chicksinthemachine]

So so sorry. It's a traumatic experience to find out your beloved dog is killing your baby chicks. I went through the same thing a couple of weeks ago with one of our dogs and we thought about getting rid of him or the chickens but we didn't get rid of either. The dog was reprimanded and is taught daily that they are not his for the taking. The chickens are not left unattended because I fear if we weren't around he would eat them.