Introducing chicks to dogs

[WRVgirl]

My dogs were ALWAYS most interested in the chicks when they were flapping. My italian greyhound being the sighthound that she is, was initially mesmerized by their movements...but that meant she was standing straight with her tail pointed and licking her lips, probably thinking something along the lines of "Oh, look. Mom brought home fast food for dinner."

Both of my girls know the command "Baby". "Baby" means: Leave it alone."

I have certain things in the house that I used to train that command, but if you tell them Baby, they immediately back away and sit at my feet.

I don't know how common it is, but this has really worked for us; we did train them for Baby when they were little knowing that someday it would come in handy.

 

[dainerra]

teach a solid "leave it" (or any word you want to use). As WRVgirl says, it's something that you will use every day. Then work on introducing them to the birds.

start at a distance where they notice the birds but still pay attention to you. Once they are reliable at ignoring the birds on command at this distance, then you move a bit closer. Once you have worked your way up to the immediate reach of the chickens (this can take weeks or months depending on your dog) you can start planning on trying your dog's behavior off leash. Make sure the birds are securely in their pen and let the dog off-leash. If the dog behaves and is reliable on several occasions when off-leash and the birds confined, then it's time for the next step. Put the dog back on leash and retreat a few feet. Let the birds out and see how the dog reacts.
This is where many people mess up. They don't realize that it's an entirely different temptation when the birds are wandering the yard.
If the dog's attention can't stay focused, then go farther away and start over. Gradually get closer over several lessons.

Now, you can let the dog off-leash when the birds are out. Treat this as an obedience lesson - don't try to do chores or yard work until you know that your dog will behave and not give into temptation. After several lessons, you might feel comfortable focusing your attention on other things than your dog. Still stay close enough that the dog is always within your field of vision and you are aware of his body language. Watch for upright posture, licking lips, intense focus on the actions of the birds. These are signs that his brain is locked onto the birds. Say his name and see if he turns to you. Call him to you and do some work to keep him focused on you. If he glances at you and turns right back to the birds, don't call him again - go get him and put him on leash. (Another idea is to have him on a long line the first few times as a safety measure).

Personally, I never leave my dogs outside alone with the birds free. I may be in and out of sight filling feeders or cleaning cages but I am in the area.

 

[dainerra]

Thanks. I think we are going to take it slow with the introduction. The dogs know the smell of chickens. It's just with the babies they are so small and so round... A running chick could in a moment be mistaken for a ball. so I am going to hold off on the dogs being loose around the chicks until they are older.

they will NOT mistake the chicks for a ball. Dogs rely on their nose to identify objects and in that respect, a chick has nothing in common with a ball. However, the same instinct that causes your dog to chase the ball is the same prey drive that enables them to catch food. That instinct will be the same whether the chicken is a fluffy chick or a full-grown bird. Both birds will move in similar fashions and make lots of noise. THAT is what attracts the dogs attention, not the shape.

 

[Nicole01]

Both my dogs handled the chicks very well. My trained 3 year old pheasant hunter golden retriever thinks they are a part of our "dog pack" and does the play bow. Yet, she will chase song birds and rabbits in our yard to kill/catch.

My Aussie will sometimes try to herd them, but never will nip or hurt them. I couldn't ask for better dogs. Our 3 cats that catch birds outside leave them alone as well, even the bantam and the new babies. All three cats catch birds, gophers, mice, shrews, and small rabbits.

I think raising them inside the house for the first 6-7 months(2 batches) helped recognize that they are part of our pack/family. We always keep a close eye on our dogs, but I don't ever think they'd hurt them. They both run free in our yard.

It depends on the individual dog. Some are better then others. I introduced mine right away, holding the chicks of course.

 

[Mehera]

I was definitely concerned about my dogs interacting with my chicks when I first got them! I have a 4 year old rescue who is some mix of Airedale/Hound/Pit/godknowswhat and a 2 year old lab... I was more concerned about my rescue dog because he tends to alert at small animals (chipmunks, squirrels, etc) but he actually learned pretty quickly that the chicks were not play things... It was so interesting because after he got over his initial curiousity about them (and I did introduce both dogs to them the day we got them at 1 day old), he took his cues from me and would herd the lab away if he felt she was getting too excited or aggresive. The lab's had a harder time overcoming her prey instincts but both dogs are now able to be out in the yard with the chickens if we're around. I still don't trust them to hang out with the chickens unobserved but they co-exist in our yard fairly peacefully. I found that satisfying the dogs' curiousity about the birds early on (without endangering the chicks, of course) and then letting the dogs know what behavior I expect from them has worked well for us.

 

[EggieRowe]

We have a lab and he was fine with my laying hens. They were introduced by accident - I didn't latch the run fully and he pushed it open. Then proceeded to pee on their feeder and all around the pen - totally ignoring the hens who first ran from him then followed him around like some bizarre train. It seems everyone's experience has been feathered, flapping chicks have drawn interest, but there was plenty of frantic flapping when he first met any chickens and you would have though they were invisible to him. Dare I hope that he will be so ambivalent about my new chicks?

 

[WRVgirl]

He didn't care because he wasn't in hunt mode, he was in "OMG OMG OMG....This is MINE. This is MINE. This is MINE, mode LOL

 

[Sweetlilbaby]

they will NOT mistake the chicks for a ball. Dogs rely on their nose to identify objects and in that respect, a chick has nothing in common with a ball. However, the same instinct that causes your dog to chase the ball is the same prey drive that enables them to catch food. That instinct will be the same whether the chicken is a fluffy chick or a full-grown bird. Both birds will move in similar fashions and make lots of noise. THAT is what attracts the dogs attention, not the shape.

My ACD has no interest in full grown chickens. They've been around them (loose no fence between) at my moms. No interest in them what so ever. But with the chicks they are interested. I really doubt that smell has anything do do with their interest in them.

 

[Sweetlilbaby]

We have a lab and he was fine with my laying hens. They were introduced by accident - I didn't latch the run fully and he pushed it open. Then proceeded to pee on their feeder and all around the pen - totally ignoring the hens who first ran from him then followed him around like some bizarre train. It seems everyone's experience has been feathered, flapping chicks have drawn interest, but there was plenty of frantic flapping when he first met any chickens and you would have though they were invisible to him. Dare I hope that he will be so ambivalent about my new chicks?

Mine are the same way with full grown chickens. My ACD will run from my moms rooster cause it's scary. He'll go around the hens just looking for food that is left on the ground. But when it comes to the chicks he's extremely interested.

 

[stnkyferit]

I introduced mine right away - I needed to set the precendence ASAP that the chicks are not to be harmed...

My old dog - I know from having him so long that if they flapped, he would go after them (not meanly).....I know that when they get bigger, he will lose interest as its too much exertion to chase them LOL..

The 1 1/2 year old I am more concerned about, but so far he is doing really well. I have the chicks in a bin in the bathroom, in the tub, with a cover on.....He was good - curious, not overbearing....when I clean them he will watch over the top of the bin. When I put them outside to stretch their legs in their run, I was worried because the dog was pacing, whining and trying to dig underneath....I was thinking it was more "worry" then "eat" so I let him in to see what he would do....he sniffed them up, and then laid down and they sat on his tail.

He would get a little excited when they would flap, but I just keep reinforing "DONT TOUCH THE BABIES" and he is ok. As a matter of fact, he chases the rabbits in the yard and has caught a few babies and made lunch out of them....A new batch must have popped up because he was at in again, but this time I yelled "DONT TOUCH THE BABIES" and he actually dropped them....well, all but one

I would NEVER leave the chicks with him unsupervised, especially when they are this sized, but I just have a feeling when they are full sized, and if they chase him, he will be afraid of him...

First time he met my parrot, she bit him...and he knows the pecking order now and will run away when he sees her....