Introducing my dogs to my chickens

[BexB]

I had my dogs way before I got chickens. My dogs are spoiled brats so they are mostly inside dogs, also I work at a vets office so they are used to strange babies coming around ie I had to bottle raise a litter of kittens several litters of puppies and even a squirrel or 2, and I always showed them to my lab he is the most playful and nosy, even though he hates cats and almost always tries to get one if it crosses our yard, I would show him the babies and let him watch me feed and clean them while they were very little I didnt let him get too close,but later he would lay down and let them play with his tail and ears and he would even play so gentle with them. So when I got chickens (I started with 4, day old chicks,in a cardboard box in the bathroom) I also let him watch, at first it was with drool hanging from his mouth

, I believe he was thinking "aww mommy is fixing my lunch"but I just would tell him NO! and he would back off. now that I have lots of chickens he doesnt even seem to notice them,he goes with me to tend them and when they are in the yard he likes to see if they are eating anything good, but he doesnt bother them ,unless they start a ruckus for some reason, he will go to alert mode, but he doesnt bother them at all

 

[tntchix]

Instead of the "leave it" command, I use "off. It stops her dead in her tracks and she backs off whatever she is focused on. I intro'd our "flighty 4wk olds" yesterday and only gave the command twice even though feathers were flying as soon as I took the lid off the tote brooder. They try escaping a split second later. She was thinking lunch, and once she saw they weren't helpless, she changed her tune.

Now she just wants to be their mama.
I'm not saying she won't try to kill one but for now, we are good. Once they go outside, who knows? We'll see.

Good luck.