Lost half our flock

[cacknballs]

If I'm not mistaken he got her when he was 15 and he is now 30. Shes pretty old. I'm suprised she kept up with the chickens! Theres one other theory that a stray dog got them and she stopped them,but she didn't have any marks. So well never really know.

well regardless, best of luck, and congratulations on the impending nuptials!

 

[mamaofmany]

Needless to say we arent going back up to 20 chicks. Were topping out at 15 and our 5 new hens already lay. We are expanding their run and closing in their coop with more nest boxes. Their run will go around our apple tree. Becauee it doesn't produce apples anymore its over 40 years old.

 

[mamaofmany]

Thanks I'm more concerned about my fifth (4th biological) newborn in September! These chicks are keeping me distracted from my fragile high risk pregnancy woes.

well regardless, best of luck, and congratulations on the impending nuptials!

 

[microchick]

You cannot fault a dog for being a dog. Dogs are triggered by vision and motion. It's the way they were hard wired when they were wild animals and I just finished reading an article on Mother Earth News that says that it takes at least 2-3 years of intensive training to turn a puppy into a chicken friendly dog that will protect the birds as they free range. It also says that during the training period, you can count on it to loose a few birds. To say 'shoot the dog' is just about the silliest thing I've read on BYC in a long time.

We have four dogs that we love dearly. We also have almost 50 chickens. Our dogs were not raised with the birds and under no circumstances would I let any one of them around loose chickens even if they were on a leash. The rule with chickens is like the rule, good fences make good neighbors. Good fences keep chickens safe, especially when you have a dog that thinks chickens are just really cool pull toys that move, squawk and flap around until they stop moving and then, oh look! There's another one. And it gallops after it.

@mamaofmany I am so sorry for your loss. I'm sure your fiance wasn't intending to have any thing tragic happen through his actions. He underestimated the determination of the dog and the vulnerability of the chickens. It was a lesson learned the hard way. The ball is in your court now to make certain it doesn't happen again. Good fences keep dogs and chickens safe from harm. If you have a neighbor with chickens you sure don't want your dog to slaughter their flock. People have a tendency not to be too understanding if that happens.

 

[cacknballs]

Thanks I'm more concerned about my fifth (4th biological) newborn in September! These chicks are keeping me distracted from my fragile high risk pregnancy woes.

4 and one coming...you are a busy lady! congrats and best of luck!!

 

[Richard Pryor]

cacknballs, I'll be honest brother: dogs are more important to me than my chickens. I paid $2,500 for my German Shepherd from working lines to guard my property and protect my family when I'm not around. Dogs are family to us. They sleep with us, we french kiss, etc.

We got chicks for the first time a few weeks ago and 3 minutes into the introduction our Beagle put a chick in his mouth. I slapped his face and told him it wasn't ok to do this. The Shepherd was being protective of them. We're lucky we got such a perfect dog.

You should see them now. They are best of friends. Shepherd protects them and Beagle ignores them. Just the way I wanted it to be.

OP: you need to put a prong or electric collar on that dog and let her interact with the chicks. Electric collar preferably. If/when she does something unacceptable you will give her a FULL correction. One she won't forget until her dying day. I'm talking full electrocution 5 second correction. She will know not to fuc with the chicks.

 

[cacknballs]

that's great that your dogs protect your birds. that is how it is supposed to be.

i can't even imagine tongueing a dog or spending $2500 one, but i spend that and more on other "tools" to protect my family and property. to each his own, right?

some people have more patience and are more risk tolerant, and that is fine. i don't have the time or patience to beat or shock an animal into submission. i have had animals i've had to do both to in the past, and i have no problem with someone doing that. in fact, i wish all dog owners were as responsible as you are when it comes to demanding good behavior from their dogs.

i simply offered a differing point of view on how to handle a situation and it stimulated conversation. isn't that why people come here?

 

[JacquelineJ]

Needless to say we arent going back up to 20 chicks. Were topping out at 15 and our 5 new hens already lay. We are expanding their run and closing in their coop with more nest boxes. Their run will go around our apple tree. Becauee it doesn't produce apples anymore its over 40 years old.

Sorry, i could not pass that by ... a 40 year old apple tree too old to give fruit? Nope. What is more likely is that the like most apple trees it requires at least one, or even two partner trees within the range of your most prolific pollinator. I bet somewhere within a mile or two one of the partner trees died or got chopped down. So long as your tree is alive it can produce fruit. Does it flower, if so, it's missing a partner. If you want it to produce plant another apple that it is compatible with (ie their flowering over laps)

Not trying to be a know it all, I live in the fruit district here and I studied horticulture i love plants and trees. In england many well known apple trees are over 100. Our farm here in Norway has a single apple tree left over from when it was an apple farm, tree is at least from 1930 since that was a time when this farm was known to have an apple orchard.

 

[jbrianchamberli]

a good dog doesn't have to be trained for that.

regardless of what anthropomorphism teaches people there are good dogs, and there are bad dogs...just like there are good people and there are bad people. i don't make the rules.

but fortunately you can get rid of bad dogs.

That's just stupid. I knew going into this that my dog has the potential of being a problem for the chickens. Although I don't hunt, he's a hunting dog. He a mix between a pointer and an American Bull dog. He's big, fast, and strong as hell. He's been around the chicks. In the beginning he just drooled. Now he shows less interest but I wouldn't trust him for a second. Am I going to get rid of him? Nope. Does he protect the family? He would with his life, I have no doubt of that. But I also respect the animal that he is to know that he might not be able to overcome his own instincts to go after the birds. He is, after all, only a dog. He doesn't view them as part of his pack. Will he one day? Maybe. But I've heard of stories of the most laid back, well behaved dog tossing dead chickens up in the air like they're his new favorite toy.

 

[cacknballs]

a good dog doesn't have to be trained for that.

regardless of what anthropomorphism teaches people there are good dogs, and there are bad dogs...just like there are good people and there are bad people. i don't make the rules.

but fortunately you can get rid of bad dogs.

That's just stupid. I knew going into this that my dog has the potential of being a problem for the chickens. Although I don't hunt, he's a hunting dog. He a mix between a pointer and an American Bull dog. He's big, fast, and strong as hell. He's been around the chicks. In the beginning he just drooled. Now he shows less interest but I wouldn't trust him for a second. Am I going to get rid of him? Nope. Does he protect the family? He would with his life, I have no doubt of that. But I also respect the animal that he is to know that he might not be able to overcome his own instincts to go after the birds. He is, after all, only a dog. He doesn't view them as part of his pack. Will he one day? Maybe. But I've heard of stories of the most laid back, well behaved dog tossing dead chickens up in the air like they're his new favorite toy.

i agree, anthropomorphism is stupid.