My dog killed my chicken :(

[Suzi18]

Your dogs hang their heads and cower because they are very good at reading body language and they know what's coming to them. Maybe they know why you are angry, maybe they don't, but that posture is an outward expression of fear and submission, not an acknowledgement of wrong doing.
A dog doesn't intrinsically know it's wrong to kill chickens, they ARE just following their instincts, that's how canids feed themselves, they kill things and eat them.

That said, of course you can teach dogs to leave chickens alone, quite easily if you know what you are doing. Training before they are ever allowed unrestrained access is the most effective way to go. Hours later punishment may give one the same result in the end, as eventually they will put two and two together, but personally I believe that method to be unfair to the dog.

Well said. I agree wholeheartedly

 

[BYC910]

I have read all the post and have say. My complements people This thread is a perfect example of what makes the BYC such a great website EXCENTLLANT discussion . The one thing I can add is this .If you want a dog any dog to be the best dog it can be . You have to spend a lot of time with it . Training is not a part time process .My GSD ruined me for all dogs but also taught me how to get the most out of a dog . Of course he was before children but was here for the children . And like Sour its hard not to shed a tear for him . He was like our child or friend our protector and a working dog even though many told me he could never be .He went almost every where we went . Did every thing we asked him to do . While he never hurt the chickens or cows he bit three people. All of which were in the wrong place doing the wrong thing . One was my FIL not bad though . Just some torn pants and a scratch .Stray came in the yard he tried to break up the fight . The UPS driver opened the door to the house . He wasn't supposed to . The stranger who came to tell me the cows were out not my cows either .He opened the porch door . My dog was doing his job . I wasn't home for all three .Still had to put him in lockup for a week even though he had all his shots The thing is when he came into our lives we had the time to make him an awesome dog . I'm just getting to the point that I feel I have time to spend making another .

 

[WalnutHill]

I have read all the post and have say. My complements people This thread is a perfect example of what makes the BYC such a great website EXCENTLLANT discussion . The one thing I can add is this .If you want a dog any dog to be the best dog it can be . You have to spend a lot of time with it . Training is not a part time process .My GSD ruined me for all dogs but also taught me how to get the most out of a dog . Of course he was before children but was here for the children . And like Sour its hard not to shed a tear for him . He was like our child or friend our protector and a working dog even though many told me he could never be .He went almost every where we went . Did every thing we asked him to do . While he never hurt the chickens or cows he bit three people. All of which were in the wrong place doing the wrong thing . One was my FIL not bad though . Just some torn pants and a scratch .Stray came in the yard he tried to break up the fight . The UPS driver opened the door to the house . He wasn't supposed to . The stranger who came to tell me the cows were out not my cows either .He opened the porch door . My dog was doing his job . I wasn't home for all three .Still had to put him in lockup for a week even though he had all his shots The thing is when he came into our lives we had the time to make him an awesome dog . I'm just getting to the point that I feel I have time to spend making another .

We had our first dog right after we got married. We were lucky, he was a German Shepherd mix and was eerily brilliant. We also had an incredible amount of time to spend with him. It seemed he could read our minds, and would learn by watching us and repeat on his own (like opening the refrigerator to help himself to leftovers...and it was one of the old 1950s latching door fridges). We were fortunate to have 13 wonderful years with him, and haven't had a worthy successor yet, though our baby Bandit may be it. He was welcome everywhere we went, and was very effective as a guard dog, retriever of objects and children, tracking dog (he loved playing hide and seek), and agility dog (informal). He was very gentle with children, yet unforgiving to intruders.

Bandit is a mixed breed, and met his first turkey the day after he came home with us. A four month old poult at a safe distance spread and flapped his wings. Bandit pulled back a little, I told him "leave it", and repeat every time the chickens flap their wings. He understands "leave it" when he tries to help himself to the other dog's food, or to his own food from the dog food bag. He responds very well to verbal correction by backing up a couple of steps and sitting down. I don't trust him to leave him loose with the birds, but we've given him a run that allows him to reach the fence of the poultry run. He has not advanced closer than 10 feet, but enjoys sitting and watching. As soon as the turkeys start puffing and vocalizing, he increases that distance, sits, and observes. We will continue to introduce him, on leash, to chickens and turkeys, repeating and positively reinforcing "leave it". I'd prefer that he ignore them entirely, as we don't need or want them herded, protected, or sorted.

Bear

Bandit

Training is a lifelong process, and best started young.

 

[Abriana]

I am sorry for your loss
A collie is in my opinion the no 1 dog for chickens I love my collie. I am not
Nervous one bit with him around my birds

 

[Funsarah]

I know this is an old thread by I sympathize with you... This just happened to us too

 

[Ellauk3]

We have recently adopted a three year old German Shepard mix. Have been trying to train her with small steps as she’s never been trained. Unfortunately one of the hens managed to escape when I was outside today. Dog chased and caught the chicken thankfully no damage done as I was there to immediately stop her. Just ruffled feathers. I have no idea if she would have hurt her if I hadn’t been there, but I suspect she would have even if it was just getting carried away.

bumble my chicken appears to be fine and has gotten over it. I am still upset two hours after it happened.

I love my chickens and ducks very much.

 

[Folly's place]

Glad your bird lived through this experience!
There's no way your new dog can be out there with the chickens now, as you know. Lots of training time, and your dog may turn out to be safe with them, or not. GSD's tend to be very trainable, a good thing.
How did Bumble escape? If the coop and run aren't safe enough, do fix that!
Start a new thread too.
Mary

 

[jvls1942]

german shepherd mixed with what ?
most dogs can be trained to co exist with chickens. It is up to you to train it.
keep it on a leash and correct it when it attempts fo grab a chicken. get a chair and sit in the chicken yard with the dog.
.....jiminwisc.......

 

[sandiland]

Today my dog snuck outside into my backyard and killed our chicken. The thing is our chicken was so sweet and innocent. I'm just feeling a lot of mixed emotions right now. I just can't stop feeling that if I just payed more attention, then I could've prevented this. I don't know if I should punish my dog or not. It just pains me that she was killed brutally when she didn't deserve it. Any advice? Should I do something to punish my dog? We just purchased the appropriate food for our chick too, it just really makes me sad.

animals are animals... they dont think and always feel like we do. i am so very sorry for your painful loss. a good lesson learned going forward to maybe keep chickens in their coop and when your home with dog inside maybe just lock the door. but dont beat yourself up. it will take time and prayers the Lord will ease your mind. You didnt cause this. and take the time to grieve and then you can learn and grow from this. your dog shouldnt be reprimanded since the incident is already done. that would have to be done on the spot so they know what they did wrong. Grace and peace to you..