My dog killed two of my chicks!

[ThreeBoysChicks]

I have 5 dogs also. Our black lab is really in love with the Chickens and he has managed to get two of them, which did not help. He paces the fence and watches them very intently. I have gone the extra mile to ensure that the chickens don't get to him. And I am working on him with obedience. He is a rescue that we got at 1.5 years old. He is a hand full / bundle of energy, but I am convinced he will come around. Although I will never trust him or any of my dogs alone with the chickens.


Persistence pays off. If you have access to a good trainer, they may have some good ideas also.

 

[gamebirdsonly]

I know what it's like to lose birds to my own dogs. both of my dogs are labs and are trained for hunting. both my dogs are chained up but when i let my birds run free some of them get alittle to close to the dogs and that's the end for them and also my one dog has a habit of getting lose either breaking the chain or slipping out of her collar and so any birds that are not fast enough get nabed. it sucks.

 

[Beekissed]

1) Training, training, training. (Do this one no matter what else you do or do not do.) Teach all the basic commands and make sure you are pack leader. Then, you keep a close eye on your dog and when he gets near the chickens you call him away. If he shows any interest in the chickens you put him on his side on the ground with your fingers in his neck (like a bite) and tell him "leave them" - even for just looking at them

I only had to use this method with my Lab/BC mix pup 3 times. Then I let him sniff and lick a hen all he wanted, then I let her peck him...but hard! He actually avoids even looking at them now. For awhile he would watch them through the cracks of the coop but that stopped. I can leave them anytime now with confidence, even went away for a long weekend while the dogs guarded the free-ranged hens. No casualities! Remains to be seen how he will do with new biddies this spring but if we have the same problem will use the same method. That Cesar Milan sure knows his stuff! This pup has a strong prey drive AND herding drive and it worked for him. The older Lab only notices the chickens if they try to get her food, then she will lunge at them enough to drive them away. She lets them take her favorite dusting spots, though!

 

[plucky]

This thread is sure ringing true this morning...I lost two nearly 7 week old chicks to my black lab last night. Apparently, the spring catch on one of the coop doors broke, and a couple chicks made their way out. What makes me sick is that my husband and I were right in the house, that it was my fault for not double-checking that latch, and that it was MY dog. I really never thought I'd get so upset about losing chicks!

I already knew the dog has a "taste" for chickens...she got into my folk's neighbor's free ranging chickens and made off with one. (I notice that labs seem to be big-time culprits) Luckily a lifetime of good relations and a peace offering of a pie patched things, but now I know how she felt! It feels terrible!

Getting rid of the dog isn't an option. I've had her for 5 years, and we went through a long ordeal when she got tangled in a fence, and she ended up with her leg amputated. Even if she is a chicken-killer, she's still my dog. And she's not without redeeming qualities...she's a sweetie and an EXCELLENT watch dog. I don't know if training will ever mean my chickens can free range without poultry netting, but now I have a duty to keep them far apart!

So so sorry for your loss...I know how utterly awful you feel.

 

[dacasodivine]

Aww, I'm so sorry for your loss. It turns out I have more than one preditor problem though. I only saw my dog kill one chick. The other had gone missing the day before. I never found a trace of her so assumed when I saw my dog with one, that she had killed the missing one. The next day I lost one to a rat. I saw the rat with the chick but was too late. So, I have lost 3 chicks now.

I'm bringing them in before dark. I put glue traps under the coop where I saw the rat. My husband it talking about putting chicken wire all along the bottom of the coop running it out on the ground a foot or two. I had really hoped to have the chicks in the coop at night by now. It's not rat proof though.

 

[amazondoc]

I do doberman rescue, so I am constantly surrounded by a herd of the pointy-nosed creatures. I am also soon going to be moving to a six acre property, and I'll be acquiring chickens once I move.

All of my chickens will be inside a completely enclosed, secure chicken yard with a wire roof. I don't expect my dobes to be anything they're not.

 

[S0rcy]

We are starting out training our dog Buddy and cat Firepaw with the chicks. After a good solid run outside with the dog, and a ferocious romp inside with the cat until they are both exhausted, the dog goes on a leash and the cat is placed outside a fenced off area inside the house. The chicks are let out into the fenced area (By now they are big enough to leap out of the brooder when they see the door open LOL) We give the dog the command to lie down and if he does not do it immediately, we put him on his back. He gets the hint quickly. He lays remaining lying down and he gets rewarded.

At first this was impossible, all he wanted to do was jump up and bark. After a few days he got the idea and and understood the chicks would come around him and he could sniff all he liked. If he displayed anything other than calm behavior he got a swift chuck with the chain collar and a "NO". Tonite he did nothing but sit and sniff and eventually got up and walked off on his own, bored.

We will of course have to repeat this once the chicks begin running around the yard. His chase reflex will kick in. I am confident however that the same firm training will work then. It worked with Buddy and the in laws cat which hadn't a hope in heaven of defending herself. A pint size midget with no claws and no fight.

Firepaw is much more difficult. The chicks and firepaw interact through the fence. When Firepaw feels it necessary to reach out and try to "touch" he gets hissed at, which makes him very unhappy. No water bottle has been necessary yet, just ferocious vigilance. He does eventually get tired of it and walk away. He hasn't touched the brooder since the first day. A hose will be necessary when he and the chicks see each other outside. We have a firehose connection that can be set to low. It will work. I have been thinking of taking up a neighbors offer of putting Firepaw in the vicinity of his rooster who regularly chases neighborhood cats when he sees them.

This is a very slow and laborious process, it involves alot of attention, at least two hours every night and plenty of patience. I'm sure it will be worth it however.

 

[Meesh]

She paces up and down the fence ready to pounce.

I think it's a bad idea to allow her to do this. It seems to me like a form of hunting/stalking them. She needs to learn to avoid/ignore them completely, not stand by waiting to eat them.

HereChickChick, I bow to your supreme ability. Honestly, training greyhounds to ignore chickens is an amazing feat.

I am going to work with my friend's whippet on this... Maybe with a longe whip, as I can reach out and tap the dog from a longer range. Fortunately (?), his whippet has been attacked by a momma racoon and has a little bit of fear in him about attacking other animals. Back in the day, my whippet would have been a real danger but at 13, he's slowed down to a hobble.

Cheers,
Michelle​

 

[dacasodivine]

SOrcy, I think this sounds like it would work. Thanks.

Meesh, I agree. I don't like her pacing. For the most part she has stopped this. She's in more in than ou,t and I try to keep an eye on her when she's out. She will go over now and then and check things out, and I have seen her assume a stalking posture when the chicks are near the fence. I yell "stop that' and she does stop and find something else to do.

I have some really good ideas here. I don't know that I will ever be able to competely trust her around the chickens but hope to be able to have them out together with supervision.

Thanks

 

[morelcabin]

Quote:
Haha I tried this with a boxer we had...it didn't deter her one bit:>) All I got out of the deal was a real stinky dog and more dead chickens. If you want to try it though, we used a metal coat hanger to secure it around her neck, and made sure we tied her so she didn't get caught on something and strangle while running around the acreage