My dogs ate one of my babies

[OrganicChicken]

I've got two pit bull dogs and I've got ten, well- now nine young 5 week chickens. I woke up to find out this morning one of my silver laced wyandottes flew out of the brooder... looked all over the house and its no where to be found. i found a few tiny feathers on the floor next to where the dogs sleep at night and no signs of any blood or remains. We searched all over the house and the only thing we can think has happned is that the dogs ate her last night while i was sleeping, they must've eaten her whole because there is no corpse anywhere... I just ordered two shock collars for the dogs since apparently they have a taste for chicken, i showed them the feathers and dumped water on them [they hate that] so now im quite worried about ever introducing the dogs and the chicks... any tips or suggestions are welcome, today i feel horrible like i am housing a pair of murderers...im very mad at the dogs-pretty sick to my stomach over it, and today is my two year anniversary with my gf so its been a huge downer to wake up to this. i feel horrible about the loss of my wyandotte. I grew very attached to my birds.

 

[kadoer12]

I'm so sorry for your loss. Hopefully, they are just hiding really well. If they were small enough I could see the dogs eating them whole. But dogs aren't usually as clean as cats. I would have expected a little more feathers and at least a couple drops of blood.

For suggestions: You can supervise the dogs when they interact. the shock collars( cringe at the idea, but they can be useful) may help if something happens and you can't reach them in time. a good shock time well may have the dogs thinking these chickies have the powers of zeus!

second option i, to secure the chickies home. make it dog proof. and try to prevent as much as possible any contact.

the last options, which no one wants to do, is to either rehome the dogs or chicks.

We have a dog we're watching, as he chases the animals. We're worried he'll kill on of the birds or cats, hasn't yet and we're supervising him to help prevent it. He mainly chases the horses and choses not to listen when he does so. We're considering a remote shock colar for that.

I hope this doesn't happen again. and again sorry for your loss.

 

[OrganicChicken]

I'm so sorry for your loss. Hopefully, they are just hiding really well. If they were small enough I could see the dogs eating them whole. But dogs aren't usually as clean as cats. I would have expected a little more feathers and at least a couple drops of blood.

For suggestions: You can supervise the dogs when they interact. the shock collars( cringe at the idea, but they can be useful) may help if something happens and you can't reach them in time. a good shock time well may have the dogs thinking these chickies have the powers of zeus!

second option i, to secure the chickies home. make it dog proof. and try to prevent as much as possible any contact.

the last options, which no one wants to do, is to either rehome the dogs or chicks.

We have a dog we're watching, as he chases the animals. We're worried he'll kill on of the birds or cats, hasn't yet and we're supervising him to help prevent it. He mainly chases the horses and choses not to listen when he does so. We're considering a remote shock colar for that.

I hope this doesn't happen again. and again sorry for your loss.

Thank you for the condolences, for someone who eats chicken a few times a week i never thought i would be so sad about loosing one of my own... It really hurts. I would have never thought of using an e collar on the dogs before now but at this point i dont really feel sorry for something that didnt show any compassion for my chicken... going to work on training them and keep them seperated. going to the store today to build an outdoor brooder with hardware cloth that will house them until they're ready for their coop. I did honestly consider rehoming them but ive had the dogs for nine years, and im too invested in these chicks to let them go now.

 

[kadoer12]

understandable. It is hard to let go of our animals when we've had them for a while or have put the care into them as if they are our own 'kids'. My mother hatched out some chicks a couple weeks ago and the littles we were watching had snuck in to see them in the brooder. They picked a couple up and had squeezed them. Mom was heartbroken and the kids were devastated that the chicks had died.

hardwire cloth is a good idea. not cheap but most effective in keeping out large predators. I would suggest burying almost a foot and some people say use bolts and washers instead of staples. but I'm sure a bunch of staples will work too, or a combo of both.

Good luck! and I hope everything goes well in the future!

 

[ronikins]

Just keep in mind, the dogs are only doing what they think is ok. Don't rehome them. They are trainable.

In the beginning, I was so upset when my year old lab mix attacked my rooster and killed a hen that I'd had for only 4 months. So mad that I was ready to just shoot her. Thinking back to that now after 5 years, I cringe. My dogs are my life. I hate to say it, but most of the chickens have come and gone. (I still have about 5 of the original 25.)

Dogs (at least most of them) are as intelligent as a 5 y/o child. Teach them! They will learn! Give them a job. Don't discipline them when they don't really understand. It's a long process, but it can be done! I promise!

Please don't think I'm stepping on anyone's toes. I just hate for you to give up on the dogs when you've had them for so long... It sounds like you are on a good track to alleviating part of the problem, at least

 

[6of6chicks]

So sorry for your loss! I have six 5-week old chicks myself and can relate to how invested you are. But I'm also a dog-lover, and hopefully my two cents can help (and not offend!). You can't expect your dog to have compassion for a bird. That's a human emotion, and expecting a dog to act as you would is unfair.

I would NOT recommend an e-collar. I've raised & lived with many dogs in my life, and I successfully trained every one of them. If you use a shock collar then there is a good chance the dog will associate the chickens with fear and pain, and it will ONLY associate them with those bad feelings. That's not what you want. Ideally, you want a dog that will accept the birds as family members, and that takes a different sort of training.

I have a three-year-old lab mix who was fascinated with the new chicks. Fascinated as in, "yay! mom bought me new squeaky toys!" She's one of the sweetest, most gentle dogs I've ever had, but I have no doubt she would have killed those chicks in a heartbeat if she had the chance. It's just pure instinct and I don't hold that against her. I kept the brooder box on a high table, with a lid, and locked my dog out of the room if I wasn't there.

I started training her from day one. Every few hours I took one of the chicks out of the brooder and held it eye level with my dog. She was leashed and tightly held in place. I instructed her with the "gentle" command, which she knows. If she just gently sniffed and remained calm, she got a treat. It took a lot of "shows" before she understood I was just showing them to her (and not giving them to her). After about a dozen shows she made the first lunge (which I knew was coming). As soon as she started to lunge, I shrieked and scolded her. I kept repeating that whole process over and over for several days, and eventually she got the message. The chicks are now living in their coop, and for the first week or so my dog would stand at the vents and just stare at them endlessly. Every time I opened the coop doors she was right there to poke her nose in at the chicks. Again, at first I kept a vice lock on her collar. She was rewarded for calm behavior and reprimanded if she lunged. To her credit, by the time they were in the coop she only lunged once and that was when one flew up and tried to land on her head.

The chicks also added their own form of training. Because I let my dog poke her nose in the coop when I opened the doors, she was able to get right up to the chickens. It took exactly two sharp pecks on my dogs nose and she quickly got the message that the birds were to be respected!

It just took a LOT of socializing, but she got the message. Now she's able to be around the chicks without my having to hold her back. It will be a VERY LONG TIME before I would trust her with the chickens unsupervised, but I think we'll get there one day.

But the upside to training her is twofold: she's gentle and calm around the birds. She sees them as new family members and doesn't fear or resent them. They, in turn, love her. Her presence seems to calm them rather than stress them out.

Anyway, just my two cents. Really only wanted to share a success story because I completely understand where you're coming from!

 

[B-Goock]

I think you did the right thing with scolding the dogs. It's just in their nature to find stuff to eat but they can learn what you don't want them to eat. You are right they are murderers. Their natural instinct is to kill to eat and at least they ate it for a purpose. Not much of a condolence but its just natural for them so don't be too hard on them. Just keep a close eye on them and be ready to step in.

Sorry for your loss and good luck on training your dogs. Don't be too hard on them for what they did just make sure they know you don't like it.

 

[ZoeS95423]

I use a shock collar on my dog, it has a warning beep, and several levels of shock.
If used correctly your dog will be very well behaved and not fearful or anything.
I only had to shock my dog 2 times, on level 2 before he knee what the beep meant.
He has never kills any of my birds... But as a pup he would try to "play with them" and for the most part telling him no worked, but then he started eating their food, out of the coop.
He runs loose, and I would never confine him or my birds, so it was absolutely necessary he got along with them. He hasn't had to wear his shock collar in almost a year. And I only used it 5 or 6 times. Only actually shocking him 2 times.

If used correctly you won't have to use them for long. And will be happy with the behavior of your dogs.