My Husky is killing my chickens and ducks, I need help!

[rosemarythyme]

One reason to never use a chain collar for tethering is that those collars break!

If they don't break, the dog simply chokes to death. So no winning either way.

 

[oldhen2345]

Hey all,

This is my first post for this site. I am in DESPERATE NEED of help with my 4 year old husky killing my chickens and ducks.

We began letting out our ducks and chickens to freely roam and forage our property this year. Knowing she may attack them like she did as a puppy one time, we got a shock collar and tried training her not to mess with them. It seemed to work for a few months as she showed no interest in them until one day she killed 7 out of 10 chickens in one day. She ran through the invisible fence straight to their coop while we were gone. The shock collar appears to no longer work as she now just blows through it. We also had it on the highest setting. We did scold her when she came running up to the house with a dead one in mouth. Last week, she killed two Pekins and today killed one call duck.

I am at my wits end and need any help / advice. We also tried putting her on a 15ft leash close to the house while the chickens & ducks are out(she has access to food, water, and shelter), but that does no good as she still manages to get a hold of them(probably them getting too close). She won’t attack them while we’re present, but if we go in the house for a few seconds, bam, she kills. I hate scolding her and hate keeping my chickens/ ducks up, but I can’t have her eating them anymore. Please let me know if you have ANY advice!

**EDIT: Thank you all so much for the advice! **

I tried the shock collar on my dog, didn't work. She would just tuck in her neck cause she knew it would hurt and charged the chickens anyway. My only suggestion is to put up a fence to separate the chickens from the dog.

 

[eveleychook]

Next time consider getting a other breed of dog such as a German Shepherd, or Maremma Sheepdog, they may be stubborn but are known to be good around most animals and are guardian dogs. Or any other kind of dog that has a low prey drive. One other word of advice, I never had a husky but as I have experience with other dogs, once they have experienced the thrill of the kill, they may want to kill other things. Lastly, if you get a Husky at a very young age there is a possibility that you can train them against this kind of behaviour, but that sort of training is very labour intensive. Otherwise hope you keep your dog from your chickens and your chickens safe from your dog.

 

[Folly's place]

Some dogs are just going to do what they are going to do, and are willing to 'jump through fire' to achieve their goals. It's great if corrections of one sort or another work, but for some individuals, only physical separation keeps things under control.
Mary

 

[Cryss]

Please put your birds in a secure run. 10 sqft/bird. I have one dog that sniffs the chickens but isn’t interested. I have a second dog that can’t even be outside when it is time fir me to go inside the coop or run. He will try to dart in past me to chase them and do damage. Their run is chain link dog run, sides and top covered in 1/2 inch hardware cloth with a 2 foot wide hardware cloth apron the entire perimeter. They have their own garden to pick greens from. They are safe from all predators and happy.

 

[bethgsd]

Just a note, German Shepherds are NOT low drive dogs or stubborn. My young dog has occasionally chased my girls. One got tangled in the bird netting and she sniffed it. Bird was OK and dog got quite the telling off. My dogs are fairly high drive European working lines though.

I have had 2 dogs that would have killed the chickens. I didn't have chickens until the second of those two was gone.

 

[ShrekDawg]

NEVER tether a dog using a choke chain!

Exactly! So dangerous! They’re supposed to be worn for training only then taken off. For tethering they need a very wide collar or harness.

 

[My2butterflies]

You may not like what I do...but for me it works. I have 3 large pit bulls however too old to train when I got chickens. Dogs are out? Chickens are not. No exceptions. They wear a training collar. When hubby accidentally lets the dogs out when the chickens are out..1 warning buzz is all it takes.

This is exactly what I do. We have a boxer, pitbull, and their pup. I can beep one dogs collar and they all listen right away. Buzz is next if one is getting ready to chase(they like to chase the cats). Zapping is very, very rarely used. I think training collars are very effective if used properly.

Husky’s are tough dogs. I personally could only suggest two options. Get rid of the dog or make the dog a completely secure compound. Then be sure to exercise the dog a few times a day while chickens are locked up. I’ve had a husky before. They are awesome dogs, but not nearly as loyal and obedient as other breeds. And that prey drive

 

[Malamute1]

Our Malamute was 1yr old pup when we got our chickens. She would obey a Leave it! command while they were on the porch in the brooder. But once outside she considered them fair game. My hens free range from dawn to dusk. Our dog yard is 1/3 acre fenced. I tried many times many ways to teach her to leave the peeps alone. They are prey driven. Doesn't work. We put up 2x3" field fencing for chickens. Sialuk is our 4th Malamute over the yrs. We have been very fortunate over the yrs. We have only had 4' chain link or field fencing and only 1 Mal has ever gone over the fence. And she would only go over the field fencing for gopher tortoise. Huskies & Malamutes are very determind, stubborn breeds. Our current girl is a bit of a digger. Fortunately she only digs at fence if critters are outside of her fencing and she starts screaming n wrooing first. (Chickens excluded) We are able to go out n bring her in. We have to lock the dinning room door at that point. She is able to open doors and has a dog door on the porch. Lol. She will sit at the fence between her and peeps and watch them. It took 3 mos to teach her not to run past us going out the screen door to chicken yard My advice to you would be fencing a chicken run. I would start with a minimum 5' 2x3 field fencing and burying it 12" . Use at least chicken wire for roofing. Make sure all is stretched fairly tight and secure. I wouldn't advise shorter fencing If you pup is a climber. They would be able to get on top of chicken wire. That could be a disaster in many ways and stress your chicks. If your husky is still persistent you might need to add hot wire. Unfortunately our breed choices do not mix well with poultry, but it can be done. I will say our Malamute is a good deterrent for our local Bob cats, coons and opossum, and in the spring/summer the blue jays n mocking birds chase the hawks away. Never underestimate a pair of blue jays protecting their nest. Lol Its quite a sight to see! I wish you luck and enjoy your peeps!

 

[cassie]

Déjà vu! Huskey's are not bird dogs.. so this won't hurt your bird dog.. as before. Tie one of their kills around their neck and allow it to literally rot off.. It'll take about a month, in the summer. They will be sickened to even look at another chicken.. and no it is not cruel. Think about it. Daddy said don't touch that it's hot.. you'll get burned. You don't learn hot till you get burnt.. sure cure and public education.

It would take a lot more than a dead bird tied around its neck to get a Husky to leave the chickens alone. Besides, many dogs, including mine, seem to LOVE the smell of dead things.