New pest....a nest-robbing dog!

[Beekissed]

My egg production had dropped sharply during the molt and with the onset of winter but I figured it would come around after all the molting was done. My newer junior flock is just turning 5 mo. and I have been anticipating some pullet eggs as well.

NOTHING. A few eggs a day, then one, then none.

Mystery solved one frosty, sunny morning when I heard that familiar cackle that means an egg has been layed....I look out the window and what do I see? My youngest dog, Jake, a lab/BC mix slipping through my chicken-sized pop door! He stays a little while and I expect to see chickens come streaming out, cursing his name. No chickens even made a squawk! This tells me this isn't the first time for him and they are quite used to his daily nest checking....

He comes out the door with an egg held delicately in his mouth and proceeds to lie down and have a good egg sucking!!!

If he wasn't such a good dog otherwise, I would find a nice family that wants a cheerful egg-sucking hound!

New, smaller opening devised for the pop door that very day and my egg production is booming, with several "strange" eggs in nests that hadn't been used previously! My junior flock is laying and doing quite well, it appears!

One smart, sneaky, lovable, thieving, egg-sucking dog thwarted.....THIS time!

 

[Dandelion007]

Hope that works for you!

You have to be part detective to live on a farm.

 

[redoak]

Our dog was going into the coop and stealing the ping-pong balls and golf balls.

 

[FrChuckW]

One way to cure an egg sucking dog is to take a couple of eggs and lace them with Tabasco Sauce and Hot Cayenne pepper.

You mix the two together and inject it into the egg. Then leave them were the dog can find them. Most dogs won't go near an egg after one or two times of this treatment. Just make sure you have a big pan of drinking water handy for the dog.

This will work as long as the dog doesn't have a penchant for really spicy foods!

I know it may sound cruel but it doesn't seriously hurt them, just gives them a hot mouth just like a human.

 

[AngieChick]

I know his behavior is annoying, but imagining your dog enjoying his ill-gotten gain is kind of endearing!

I am glad for you that you caught him, he will be a poor little sad poochie

.

 

[redhen]

Quote:
i had a dog that would have loved the hot sauce!.

.....also..on this same line of thought..i wonder if you could inject a bitter type spray in the egg?

 

[Beekissed]

This dog will eat simply anything! I would say that hot or bitter wouldn't matter to him in the least.

We often discuss how well he would maintain himself in the wild. He rarely barks and is lightening fast, with the courage of a bear....thus he makes an excellent hunter.

Scavenger supreme.. he started killing mice and moles as a pup, steals mice from the cat, will catch a songbird in mid-air and swallow it whole! He has killed a whopping big coon and an equally large groundhog...and never left the electric boundary he is in.

He eats all vegetables and stole nearly all my ripe tomatoes out of the garden this year, as well as my rhubarb and potatoes! He cleaned up the corn patch and ate my watermelons. Next year I have to get an electric fence around the garden...to keep out the dog that is keeping out the deer!

Hot sauce? He'd eat that and lick his lips for more!

ETA: Oh, yeah! He ate half a bag of paintballs that were blue with yellow paint....pooped green for days!!!

 

[chickenpiedpiper]

Quote:
Too funny!

I have used vinegar laced eggs to stop a clever dog. The vinegar makes the dog think the food item is rotten, and even a hungry dog learns that vinegar is bad for the tummy.