Pit bulls in my coop!!

[Megan Amber]

Guineas.....A marvelous Idea!

 

[HazelCMAS]

You show great patience here for those that would hijack this discussion and turn it into one regarding the various pros and cons of this particular breed; it's been said many times: it's not the breed, it's the owner. 'Nuff said.

I am truly sorry for your loss and thank you for posting and sharing, particularly knowing I'd have been just as sickened going through the photos as you surely must have been. I have definitely learned something from this thread and, thankfully, it's chicken related.

Thank you for your understanding. Thankfully, I have learned too. This week seems to be a little better than the last one. I don't think I'll forget feeling guilty that I couldn't protect those birds. It kind of breaks my heart that I built a coop that they couldn't escape from when the predators finally got in with them. Course, I suppose that's the point of a coop...containment.

 

[bugglesmommy]

Has anyone ever tried wolf deterrent methods against domestic dogs?

I know there are sound and other ways to deter wolves and coyotes and I'm curious.

 

[nova022]

That's crazy. Pit Bulls are strong dogs so i'm not surprised they went through the coop fence but that must have been a good effort on their part to be at it for a long time. Hopefully it works out and your next rig does the trick.

I have three hours worth of pictures on my game cam of two labs trying to get into my coop and run. They breached the outside fence that was just the green garden wire fencing that I use simply to keep the chickens in that area when I am outside, but they did not get through the 1/2" hardware cloth that completely encloses the run top bottom and all four sides inspite of their best efforts. They were jumping on it, scratching and digging at it and biting at it in the pictures. Thank goodness it held and they were not as powerful as the pitbulls.

 

[nova022]

That's crazy. Pit Bulls are strong dogs so i'm not surprised they went through the coop fence but that must have been a good effort on their part to be at it for a long time. Hopefully it works out and your next rig does the trick.

I have three hours worth of pictures on my game cam of two labs trying to get into my coop and run. They breached the outside fence that was just the green garden wire fencing that I use simply to keep the chickens in that area when I am outside, but they did not get through the 1/2" hardware cloth that completely encloses the run top bottom and all four sides inspite of their best efforts. They were jumping on it, scratching and digging at it and biting at it in the pictures. Thank goodness it held and they were not as powerful as the pitbulls.

 

[bugglesmommy]

I have three hours worth of pictures on my game cam of two labs trying to get into my coop and run.  They breached the outside fence that was just the green garden wire fencing that I use simply to keep the chickens in that area when I am outside, but they did not get through the 1/2" hardware cloth that completely encloses the run top bottom and all four sides inspite of their best efforts.  They were jumping on it, scratching and digging at it and biting at it in the pictures.  Thank goodness it held and they were not as powerful as the pitbulls.

That's actually why I feel that despite the debating it caused the breed in question is more important here. A coop that can keep out labs or terriers for example may not be strong enough to hold up to the power of a Pitt. The breed will help determine how to better come up with ideas to make her and maybe even our own coops safer.

 

[tackleberry]

sorry about your chickies.

 

[ChickensRDinos]

My point is adopting a dog of Pitt Bull descent is a crap shoot. You may, like my daughter, get a wonderful family dog, half Pitt, half Lab. Or you may get a hidden killer, whose instinct to maul would only come to light only from a triggering activity. Like a small breed dog trotting across the Pitt's yard or an infant pulling on doggy's tail and falling down.


Be aware

PLEASE stop. Please. Please. I understand that people feel frustrated about continuing to hear pitbulls defended -- trust me, I am sick of defending them. I also understand that this was not the intent of the thread -- OP, I am very sorry for your loss.

Pitbulls are the most tortured, abused, abandoned and euthanized dogs in the US by a huge margin. Continuing to spread misinformation that these dogs are "hidden killers" or will maul randomly at will, only further encourages criminals to buy them and good homes to not. The more animal-abusing owners with unsocialized, unneutered dogs -- yes, the more attacks but NOT because they are hidden killers, because they are victims of false reputation and terrible circumstance. Please stop adding to this problem with casual references that lead to fear.

If you do not have the knowledge and time to handle a dog of any breed with a history of abuse then please choose a dog with a known history.

http://www.alternet.org/civil-liber...t-nanny-dogs-children-until-media-turned-them

 

[UrbanEnthusiast]

My theory is that pitbulls turn violent so easily when abused because they actually have an exceptionally sweet and trusting nature (and also probably because they're not the smartest breed around). It's incredibly sad when you think about it. Imagine if someone abused Lennie Small from the time he was born. That's how I think of it. If you get a pit pup or a rescue with a known, non-abusive history, they are wonderful family pets and there's no need for special concern.

 

[shelbydog]

One of my dogs was mauled to death by a pit-border collie mix in November. The pitmix was about 9 months old and my dog 10 years old. Who owned the pitmix? We did, got him as a small puppy. Was he abused? Not at all. He left puncture wounds in the necks of all my smaller dogs who didn't want to 'play' with him. He went after this particular dog 3 times before. I was left to keeping my dogs separated in kennels but one night I had my dog in the house and let him out to use bathroom in the main yard in the morning b/c I thought the aggression issue was over. In the time it took me to take a shower the 'puppy' killed him. I didn't hear anything in the house. I was living with a bf, he refused to get rid of this dog so I moved out and took my 3 surviving dogs with me. It took us a while to figure why these 'fights' would happen out of the blue. This pup is cute and looks playful and does try to play but my smaller dogs didn't like to be pawed on the back by the bigger dog and when they would give him the body language of leave me alone the pit mix attacked and the pit mix is going to win every time. BF denies he has a unpredictable dog on his hands. He wants aggressive to guard house. I will feel sorry for the next girl that moves in and brings her dogs to be put at risk. I feel horrible that I put all my dogs at risk up to one getting killed but at first we thought it was one of my dogs causing the aggression. And he had 2 pit mixes that disappeared before we got that pup. I had zero issues with those 2 except when they would have growling show downs around me.