Puppy and hens?

[KattyKillFish]

Quote:
What breed of dog? Some breeds would never be trustworthy. Supervision the key... Also regarding maturity, that too would depend on the breed.

i agree. some breeds are certainly not trustworthy when it comes to chickens. although popular, bird dogs like labs and retrievers can't truly be trusted around chickens unless VERY STRICT training is in order. huskies are a no-no, they have a lot of the killer instinct that their wolf ancestors have.

be careful when selecting a breed! breed DOES matter when it comes to guarding a flock!

 

[okiron]

Quote:
What breed of dog? Some breeds would never be trustworthy. Supervision the key... Also regarding maturity, that too would depend on the breed.

When I answered the question I had the Pyr in mind because that what I plan on getting for myself to guard my livestock lol.

 

[KattyKillFish]

that's a this kind

they have a GREAT rep as a flock guardian, a flock of sheep that is. they are also very gentle with kids and usually won't bother cats. even with a dog such as this, it is still very wise to seperate them from the birds they are to look after and still train them as you would any dog to not kill your birds. with any dogs, no matter what breed, training and socialization is important.
a user on another forum wrote this:

# havenacresfarm Says:
May 19th, 2008 at 9:44 am

You could try Great Pyrenees- they are a herd protection breed. Mine is an indoor/outdoor dog. When I have my spring biddies in the house she doesn’t bother them at all. I am overall super impressed with her around my chickens, cat and horses and the kids that come up to the house. Check into it- it might be a good option for you.​

 

[AkTomboy]

I wrote this in another thread but it might give you some more info on Pyrs. I will state now I am not trying offend you in any way. It is always hard for me to see people get them who do not understand about them and then the dog suffers because of it.

I am all for Pyrs. I grew up with them and am lucky to say I have had atleast two pyrs in every day of my life. I have them now along with my mom on her place. Ours run with our chickens and turkeys along with all other critters every day. I have one who used to sleep in the chicken coop untill she out grew the door. They are great with kids and will gaurd your flock and kids.

Pyrs do have a double coat and do require to be brushed often when they blow the two coats. That being said pyrs are all over the world and states from AK to FL. Ours even in our "hot" summer enjoy the kiddy plastic pools for our alpacas. Or they will dig a rather large hole in the ground to get to the cooler dirt.

Our pyrs pull duty at different times during the day and walk the fence line often during each shift. As far as playing with kids more often then not they are not the fetching type although I do have a grump now who love to play keep away with the Bloodhound and Golden Ret.

They are also very smart dogs who were bred to think for themselves. So you need to work on manners when you get your pup asap. It may be cute to have a 15lbs pup in your kids lap but when they are pushing 200 lbs your lil ones are not going to like it so much.

Also if you are going to have them work they need to learn that from the start. Our dogs are a part of our family but they enjoy the job they do. We put our pups out at 6 weeks for them to start getting used to all the other critters. And work up from there dont be suprised with your dog no longer wants to come in from his job. At that age they learn who they can or can not mess with. It does help having adults who have the ropes down but have no fear a lone pup will suprise you on how smart they are.

Up here we have to worry about bears, wolves, coyotes and strays so we always have more than one adult pyr. If you are worried about just the odd stray one will do fine. Also in order for them to work as your gaurding of family and flock I do not teach my dogs to get along with other dogs. I want them to look at our land as only our land. No others are aloud unless I say.

Please just remember you are getting a big smart dog. In the many years of my mom breeding them since 72. It is just sad how many people get them then dont teach them manners and when they are about 9 months no longer want them. I am not saying this is you being that you have already done the first step by finding out information before getting one. They are very very loyal dogs and I have seen what that does to a dog being dropped by the family they were raised with.

I hope my ramble has helped some. If you have more questions you can msg me. Or any of the other proud pyr owners on here.

 

[Teresaann24]

Whatever you do don't get a puppy with any type of hound in it. My girl is a basset mix and boy she does not like anyone around her chickens but if one gets out the chase it on. I do not trust her around my chickens AT ALL.

 

[ksalvagno]

If you get a dog to protect your chickens, make sure you are getting a GUARD dog, not a herding dog. They are 2 different things. Border Collies are herding dogs and need a job to do or they will create one of their own. Just guarding chickens would probably get to be very boring for them. Also make sure you are buying from a reputable breeder who has the puppies already out with the livestock and "working." Make sure you see the parents. DO NOT get a rescue dog for a guard. There are no guarantees. This is the one time you need to go to a reputable breeder who breeds the dogs for guarding livestock only and keeps their dogs working.

 

[mooSa]

well I was getting a german shepard for them, are they a great breed for livestock?