For about a month or more our black lab / blue heeler (11 months old) was fine around the chickens. Of course, most the time she was outside, I was around or she wasn't out more than 30 minutes TOPS by herself. Well, I had to leave this past weekend to go to my grandmother's 80th party in south TX. Apparently, me saying over and over and over that the dog shouldn't be left outside by herself for more than 30 min or so didn't sink in.
Friday night, I get a call that the husband found a dead chicken about 20 feet from the coop. It was missing it's head and neck. It looked like whatever did it started into the breast but stopped. At the time, he had gone in for a four hour nap and left the dog outside (middle of the day). Well, we tried to give her the benefit of the doubt. I figured maybe it was a hawk (we have ALOT of them around), or a fox. I told him DO NOT leave her outside! Several times! Why do men not listen??? Monday morning, I get a frantic call. He got up around 6 to let the chickens out. It was nice and cool and the dog was wet from running through the pond, so he decided to leave her oustide while he slept a little more. He got up around 9:30. Went outside and she came running from around the garage with feathers in her mouth. He went to look and found my sweet little rooster, Rusty, laying there. It just breaks my heart. Well, husband said Rusty was pretty tore up and was barely breathing. He comforted him and then killed him.
I came home Tuesday (yesterday) and noticed something wrong with the feathers around one of the other's neck. Grabbed her and under a top layer of feathers, her neck is raw, I mean down to the meat. It's clean. She eats and runs around like nothing's wrong. I plan on going down to the feed store to see about some antibiotics. But I think she'll be ok.
I brought home the rooster I gave my friend. He's a RIR. He's just not nearly as friendly as Rusty was. Ugh, there's such a void where my little boy was. My husband was pretty tore up about it too. He still is, really.
I've talked with my mom, my friend (he's an older man that's raised ALOT of chickens), his mom, and a few other people. I've been told that dogs CANNOT be taught to not attack chickens. It's just in their instinct to do it. But then I've been told that it CAN be done. With alot of monitoring, treats, and time, it can be done. I've heard, for a long time now, that once they taste blood, they'll keep attacking. I just don't know. I love my dog. I definitely don't want to get rid of her. What I figure is she was just playing around and got too rough. But now I'm so afraid to leave her outside more than 5 minutes even. I was out hanging clothes on the line and she was laying there chewing on a stick. The chickens came right up to her and she did nothing. I'm still really not totally convince she attacked Rusty. I wonder if it's possible that something got to him and she was just there after the fact. She was bad about eating feathers before all this anyways.
I just don't know.
Sorry for the long post. I guess I needed to vent. Thanks for reading and any advice....
Friday night, I get a call that the husband found a dead chicken about 20 feet from the coop. It was missing it's head and neck. It looked like whatever did it started into the breast but stopped. At the time, he had gone in for a four hour nap and left the dog outside (middle of the day). Well, we tried to give her the benefit of the doubt. I figured maybe it was a hawk (we have ALOT of them around), or a fox. I told him DO NOT leave her outside! Several times! Why do men not listen??? Monday morning, I get a frantic call. He got up around 6 to let the chickens out. It was nice and cool and the dog was wet from running through the pond, so he decided to leave her oustide while he slept a little more. He got up around 9:30. Went outside and she came running from around the garage with feathers in her mouth. He went to look and found my sweet little rooster, Rusty, laying there. It just breaks my heart. Well, husband said Rusty was pretty tore up and was barely breathing. He comforted him and then killed him.
I came home Tuesday (yesterday) and noticed something wrong with the feathers around one of the other's neck. Grabbed her and under a top layer of feathers, her neck is raw, I mean down to the meat. It's clean. She eats and runs around like nothing's wrong. I plan on going down to the feed store to see about some antibiotics. But I think she'll be ok.
I brought home the rooster I gave my friend. He's a RIR. He's just not nearly as friendly as Rusty was. Ugh, there's such a void where my little boy was. My husband was pretty tore up about it too. He still is, really.
I've talked with my mom, my friend (he's an older man that's raised ALOT of chickens), his mom, and a few other people. I've been told that dogs CANNOT be taught to not attack chickens. It's just in their instinct to do it. But then I've been told that it CAN be done. With alot of monitoring, treats, and time, it can be done. I've heard, for a long time now, that once they taste blood, they'll keep attacking. I just don't know. I love my dog. I definitely don't want to get rid of her. What I figure is she was just playing around and got too rough. But now I'm so afraid to leave her outside more than 5 minutes even. I was out hanging clothes on the line and she was laying there chewing on a stick. The chickens came right up to her and she did nothing. I'm still really not totally convince she attacked Rusty. I wonder if it's possible that something got to him and she was just there after the fact. She was bad about eating feathers before all this anyways.
I just don't know.
Sorry for the long post. I guess I needed to vent. Thanks for reading and any advice....