Training my collie to be okay with chickens!! help!!

[takethelead]

I have a rough collie pup, shes almost 8 months old and shes very rambunctious and still very much enjoying her puppy stage. I have 6 chickens so far and I want her to be okay with them as I continue to get more. When i take her out on a lead to see them she doesnt seem to mind my orpingtons as they dont freak out as much but when i take her to see my other game hens they start jumping around as they are scared of her then she charges towards the cage. I think the movements from them is what sets her off. My older collie I do not trust as she does tend to kill them. so now I want to train her to protect them when i do let them free range as there are predators around but shes not the most focused dog ive seen any tips? ( she doesnt listen very well what can i do to fix that?)

 

[Chickery Chick]

This may be a case for a shock collar. I know this sounds bad, but it is much sadder to have killed chickens and a dog that will never be able to get along with the chickens. I'm going to guess just 2-3 zaps and she'll be cured. I would first verbally correct her when she start at them so she connects the correction with then zap. She needs to know the correction is going to be followed by consequences. Then when you do not have her shock collar on and you correct her she'll listen. I would start out on a low setting, which is more like a humm than a heavy zap. If your dog is bone headed and this does not work then you will need to turn up the setting to a place where it gets her attention. In other words, don't start out on the highest setting. Most dogs do not need that much zap. Make sure the prongs are tight and well up against the skin to be effective. Remember this is just a temporary collar and is not to be left on more than a few hours, so tight is ok for a few hours. I've seen too many people not make sure it was tight and up against the neck then they start out low and say, "It didn't work" then keep turning it up and up until it is on high and then by chance it suddenly works and the poor dog is zapped way too hard. Now if your dog starts to figure out that when the collar is off they can go after the chickens then you need to put a decoy collar on. This is a collar that is not a shock collar, just a looser fitting collar that has prongs on it with no shocking ability, but the dog does not know this. You may need to go back and forth with them so the dog does not figure out which is which. I still think you'll be ok with the 1st round, and possibly a month later a warm up again if she starts after the chickens again.

 

[Fly 2006]

I found your post a little confusing.......... You have a collie who kills your chickens if given a chance, you want to get more chickens and free range them, so you then thought it a good idea to get another collie who is showing the same traits as your first collie? So now you have two collies, neither of which you can trust around the chickens? Sometimes we have to make choices in life and can't have all we want, I would love some chickens but would only want free range, I know my BC would be a nightmare around them so I won't have them!

 

[howfunkyisurchicken]

The first thing you need to do is some basic obedience training with BOTH of your dogs. Teach them to sit, stay, look/focus on you and leave it. Start inside the house and use little bits of cheese, hot dog or some other favorite treat to teach them the commands. Once they get the hang of it inside, take them outside in a place with little distraction and start again. As they master the commands outside, gradually move them closer, stopping by the calmer Orps first. Then progress towards the flightier games. Keep them tethered to you outside so you have their undivided attention. The tether will also help get that attention back should it wander. Not too mention you can real them back if they should choose not to listen at all.
The key to dog training is to not set them up for failure. Everytime you take your puppy to see the game hens and allow it to rush the cage is ingraining that behavior just a little bit. You need to avoid what sets your dog up for failure until you have established a proper "off" switch. Which is as simple as getting your dog to listen to you. I train with my dog 15 minutes twice a day. He also gets two 30 minute walks every day. By the time we get to chicken chores, he's usually too exhausted to worry with the chickens. If he's still a little antsy he's made to sit/stay at the run door. A mentally exhausted dog is a well behaved dog.
If you need extra help, I highly recommend kikopup's youtube video, they're fantastic.
Best of luck!