Training/Teaching a dog about chickens

[prcurtis]

The very first chicks i got, i had ordered. I kept them in the kitchen in a container for the first few days. My cocker spaniel totally fell in love with them! I think it made her mothering instinct come out. For years after that, until she died of old age, she kept a very loving watch on the chickens, no matter how many i had. She even came to me one day with something in her mouth and whining...she had been in a nest in the coop and took an egg while the hen was on a break, that was about to hatch and was 'peeping' in the shell! She thought that was the grandest thing she'd ever seen! She brought it to me so easy and gentle like it was a priceless jewel! I guess that would be my advice, is to let some babies stay in a container where the dog can just lay and watch them and become familier with them first.

 

[Zombified]

The very first chicks i got, i had ordered. I kept them in the kitchen in a container for the first few days. My cocker spaniel totally fell in love with them! I think it made her mothering instinct come out. For years after that, until she died of old age, she kept a very loving watch on the chickens, no matter how many i had. She even came to me one day with something in her mouth and whining...she had been in a nest in the coop and took an egg while the hen was on a break, that was about to hatch and was 'peeping' in the shell! She thought that was the grandest thing she'd ever seen! She brought it to me so easy and gentle like it was a priceless jewel! I guess that would be my advice, is to let some babies stay in a container where the dog can just lay and watch them and become familier with them first.

Awww that's so cute! I've tried to feed my dog eggs. He just holds them in his mouth or drops them gently on the ground, lol. I've always had to crack them open for him.

 

[4Hgirl]

We have a mutt that looks like a red nose pit x french bull dog with a touch of pug and a golden retriever x Chesapeake retriever. Both spayed females. Neither dog messes with the birds who almost all free range. I have reason to beleive that the retriever tried to eat a chicken of the first clutch we had. We never knew what happened so didn't punish the dog, but she looked quite guilty and we told her we were not happy. Sounds funny but that was years ago and that look in eyes when she looks at the chickens is gone. It's the same look I have when I see cheesecake. Similar thing many years ago with the pit, she was our only dog at the time and the only chicken I had was dead in the yard with belly feathers plucked but otherwise intact. Pit looked guilty and I told her I wasn't happy but how do you spank when you don't know? Something my dad taught me as a child when we had a cat killing dog and we got some barn cats and an indoor cat. He would hold the cat and with eye contact with the dog he would say "This is MY cat, you don't touch this cat." It seriously worked. She would kill any stray cat or neighbors cat but never ever our cats. And yes she was left unwatched all the time. I have done it with my cat and the birds.
Also, the dogs have learned the birds give them gifts--eggs. All the ones that are cracked or when they lay in my mulch in my flowers, the dogs get them. And they get some almost everyday. Now they seem to appreciate the chickens and ducks!

 

[Twinklin]

My example isn't the best because my dog is a very small dog. I introduced my shih tzu to my chickens when the chickens were small. He showed interest but he's a very docile dog and is very obedient so I never had any issue telling him to be nice. Once they were full grown he just started ignoring the chickens. Recently he fought with my EE because she's obsessed with him. She follows him around the entire time he's outside, he hates it. She got a bit too close and was pecking at him so they had a brief squabble. I broke it up quickly, but I'm pretty sure if there was any damage done it would have been to the dog.

 

[CheleB]

I have a 9 yr old staffy & he got one of my girls when we first got them.. She didn't die but I disciplined him with a smack and some very harsh words he will never forget and he has been AMAZING since, even shows our girls affection & guards there coop

I also have 2 staffies. I have always been the undisputed pack leader. My dogs are very obedient but it has taken constant training and reinforcement all their lives. I recently got chickens and the younger dog (4) couldn't care less and loves 'chook chocolate' if you know what I mean. My other dog (10) has a stronger 'chase' instinct. They both understand 'leave' and with supervision my older dog right from the first time of being reprimanded has not tried again since. My chooks free range the whole yard after lunch each day with no problems. I would never have the chooks free ranging and the dogs out in the yard if I wasn't home. That would be like leaving a toddler alone near a swimming pool. Asking for trouble.

 

[Tacampbell1973]

OP, how well trained are your dogs? Do they reliably obey the "leave it" command every time?

If your dogs are not well trained and used to training, then you'll have to start at the beginning BEFORE you let them anywhere near the chickens. Teach sit, and down, and make sure you get a good down-stay and leave it before you do anything else. This may take a year (and professional help if you don't know much about dog training).

If your dogs are already well trained, start with the down-stay and let some chickens (potentially sacrificial birds, so don't use your favorites) eat some scratch and walk around them, praising the dogs the whole time they stay in the down-stay. If they go for the chickens, a sharp "leave it" should make them desist. Offer a treat for a successful "leave it." Train them to leave the chickens alone the same way you train them not to eat your children's toys.

Once they handle the chickens walking around them during a down-stay, allow them to be around a bird or two while closely supervised, with you ready to tell them "leave it" at the first sign of their interest in the chickens. Remember the treats!

You may not be able to leave them out unsupervised with the birds for a while, until you feel pretty comfortable that they know that birds are not for eating. Then watch through some place like a garage door window so the dogs think they are alone, and see if they go for a chicken. Be vigilant and ready to rush through that door hollering "leave it" if they go for the birds. There's lots of research that shows that dogs know when humans can see them, and change their behaviors accordingly. You want your dogs to think you can see them even if they can't see you!

It is possible to train dogs to leave chickens alone. My pitbull/mastiff mix wanted to chase chickens for about a year, but we have trained her that chickens are not for chasing using the above method. She now pretty much ignores chickens, and yesterday I saw a clutch of 12 week old birds walk all around her while she was lying in the yard and she didn't even flinch. She still chases rabbits out of the garden (we encourage this) and chases the cat for fun (they're good friends, the chasing is a game) but she leaves the chickens alone.

I too have a pitbull but she is a purebred. Have had her since 6 months old, now 7 years old. She shivers when she sees baby chivkens. She walks right past the adult chickens, but somehting about the peeping oof the babies triggers something instinctive in her. I never leave her alone with the chickens. She reacts when she hears wings flapping and i dont want to lose a bird. Also, I try to include her in the care (watering,feeding, etc.) of the chickens so that jealousy does not occur, along the lines of a younger child with a new baby in the home mentality. I do not know if she will ever get past her shivering and I don't know what it means, but it scares me. She is otherwise a very loving animal and I have never had an ounce of trouble from her, she is always anxious to please. Any other advice would be very welcome.

 

[CheleB]

I too have a pitbull but she is a purebred. Have had her since 6 months old, now 7 years old. She shivers when she sees baby chivkens. She walks right past the adult chickens, but somehting about the peeping oof the babies triggers something instinctive in her. I never leave her alone with the chickens. She reacts when she hears wings flapping and i dont want to lose a bird.  Also, I try to include her in the care (watering,feeding, etc.) of the chickens so that jealousy does not occur, along the lines of a younger child with a new baby in the home mentality. I do not know if she will ever get past her shivering and I don't know what it means, but it scares me. She is otherwise a very loving animal and I have never had an ounce of trouble from her, she is always anxious to please. Any other advice would be very welcome.

You know yr dog!! Yes including the dog in the care and even sharing treat time (something for the dog then something for the chooks). My 4 yr old staffy has an incredibly string attachment so I always include him to ensure he doesn't get jealous and see the chooks as rivals to his position. The shivering (and I'm no dog expert) I would think is an involuntary physical reaction to anxiety. You can never fully control anxiety I have found with my dog you can't fight it but you can channel it and try to do it in a positive way. Distraction works with food treats for focussing on me and what I want him to do. If its in the digs nature to feel anxious about some things in my experience (and again I'm no expert) they have it for life but working constructively with it really does work. If yr dog is anxious with chicks don't push it just yet. Leave it a whole and try again some other time. Spend time getting yr dog to look you in the eyes a focus in you I know this action alone makes my dog calm as he trusts me.

But you know yr dog best just watch him and his body language will tell you everything you need to know.

 

[Barred4Life]

I think keeping them on a leash and slowly putting them through the stimulation until it's no longer that interesting for them...I had mine on a leash (a short one) made her sit/lay down and put some chicks near her. She would shake...I would wait. With repetition the tension in her body and the shaking subsided pretty quickly. Then I moved the chicks in....then she was aloud to be standing...then sitting without a leash...etc. Slowly move towards the dog being with the chickens independently when you see that they are no longer fixated on them. With repetitions it's no longer that interesting for them, it just becomes whatever.
I think the dog's personality is huge on how quickly they learn. My Pitbull mix has a desire to please me (the 'Alpha dog') so much that if I say stay, she will not move even if you put a steak in front of her. So she was easy to train...


During training...stiff as a post!


Example of how this dog just does what I say...you want me to hold this chick on my nose?


This is her after training...she just lays with the chicken...and they want nothing to do with her, hahaha.


Now my other dog on the other hand...was hard to train. She is a Border Collie mixed with Blue Heeler. I took the same steps with her, but she doesn't have a desire to please her master like the other the one. So more repetitions it was. I would think, there she's got it, and she would start hearding the chicken. Or she would creep up to the chickens, the rooster would not like it and peck at her, and she'd snap at it. Anyway with time she finally got it and no birds were hurt in the process (almost). She's actually pretty good with defending them now, when she hears them squawking, it doesn't matter where she is, she will sprint across whatever to get to them.


I can put a chick on my head too!

 

[mstricer]

You must establish that you are the alpha in the pack.  DO this by grabbing the dog and throwing them onto their back immediately when they go for one of them.  THen, grab their throat and growl.    Then, any time they start, growl at them. If you also walk outside with thme with a leash, and they bolt, yank the heck out of the choke collar (you can;t hurt them) and growl at the same time.  THis will take a few weeks.  I have raised yellow labs and Golden Doodles. I love dogs and can't abide mistreatment,  BUt, a dog ythat is a bad neighbor is not bad, just needs to be trained.

When I got my chicks, I took each one and held it in front of my golden retriever's nose and talked to her.,  After a few moments she gave each one a great big kiss.  

That is incorrect about you can't hurt them with a chock collar, in fact you can kill them by doing so, by break their windpipe. We use pinch collars as they don't take much for the dog to stop

 

[Michael Apple]

That is incorrect about you can't hurt them with a chock collar, in fact you can kill them by doing so, by break their windpipe. We use pinch collars as they don't take much for the dog to stop

Placement of a prong collar, or regular collar, is important. The collar should fit tight enough to remain behind the jaw just behind the base of the skull. This is more sensitive and doesn't injure the trachea such as when the collar is placed too low on the neck. In regard to shock collars, sometimes they are helpful, but only if the user of the remote knows timing means everything in regard to issuing the shock. If the person training can't refrain from using it like a television remote, they aren't fit to use a shock collar on a dog. The various training methods being effective, depend on the character of the dog. The balance of positive and negative reinforcement determines much also.