Well, this thing was SUPPOSED to be protecting the chickens.. not the other way around :/

[dacasodivine]

I'm going to be blunt. Sorry.

You don't like the dog. You have called the pup "it", "him", and "her". Until you called her by name, I didn't know if it was male or female.

If you have read everything you can get your hands on, you know that these dogs take training yet after a week you are frustrated that she isn't protecting your flock and is instead killing chicks that get in with her. She is a puppy doing what puppies do. The fault is yours for not making sure she does not have access to them.

My opinion is that you should send her back now. I don't think you have the desire to actually train this pup and will become more and more frustrated with her. Right now she still has time to go to a home that will spend the time to train her and make her a productive LGD.

 

[peteyfoozer]

I have to agree with the previous poster. An LGD is not mentally mature until they are 2 years or so. Expecting a puppy to be safe with chickens is just not realistic. These dogs are worth their weight in gold, but you have to be willing to invest the time in them to let them mature and help them to learn what is ok and what is not, without being overbearing. They are not 'typical' dogs and are not subservient to their owners. They work better as 'partners'. There are effective ways to correct them, and many ways to just plain ruin them. If its not feasible for you to bring the dog along properly, it would be better to rehome it, or return it, while it still has a chance for a successful future and not wind up a statistic.

 

[jak2002003]

I do not agree you can every trust, even the most well trained dog, with your chickens. Dogs are clever creatures and will eventually give in to temptation.

I have a small dog that has been raised with the chickens since she was a puppy. I have given her careful training and she is now nearly 3 years old. I used ot leave them together in the garden when I went to work, and the dog would protect the chicken from cats and other predators. The chickens got on really well with the dog, and one hen used to follow the dog around and peck her tail. I would often see them all laying about together on the grass, totally relaxed.

Then one day I cam home to find a dead chicken and my dog sniffing it. No blood, no evidence of a struggle. I could not believe my dog did it and thought something else must have happened and forgot about it. 2 weeks later I was in my office and heard my chickens going crazy. Looking out of the window my dog was buys running after the chickens, and got one in her mouth, pinned it down and started pulling out its feathers.

When the got heard the house door opening she stopped, ran over to her bed and pretended to be asleep! Dogs are very clever. She still will not show any interest in the chickens when I am there, but if I go out in the car - then sneak back to look through the fence....I can see her pacing the chicken run trying to get in.

Once a dog as discovered the fun and excitment of killing a chicken, it will be very likely to do it again in the future. Now I never leave my dog unattended with my birds.

 

[nzpouter]

I do not agree you can every trust, even the most well trained dog, with your chickens.  Dogs are clever creatures and will eventually give in to temptation.

I have a small dog that has been raised with the chickens since she was a puppy.  I have given her careful training and she is now nearly 3 years old.  I used ot leave them together in the garden when I went to work, and the dog would protect the chicken from cats and other predators.  The chickens got on really well with the dog, and one hen used to follow the dog around and peck her tail.  I would often see them all laying about together on the grass, totally relaxed.

I trust my dogs, and always will... that's their job, to watch for this property and everything that live in it. They sleep in the chicken house with the chickens if there's a sign of predators about, they are fed raw diet (includes chickens, mutton, pork, etc, which they actually live with side by side every day)... they're allowed to hunt, kill and eat anything that don't belong here...

This was my last 3 (only 1 left now), the last one is 16, the other 2 died at 12 and 10...



This is how they lived, and this is how my next dogs will live as well... accident happened to pups, but never let that become a habit.

 

[nzpouter]

Oops, maybe we shouldn't be doing that..

 

no, you shouldn't, not for a while anyway.... first thing you should teach her is the chickens meant to be ignored, which means doing your day to day chores around your chickens with her by your side on leash and quick corrections when she's indicating the wrong interests...

 

[themadchicken]

I am sorry but i have to agree with dacsodivine. it seems that you do not love your dog. dog obedience classes take several weeks to complete but unfortunately they do not teach you how to curb an animal of its natural instinct, some dogs are are natural born killers. I have a small Chihuahua and i know if i let him close to my chicks he will kill them. BUT he was here first, so he will remain. They do not interact unless i am present or the chicks can fend for them selves. Maybe trade the dog in for a kitten and get it fixed as a baby but do not declaw it.cats are more protective of their property then dogs. if you raise them together as babies they will get along. But keep in mind once they are adults they will kill little chicks.Please do the right thing and find the dog a new home unless you are willing to put the dog first and your chickens second. if you ignore your chickens they still grow up to be chickens. if you ignore your dog it will grow into an animal that will eventually have to be put down.

 

[dacasodivine]

I've noticed several people suggest puppy training classes. Livestock Guardian Breeds often do not do well at obedience. They are bred to think and work independently. The urge to protect their livestock is there and dogs that have never seen livestock can (not guaranteed though) be brought into a farm situation and do what they were bred for with no training. However a puppy is a puppy. They need guidance by an older dog or a person on what is and is not acceptable behavior. This poor pup is probably confused on why her owner would shove something in her face then yell at her when she shows interest. I read a lot before getting my own pup. I have not read this approach anywhere.

If OP wanted a dog to protect her animals now, she should have gotten an adult. But an adult that knows it's job is not going to be cheap.

I stand by what I said. Send the pup back or find another home for her. Either get an adult or fix your pens so predators can't get your flock.

 

[cafarmgirl]

I would have sent her back bc Neon is my girl. First chicken I ever got. Actually, i got 13, but thirteen rest are dead. She is my only one, and i love her so so so much!! I couldn't stand to have a dog that killed my baby girl!!

Then you need to make whatever corrections are necessary to your setup so that dog and chickens do not come in contact. The dog is a pup who does not know any better. The humans in the picture are the only ones who can make sure everybody stays safe and that the pup learns what is and is not acceptable. Think of that pup as a two year old child that you plunk down in the middle of a room filled with fun toys all around, would you expect that youngster not to touch anything? It's the same principle.

 

[peteyfoozer]

I do not agree you can every trust, even the most well trained dog, with your chickens. Dogs are clever creatures and will eventually give in to temptation.

I agree, if it is a non LGD. LGD's are bred specifically with low prey drive and protection instincts. That doesn't however, eliminate puppy behavior in a young dog, nor does it mean they don't need guidance to do their job correctly. Many times an older Livestock Guardian trains the younger dog, but in the absence of one, it is up to the owners to step in and help the pup develop into it's role without problems. This means having total supervision over the young dog when its around livestock. That said, it is true that not every LGD is great on poultry. Some of them have been either poorly bred or poorly raised. Conventional dog training is not terribly beneficial with LGD's as, like decasodivine said, they have to think independently to do their job. I recommend joining the WorkingLGD board on yahoo and getting the DVD put out by Bountiful Farms, if you want to keep this dog and have any success with it. You would have to do what is necessary to make it happen though. These dogs are certainly worth the investment and the effort for the service they give. Mine are guarding sheep, goats, calves and chickens on 250,000 acres with heavy predator pressure and i have not lost one. Prior to them, one of the cow dogs was attacked by our front door by a mountain lion. I'd say they were pretty effective, once they are prepared to do their jobs.

 

[chloezoebob101]

I'm going to be blunt. Sorry.

You don't like the dog. You have called the pup "it", "him", and "her". Until you called her by name, I didn't know if it was male or female.

If you have read everything you can get your hands on, you know that these dogs take training yet after a week you are frustrated that she isn't protecting your flock and is instead killing chicks that get in with her. She is a puppy doing what puppies do. The fault is yours for not making sure she does not have access to them.

My opinion is that you should send her back now. I don't think you have the desire to actually train this pup and will become more and more frustrated with her. Right now she still has time to go to a home that will spend the time to train her and make her a productive LGD.

Her name is Belle.
I do have the desire to train her..its just that this is my first time ever, and its frustrating.
and UPDATE: she hasn't killed a single chicken in two days!!!