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Thank you. Yes, I raised both GSDs from 5 weeks old. However, Rex was already about 4 years old when I, on a total impulse, brought home 4 baby chicks from the feed store. I had stopped just to get pet supplies. You can tell in those first photos, I had to do a make-shift setup for them that first night. In any event, after I introduced him to the chicks, it just "clicked" with him. He laid down by the bin I had them in and would not move. For the next week, he went out only to pee/poo really fast and then would run back in, stick his nose in there and give each one a sniff and count and then would lay back down. He would not be moved. He even growled at me once when I tried to drag him away. When I moved them outside to a Chick-N-Hutch on the back deck, he went with them and though he had never slept outside in his life, always in the house with me, he would not come in. He's been that way ever since so I can't take credit for "training" him.
Scarlett, however, I did work with by taking her with me as I went in and out of the coop and feeding areas and watched her with the chicks. I just posted about how we had an "issue" with the ducks when she was a puppy but it was my fault for not introducing her to the ducks. In my mind, ducks, chickens, peacocks were all the same but she needed to be shown the ducks as well. Now everything freeranges but she is still particularly motherly and protective of the chickens, especially the baby chicks.
Please forgive my ignorance. Would you mind explaining how you "introduce" your dog to your birds? I would really appreciate it.
Not much different from how you introduce them to people who visit your home or how you introduce people to people. If the dog minds, off leash, I take them to the chicks - or - fill in the blank - I've brought home every animal imaginable - take the dog to the them or vice versa and literally introduce them. "Hey Rex, come see the new baby kitten/chick/duck/goat."
For example: show the chick to the dog, hold the chick, pet the chick but let the dog sniff the chick and lick the chick and get to know the chick. Tell the dog "no" if he shows any aggression or acts like he wants to eat the chick.
I then let the dogs go with me, off leash, all day long as I go in and out of coops and feed and water everyone. Again, initially, if the dog heads towards one, a simple "no".
In our case, Rex (GSD) was 4 years old when I brought home the first chicks and some sort of instinct kicked in because he went on "guard" duty and never came off; Scarlett was a puppy so I followed the above steps and spent a lot of time taking her in the coop and just sitting there so she could see chicks and chickens running everywhere; Lucy a Catahould mix (a stray who came to us an adult) also minds readily and she was told "no" and hasn't ever bothered a chick (never bothered a duck again once introduced and told "no") but I wouldn't say she guards them. She will, however, kill any varmit that gets in the yard and I'm always finding dead armadillos and possums so she guards in her own way; Prissy a Min Pin (a stray who was dumped here at 5 months old) was taught the same way, just being in and amongst them all day/night. In her case, the Terrier in her loves to do a "run by" and watch them fly. She doesn't try to catch one and doesn't run directly at it but if there's a group of them standing around, she just can't help herself but to run right past them or right through them and watch them fly.
By the way, the two GPs seem to be doing much better. Not sure why having them on a really, really long tie line right in the middle of feeding areas seems to keep them from killing and eating everything but it does so we're going with that. Each day seems to be getting better. I take them off for a long walk, run, and swim in the pond and today, when returning to the farm yard, they stayed right with me and didn't run off. The only problem I'm seeing right now is that they keep swimming after and chasing the ducks that swim on the pond. I can't get down to the pond because of overgrowth so I'm standing on the bank and yelling "no" and yelling till I'm blue in the face but they keep swimming after and trying to tag team and catch a duck. Luckily the ducks swim just out of their reach and about the time the dogs swim close, the duck swims or flys away just enough to make the dog have to keep swimming around the pond. So again, I'm not pleased that they don't mind when they know I can't reach them. I haven't experienced that with any of my other dogs or breeds. I can spot Lucy from across the pasture and if she's after something like a bunny that I don't want her to kill, I can call out "Lucy no, leave it" and she will leave it alone and return - same goes for all the other dogs. I've called them off baby birds, chipmunks, and many other "varmits" and they all will obey "leave it" or "no" even from a distance.
So.....I'm rambling......as far as introductions - make sure the animals know one another - that they are all a part of the family. I think the fact that none of ours are restrained helps - they all get to know each other and are literally sleeping and eating together. I have a chicken and a rooster that sleep with Rex and Scarlett under the carport where their beds are. Of course, DH and have been talking about the fact that we've never seen either dog actually sleeping. The GSDs are the most active/energetic dogs I've ever seen.
