What dogs are Good with Chickens

[MountainWoman73]

I'd recommend having an idea of the breeds you'd like, and then looking at shelters for puppies that might have some of the breeds you'd like mixed in. My good mutt is Groenendael/border collie/Lab/Aussie/god knows what else, and she's great.

 

[HollowOfWisps]

I'd recommend having an idea of the breeds you'd like, and then looking at shelters for puppies that might have some of the breeds you'd like mixed in. My good mutt is Groenendael/border collie/Lab/Aussie/god knows what else, and she's great.

Your dog is absolutely gorgeous and this is the cutest picture!

 

[SusannasMom]

I nice dog that with attack bears @josephdad

 

[McChooky]

No matter what breed or mixed breed of dog, and regardless of how much money you spend on it, your dog will need lots of your time and direction before ready to guard your chickens.
I see some folks here get a pyrenees or anatolian and they turn out to be horrible with chickens. Know that these breeds were originaly used for larger livestock like sheep and goats. They also to will need training, and cant be just put out with chickens.
I have three mixed breed dogs at the moment who are compleatly safe all day with no supervision around my free range flock.
1. Cattle dog/border collie
2. German shepherd/black lab
3. Australian shepherd/pit bull
We plan to rescue all our future dogs from the local pound.
I recommend starting with a puppy that will learn boundries from day one. Dont let him get away with anything regardless of how cute he is.
Dogs are alot of work and and a lifetime commitment. Do you have time and space in your life for one? Have you had dogs before?

I gave my Border Collie full access around the barn and run and never lost a single bird to a predator.Because he couldn't get to the chickens I never had to worry about him but he was a good soul even with baby chicks.You could lay them at his feet and he never paid them any mind.A friend gave him to me..

 

[agold23]

Obviously breed plays a factor into prey drive. I wouldn’t be too worried about an untrained chihuahua being near my chickens opposed to a labrador. That being said I’ve seen breeds of all kinds coexist with chickens. My irish wolfhound mix gets along fine with my birds, but so does my grandmas 15lbs terrier mix, my friends black german shepherd, my other friends belgian malinois and hound and my boss’s Pyrenees/marnmar mix. There are steps you must take to ensure that it’s a successful integration and you must train them to ignore the chickens. I wouldn’t go purposefully looking for a mixed breed dog from a breeder (that’s a whole other can of worms with genetics/ethical breeding) but don’t knock shelter dogs out of your choices entirely.

In my forest dwelling opinion, dogs are great deterrents. The only 2 times a fox has come and taken some of my chickens was when my dog was away at the kennel. Let them roam and mark their territory to help repel predators.

The bottom line is if you’re looking for a pet, get a dog that suits your lifestyle. Make sure it can fit your budget, exercise needs, climate, training abilities etc. Chickens come next, often times they get along fine with proper training but long lines and leashes are important if you don’t trust your dog. Do your research and buy from a responsible breeder or a shelter. Good luck!

 

[Humble Shack Farm]

The livestock guardian breeds are the only ones going to actively protect your chickens or property from predators. Other breeds will just provide a presence that might deter predators, might not. LGDs have been bred to have strong bonding instincts so they will bond with their stock and thus desire to actually protect them by taking action against predators.

Herding breeds (collies and shepherds) are not protective and are super likely to chase and nip at your birds. They are very trainable, but those chasing/herding instincts take knowledge to work with around the excitement of moving birds.

Also, be wary of rescue dogs with unknown backgrounds and certain breeds like German shepherds, terriers and hounds which all can have very high-prey drive and will be triggered by the movement of the chickens to chase and bite. Plenty of rescue dogs can be excellent with birds - the problem is that you won't know which ones are until you test them around your birds - dangerous.

Retriever breeds like goldens and labs make excellent pets that can have a physical presence, scent, and sound (barking) that could be a deterrent to predators, typically have soft mouths so they aren't likely to bite your chickens and kill them, and are very trainable. They just won't actively do anything to prevent predators from eating your birds.

My family is currently raising two Great Pyrenees puppies as livestock guardians for our sheep and goats - they visit the chickens/ducks/
turkeys/guineas on walks but do not get to live with them right now because they are young and will chase the birds (with continued supervision and training they should outgrow this stage). We have friends who are raising Akbash dogs to guard their sheep, and they are absolutely huge! LGD breeds are thinkers, slow movers, and not easy to train.

Some people prefer to use an electric fence instead of raise and train guardian dogs which can take two full years, separate housing for the dog when you can't supervise it with the livestock, and lots of food.

Another option is to build a fenced area around your chicken coop/run/yard, so that the chickens and dog are separate, but so that predators will run into your dog before they can get to the chickens.

Here's some more information on LGDs:

The basics of what it takes to train an LGD: https://learningaboutlgds.weebly.com/training-basics.html

Webinars on livestock guardian dogs and predator protection for chickensL https://www.jandohner.com/webinars

Super helpful book on farm dog breeds!
https://www.amazon.com/Farm-Dogs-Comprehensive-Guardians-Terriers/dp/1612125921/

Another good book:
https://www.amazon.com/Livestock-Protection-Dogs-Selection-Training/dp/1617812528/

 

[50-45-1]

The livestock guardian breeds are the only ones going to actively protect your chickens

I respect your statement as something you believe, maybe that has been your expierance.
but disagree as my experience, and mixed breed rescue and craigslist dogs do not follow your reasoning.
All dogs, I'm betting even pure breed guardian dogs are going to need training around poultry.
My Australian shepherd Momo (purebreed) was the best guardian we ever had.7


He was free to me from the breeder because he had a health issue ( which cleared up in his first year) and was an undesirable color.
he was super smart and his drive to please us and his natural dislike of preditors or things not welcome made him so.
This is he showing our 5 year old rescue June (German Shepherd/Lab) the ropes. MO is getting elderly here, And passed away at 15 years old.
Below is Zip, ( Australian Shepherd/Pit Bull) our youngest surveying the valley for danger approaching. He sits on his favorite stump looking for danger. I did not teach him this.

Our dog Miki (Blue Healer/Border Collie)not only patrols our perimeter, he also breaks up fights between chickens by putting his nose between the combatants. Never uses his teeth. I did not teach him this, he just does not like the sound of chickens in distress and feels he needs to break it up. Quite the ham when taking his picture.
He also calmly walks stearing stray chickens into the coop, helping me at dusk. I did not teach him that either. He sees what i am doing and helps me.
Maybe I just have been extremely blessed to get these particular dogs... second thought, I know I have been.
I not only rescued these dogs from an uncertain future, but gave them a job and purpose in life beyond just being house pets. And supplied guardians for my free range flock without having to spend a small fortune.