What kind of dog would be good to get?

[ArizonaSky]

I can't think of a 50 lb. non shedding LGD, myself. Most that can handle predators are considerably larger. I have an Anatolian, but I have training experience from showing Beardies. I would check the LGD rescues for an experience dog? The officer might at least have suggestions.

 

[Linnre]

I can't think of a 50 lb. non shedding LGD, myself. Most that can handle predators are considerably larger. I have an Anatolian, but I have training experience from showing Beardies. I would check the LGD rescues for an experience dog? The officer might at least have suggestions.

I think at this point I just want a dog that will live in harmony with my chickens. Preferably sweet and non shedding. Seems the poodle mixes are what make them not shed I guess.

 

[Sussex19]

Doodle = mutt. Naw. It's a purpose-bred cross-breed. A lurcher isn't a mutt either.

I don't think doodles are so great, though.

I guess you're right, if they are a properly bred doodle.
Here you get so many cross breeds, and people just seem to throw any dog breeds together, and then call them something or other doodle, and think they can charge the price of a purebred.
If they are bred for a purpose, and it is a recognised cross, thats fine.

 

[Sussex19]

I think at this point I just want a dog that will live in harmony with my chickens. Preferably sweet and non shedding. Seems the poodle mixes are what make them not shed I guess.

One of our mixed dogs has a lot of lab or something like that in him, and he has got hardly any prey drive, and is totally fine with the chickens.
Maybe a lab or pointer breed could work?
If bred for a pet/show, rather than working?

 

[BigBlueHen53]

I have two little Shelties. They are not big enough to tackle foxes, coyotes or other large predators, but my chickens can free-range because of these two and in fact did so when I just had Gracie. She chased THREE coyotes off by herself! When we got the second one, I put him in the grow- out pen next to the chicken run every day for a couple of hours, for a couple of weeks, until he lost interest in them. He was 15 months old at the time and had never seen a chicken. He is now five. We had new neighbors move in near us recently and their dog got one of my chickens. Sammy has since convinced that dog not to ever set foot on our property again. You don't need a big dog. You need a good dog and you need to train it.

 

[GCrumb]

Livestock Guardian Dogs are really just not appropriate for in-town. They're not even appropriate for 5-acre hobby farms. They belong on sheep stations. They're aggressive. They are not biddable. They are unlikely to care about chickens, they want to hang out with ungulants. And they are likely to ignore small predators that cannot threaten a sheep.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

IMO, doodle or not, pretty much any dog will chase chickens if it is allowed to do so.

 

[GCrumb]

I guess you're right, if they are a properly bred doodle.
Here you get so many cross breeds, and people just seem to throw any dog breeds together, and then call them something or other doodle, and think they can charge the price of a purebred.
If they are bred for a purpose, and it is a recognised cross, thats fine.

Same here. But you can get a really badly bred registered purebred for a bundle. My dog is one of these historical preservation/recreation breeds, and the AKC collie people will call her a mutt and the whole project 'backyard breeding' though my vet seems to think that my having some genetic tests done, as the club's way, immediately disqualifies me from that set.

The maddening thing is that the rescues are so pricey, too. My neighbor got a 'border collie mix' pup from a rescue same time I got my pup. She paid the same and got a one of the urban landrace pit-bull types that fill every shelter, it just has Irish spotting -- border collie markings. She loves it but isn't happy with it, you know? I got this perfect dog whose gorgeous sire I'd been following on facebook for years.

I'm not sure that a recognized cross or a working-type purpose matters. These beagle X king charles spaniel crosses are cute and don't usually have the more annoying qualities of either breed, I think somebody making those on purpose from healthy well-chosen parent stock would be doing better for the world than a lot of people breeding purebreds.

 

[fluffycrow]

Don't do it. If your goal is for the dog to interact with your chickens, then unless that dog is an LGD breed, it's not safe enough. Any dog (again, unless it's an LGD) will chase a chicken if given the chance. I would advise you against doodles in general. Now, if you just want a pup, go for it, but do not let it interact with your chickens without a fencing in between them. So, if you're looking for just a pet dog, find a breed whose temperament and energy requirements fit in your lifestyle, and get it from an ethical breeder. Or, you could go with a rescue dog as well. But again, if your dog is not an LGD it should not be left with prey animals (chickens in this case) unsupervised. And even an LGD needs the appropriate training

 

[Linnre]

Don't do it. If your goal is for the dog to interact with your chickens, then unless that dog is an LGD breed, it's not safe enough. Any dog (again, unless it's an LGD) will chase a chicken if given the chance. I would advise you against doodles in general. Now, if you just want a pup, go for it, but do not let it interact with your chickens without a fencing in between them. So, if you're looking for just a pet dog, find a breed whose temperament and energy requirements fit in your lifestyle, and get it from an ethical breeder. Or, you could go with a rescue dog as well. But again, if your dog is not an LGD it should not be left with prey animals (chickens in this case) unsupervised. And even an LGD needs the appropriate training

That’s about what I’ve decided. Get a sweet dog I like, inside dog, and do train to be nice to chickens but for the most part not interact unless supervised. And also train my husband and grandson to do the same!