Worried about my (small) flock

[first time farmer]

I am still worried about the hens I am at a friends house and so is the rest of my family this is the first time i have had issues with animals i really hope they are going to be ok. What should i do about the dogs that may have tried to get into the coop? go talk to the owner or.....?

 

[I have WHAT in my yard?]

Not sure what happened to your coop I musta missed that.

Did their dogs dig in or attack your chickens?

 

[chookchick]

You posted about scratch marks and digging, right?
I would be very concerned about the dogs coming back and trying to get into the run. Do you have a run that is stronger than chicken wire? Do you have skirting, or something solid around the base to keep them from digging underneath? What kind of dogs are they (how big and strong?). The fastest way to deal with the problem might be to put electric fencing around the coop and run for now. And of course if you can locate the owner, let him know what is going on and ask him to keep the dogs contained (hopefully he cares...).

 

[mypicklebird]

Quote:
Do you know the owner? If so, of course go talk to them and let them know that they are trespassing on your property. He/she needs to confine them for their own safety as well as your livestock's.
If you don't know the owner, and you see them again on your property- or out on public land, and if they seem touchable- catch them and bring them to the local AC (for their safety and yours). If they are not nice dogs, don't risk trying to catch them- leave that to AC officers.

In the meantime, try to improve the safety of your coop- check for holes, and places something can dig in. If a dog can dig in, so can raccoons.

I can't tell how old you are, but something about your post makes me wonder if you are younger- being at friend's house with rest of family- if you are teen or younger, get your parents involved if you are going to be talking to neighbors or trying to capture dogs! If you are an adult- sorry!

 

[first time farmer]

I am only 16 and my dad is pretty much involved he has payed for most of the materials for my new coop. The new coop has 2x6s on the bottom with a 3/4 inch peace of plywood as the floor of the coop and run the chicken wire is 16 gauge welded wire. The only whole i can find is in the door which is where the dogs were scratching. I put another lock on the bottom so that it is closes better the door is bent a little so it has a little space at the bottom. As for the neighbors i plow out most of them when it snows so they all know me and know about my chickens i have never seen these dogs before they are pretty small probably 20-30 pounds they had tags but when i tried to see who they belonged to they ran away so if i see them again ill try to find out who's they are

thanks