A chickychickychick-ENN!! Posted August 24, 2008 Share Posted August 24, 2008 I have a seven-year old collie lab cross. He has the strength and stupidity of a lab with the bounce and territorial instincts of a collie. He is a barker. He barks at everything. He also has a problem with small animals (dogs and cats) and will 'go' for them. Smacking (if all else fails) and shouting do temper this and he learns quickly most of the time. That said, he's a handful and I'm aware chickens have snappable necks and frail hearts! It's not feasible to keep a 24/7 eye on him or keep him indoors indefinitely. I'd rather he got used to them, and intend to let him regularly wander round them in their coop once they arrive (on Tuesday). What's the best way of introducing them to ensure he doesn't injure or even kill them? I intend to keep them in their coop and run for a full fortnight to get them acclimatised before letting them free range at weekends - which is when the dog could have full contact. How best do I get them used to each other and him calmed down around them before they start free ranging? I have a garden which is divided by a fence between the patio (the dog's area) and grass (the chickens' area). He very rarely jumps it but can if really excited. Any ideas? Does anyone have similar experience? Thanks! Anna Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chooklady Posted August 24, 2008 Share Posted August 24, 2008 Personally I have been very lucky with my dog so I'm not really sure if I can help. I'm positive someone will be along with some advice. I have always used a water squirter to repremand Spencer and it works wonders for him but it really depends if your dog likes water!!! You will probably find that his herding insticts kick in, Spencer rounds them up and puts them back in the run! Good luck I'm sure it won't be too bad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quickcluck Posted August 24, 2008 Share Posted August 24, 2008 Hi there, I had the EXACT same problem only a few weeks ago when my girls came home!!! Everybody of here was sooooo brilliant with advice and reassurance.... In the end I put the dog on a lead and walked him up the garden and let him stand within looking distance, then gradually went closer, until he was up to the coop. If there was barking, pulling or srabbling a stern and and a blast with a water pistol did the trick! It was horrid. there was lots of flapping and sqwarking from the girls. But with perseverance it did work. I also have a few friends dogs here for holidays and have used the same method with success!!! No dead or stressed chicks yet!!! We also left him in the garden attached to a lawn spike for a while and he just went to sleep. It will be OK in the long run if not a bit stressful in the first 23-48hrs.... Best of luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EileenH Posted August 24, 2008 Share Posted August 24, 2008 We have a rescued greyhound and took delivery of our lassies a fortnight ago. We walked Colonel round the run on a lead several times a day for about a week. Then we allowed him in the garden loose when they were in the run. He isn`t too bad now - just gives them a really intense stare and a scary snarl sometimes. Then ignores them. There`s no way he`ll be allowed in the garden while they`re free ranging. EVER. He wouldn`t bark or warn them. He`d just kill them - quietly and efficiently. Not his fault - it`s what he was trained to do. Luckily, like most greyhounds he`s a real couch potato. He sleeps for 22 hours a day! As long as we make sure the door is closed the girls are safe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevie Posted August 24, 2008 Share Posted August 24, 2008 Keep him on a lead and allow him to see the chickens inside the run-getting them used to him is equally important.He is bound to be intrested in them and they will awaken his predatory instinct (dogs brains are tuned to hunt things with fast or jerky movements),but thats not to say he will react on it.Mine for example hunts and kills rabbits,but isnt in the slightest intrested in chickens,ducks etc. Keep him calm and when he dont bark,growl or jump up-reward him with lots of fuss and tasty treats.Dogs need regular training for the penny to drop so you will have to repeat this excercise many times until you feel satisfied he poses no threat.Because he is a Collie/Lab cross-you honestly have everything going in your favour as both of these are easily trainable breeds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A chickychickychick-ENN!! Posted August 24, 2008 Author Share Posted August 24, 2008 Thanks all. He IS trainable, but he's gone for dogs bigger than him and he chases birds as well. Water pistols don't work with him. He loves squirted water. Whenever I spray or hose-water my plants, he's in there, trying to bite the water. He loves it. He'll come right up to me and last week bit my finger in his eagerness to bite the water. It was an accident, but that through a chicken neck would be dinner sorted (in my partner's misguided opinion). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparkysmum Posted August 24, 2008 Share Posted August 24, 2008 Hi, I'm afraid my dog/chicken experience is not good. Sparky is my gentle loving wouldn't harm anything on earth dog - except anything which flaps and squawks! To my horror, I realised too late that the back door was open and the hens were free ranging. Sparky broke Penny's foot and she is now probably permanently disabled and hasn't laid an egg since. In addition the vet bills are huge!I would add that Sparx is 11yrs old and extremely obedient in all other situations. At the end of the day they are instinctive animals and sometimes instinct is just too powerful. Although the hens now have a large, safe enclosure. I would simply never leave Sparky in the garden with them unsupervised. It just isn't worth it not to mention the guilt. I hope this is of some help. Allison x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
