Hey i just wanted to quickly write and tell everyone who's dog has killed a chicken and they've given up hope that dogs can be reformed. about 8 months ago our staffy cross killed one of our chickens. At the time we were told it was near impossible to get her out of the habit now that she'd tasted blood. i can happily say sheba now spends her days sharing a pen with our 4 remaining chooks and we trust her completely. every morning i lock our chooks into their pen, which is in the same enclosed yard as our dog. and every afternoon i get home sheba has helped them escape by chewing through rope, sticks or anything else that keeps them in. She shares her food and after filming her for a day now realise they actually keep her entertained for the day. At the time she did get a smack, something we dont usually condone, and she could tell mum and dad were very unhappy and didnt show her usual affection for days. we then set about making her realise the chooks were as much a part of the family as the cat. we played with them in front of her, picked them up and held them, and allowed her to sniff and play with them gently, and fed them in front of her before she got her food. it really only took a few weeks and now we have a trustworthy and chook loving dog. if you have the patience, theres much hope for all dogs!

Thank you for sharing that! I do have a friend on another private forum with a very naughty chiweenie that harasses her chickens-- at least, he did until a very mean rooster attacked him, lol! I will pass this along to her.

Thank you for sharing.

Thanks for being educated doggie parents, by taking the time to train/show your dog that the Chicken were pets and not prey, too many times I've heard of dog parents who will just give the dog up, instead of dealing with the problem and educating themselves. You sound like wonderful dog parents!
Thanks
Linda.

[wishbone]

Great job there for training and always keeping an eye and ensuring your dog will never get on a bad habit.