Chook Me!

Help! My dog has become OBSESSED with our chickens. How can I stop this madness?

We recently built a small chicken coop on our ranch. For the first couple of months, my Australian Cattle Dog (Blue Heeler) pretty much ignored them. Although she would run over there and try to herd them whenever I walked ouside - she's a working dog after all - the rest of the time she left them alone. Now - all of a sudden - she has become obsessed with them. She now spends most of the day by the coop, walking round and round the coop, following one specific chicken. It's becoming a problem, as she hardly responds to anything else without some serous intervention on my part. What can I do to stop - or at least minimize - this behavior?

Public Comments

1. You have a herding dog. Get used to the behavior but work on training. Use a long leash, at least 20 feet, or a clothesline, and wait till the dog gets interested in the chickens. Call the dog to you and if there is no response, keep calling and reel the dog in like a fish.
2. Welcome to the dark side of herding dogs - this is a good example of what people mean when they say, "Your dog needs a job to do, or he'll find one of his own." And - as usual - the job chosen is certainly not on that you want to encourage. If this were my dog, the self-reinforcement of stalking chickens would need to stop. If it took crating the dog when I couldn't watch him, that's how it would be. Simultaneously, I would be doing a hardcore Ruff Love program with this dog. http://www.dogwise.com/itemdetails.cfm?ID=DTA228 I imagine that your dog's recall might not be that great - in fact, I bet that if you tried to call your dog anywhere near those chickens, she'd be off. "See ya!" So, no freedom off leash until her recall is just fine, no matter where she is. The dog needs a history of reinforcement built in to her recall. And this needs to be done away - far away - from the chickens. When you start practicing this, make it very easy for her to succeed! Reward her with food and/or play when she comes. Try to work on impulse control games. If you email me I'll put something together for you. Good luck!
3. Is there something else you can do to focus her attention? Agility? Obedience training? Something to engage her mind and override (or at least replace) the herding fixation she has developed for the chickens. The other (less palatable) option might be if it's only one chicken that she seems fixated on, try selling that chicken and see if that helps.
4. Good luck. Trying to get any herding dog to stop herding is like trying to get a telemarketer to stop calling. There is no way to do it. You've got yourself a working dog. No amount of tiring the dog out is going to halt this behavior. I have a three and a half year old Border Collie who OBSESSIVELY goes after cars. I cannot stop this, I can only modify it. Consider training your dog in herding to start. If you have the ability to STOP him from doing it, it may help you out a bit. But don't expect to let him out and have him completely ignore the fact that the chickens are there. It has been bred into him to herd, and he WILL herd!
5. HERDING DOGS = HERDING OBSESSION i am afraid you are going to have to get rid of the chickens or restrain the dog
6. She needs a 'real job! Right now she thinks that it is her job to keep the chickens in order. You might try teaching her some agility moves and work out with her daily. I have a border collie and he is the same way - except he tries to herd our cats! I am going to build a couple of ramps and jumps in the backyard and use those to give him something interesting to do. These types of dogs are intelligent and need jobs to prevent boredom and provide stimulation. Hope this helps. :)
7. build a fence around the coop, one your dog can't jump or climb over.
8. The only 'cures' I've heard for chicken chasing/killing come from old farmers and I have no idea if they're true< and they're certainly not politically correct anymore!. They involve using a dead chicken like some would use a rolled-up newspaper to correct stalking/chasing behavior. Also tying it to the dogs collar so he must 'wear it ' for a few days'. :^O Now I can't speak to whether this works or not,and don't care to find out. But I understand the underlying principle of building a negative association with the chickens. These days it's more commonly managed with electric fences and/ or electric collars. Some people probably aren't comfortable with that either, however those who know the drive and tenacity of herding dogs and other working breeds, often find proper e-collar training a Godsend when other methods fail. Try to find a trainer familiar with them, who can provide impeccable references. There are also e-collar lists on yahoo and other servers that can help you decide if this is a viable option for your dog.