Southern by Choice's Teaching Moments- Indoor LGD! Badger

[Beekissed]

Just got a 2 mo. old LGD pup and am watching this thread with great interest. I think I have the basics under control but will watch for specifics on how you train yours for life around the small livestock, such as chickens. I'm starting some basic training on that tomorrow and would love to hear about what you do initially...the very first contact with chickens and the pups and how that turns out, the reasoning, etc.

I've previously trained a dog on chickens as a pup and it was a complete success, but each dog is different so will be interested to see what you do with all your dogs as a consistent training tool. This pup is already keyed into our voices and intonation, very eager to please and works for affection rather than food reward, so I'm thinking it will show a good response to the training.

We got him on Wed. and my son worked with him the past few days. He's already pretty consistent with "come" when not too excited, sits well already, follows well and is very responsive to corrections. We'll keep at it and see how he goes along. Will be watching this thread to help me as I go along.

This pup has some sketchy breeding, is GP/Anatolian/Maremma mix, sire is even tempered and appropriate in behavior, dame seems to be a nervous aggressive dog...barks more from fear than from aggression, but seems to have had no socialization or obedience training at all, so she's had no direction or leadership that I can see. Could be a different story if she had some leadership, but don't know.

I picked the most calm, laid back~but still engaged and alert~ pup I could spot in the crowd. We'll see how it goes.

 

[Blue Sky]

Be patient. An eight week old pup has a lot of growing and learning to do. Likely afraid of noises, night time (they know there are predators that would eat them) and pup needs to be introduced to stock gradually and watched. There is a myth that pup can be put into a flock and will magically bond/presto no work or supervision. It takes months esp w no older dog as mentor. Take your time, expect setbacks. Patience and love win the day.

 

[Beekissed]

I've got an older dog as a mentor, so he's not alone...and he's a great mentor. After the first few nights he stopped barking/howling...seems to have learned that this will not get the attention he desires. Older dog sleeping right outside his pen, so he's got a comforter.

This isn't my first rodeo with training dogs but it's still nice to have feedback and a sounding board. Tomorrow I start him with my role in his life, his status in the farmyard in regards to chickens, etc. Just some basic learning about where he fits in.

 

[Blue Sky]

Ok. I just encounter so many who chuck pups out think it's a magic bullet. I work w rescue. Good luck.

 

[Beekissed]

Thank you! I won't chuck him out...he'll do fine and I'll give him every chance to learn and fulfill his doggy purpose.

 

[Beekissed]

Worked with Ben first thing this morning. He did well on leash walking, has learned to sit down almost immediately when I stop walking...for this he got good lovin' and a small piece of bologna. He's calm and doesn't try to get out in front, though he seems to have trouble working on the left side...kept trying to cross over to the right and I'll have to work on that.

Did some training on a bound chicken and it took only moments until he seemed to understand I wanted him to ignore the chicken no matter what it does...it flopped and squawked, jumped and flapped...he sat down, facing away from it and looked in my face. Fast learner, that pup.

Then I worked with him in a flock of the chickens, all of them darting to and fro for corn on the ground...took two corrections and he seemed to understand he was to ignore them completely. He got much love and bits of meat for that response. He would look at them briefly and then return his attention to me, sitting calmly all the while. Good dog.

I worked with him on returning to his pen, sitting and staying while I closed the gate. He took more training on that than anything else this morning but he did finally "get" what I wanted. Good pup.

I'll let him loose today while I work outside and see how he responds to the chickens when he thinks I'm not looking...that's the true test of what he's learned or what any kid learns...what they do when Mom isn't around.

Tomorrow we'll repeat all of that and see if he remembers any of it. Training session didn't go any longer than 15-20 min. but that will increase as he ages and can pay attention longer.

Any good pointers on training around chickens that I'm not thinking of? I let him sniff one while it sat on my lap but didn't let him get too excited about it all. I'll catch one up tonight once again and repeat it all tomorrow with a larger bird, then the next day with a smaller bird.

 

[Poka_Doodle]

Worked with Ben first thing this morning. He did well on leash walking, has learned to sit down almost immediately when I stop walking...for this he got good lovin' and a small piece of bologna. He's calm and doesn't try to get out in front, though he seems to have trouble working on the left side...kept trying to cross over to the right and I'll have to work on that.

Did some training on a bound chicken and it took only moments until he seemed to understand I wanted him to ignore the chicken no matter what it does...it flopped and squawked, jumped and flapped...he sat down, facing away from it and looked in my face. Fast learner, that pup.

Then I worked with him in a flock of the chickens, all of them darting to and fro for corn on the ground...took two corrections and he seemed to understand he was to ignore them completely. He got much love and bits of meat for that response. He would look at them briefly and then return his attention to me, sitting calmly all the while. Good dog.

I worked with him on returning to his pen, sitting and staying while I closed the gate. He took more training on that than anything else this morning but he did finally "get" what I wanted. Good pup.

I'll let him loose today while I work outside and see how he responds to the chickens when he thinks I'm not looking...that's the true test of what he's learned or what any kid learns...what they do when Mom isn't around.

Tomorrow we'll repeat all of that and see if he remembers any of it. Training session didn't go any longer than 15-20 min. but that will increase as he ages and can pay attention longer.

Any good pointers on training around chickens that I'm not thinking of? I let him sniff one while it sat on my lap but didn't let him get too excited about it all. I'll catch one up tonight once again and repeat it all tomorrow with a larger bird, then the next day with a smaller bird.

We have sorta a LGD, she is a Black Lab but loves the chickens even though they don't like her. Just hit the dog used to seeing the chickens

 

[Baymule]

Bee, I was given a GP because she killed chickens. Her previous owners just turned her loose on 3 acres of free range chickens. Stupid people. It took two years to turn her around, but she made the best chicken guard ever!

I have a 10 month old pup, been giving him chicken lessons. I am just now able to free range my hens, as we completed enough fence to keep neighborhood dogs out. So he didn't have a lot of exposure. He went in the coop with me because he liked the chicken feed, and he behaved well.

I work with him several days a week. I put up the other two dogs and let him out. He and I follow the hens, he gets lots of praise and good dog. I tell him firmly, MINE, MY CHICKENS. He has tried to pounce several times, I grab him by the collar and scold. A few times he started stalking them, a firm NO changed his mind. I work with him 30-45 minutes each time.

I think he is doing pretty good. He is smart and wants to please. The hens are not afraid of dogs and walk right up to him. Yesterday he laid down next to me and the hens scratched contentedly all around him.

 

[Poka_Doodle]

Once they know about only eating chicken food instead of the chickens it will be good but that is a correct point of the dogs like the chicken food

 

[Beekissed]

Didn't get to do structured training this morning, but every second of every day spent with these dogs is a training moment, so I just let it be. He learned to sit calmly and wait to be let out of his pen and also to sit calmly and wait to be fed...every day will be reinforcement of these things.

He learned to come, to sit and to stay today as we chored around with this or that. He learned to not walk inside my stride or he gets kicked as my legs move. He learned to not eat Jake's food but that he can eat his own without Jake bothering him too.

He followed me everywhere I went and would lie down patiently while we worked in one place, even took a nap during that time. He learned to not even let it look like you are running towards the chickens as you traverse the yard, as this will get you a verbal correction...and he reacted to the corrections again today, which is all good.

He's coming along well for such a young pup. He had a fresh scrape on his nose this morning, so he is forcing his nose into some crack or other in an attempt to escape his pen....I'm guessing he will stop doing that when it hurts enough.

He's learning to be quiet while in his pen, which I love. He ate a few apples today...good for him. This pup is pretty thin and has low energy, so I'm working to build him up, get rid of his worms, etc....won't take long to turn him into a bouncing, rolly polly, frisky youngin'.