My dog kills chickens. How do I stop it? Punishment isn't working.

Question

My dog keeps eating my chickens. I’ve punished her several of times but no luck. Pet's info: Dog | Australian Cattle Dog | Female | unspayed | 1 year and 4 months old | 35 lbs

Jennifer Summerfield, DVM CPDT-KA · Accepted Answer

Hi there. Chasing and killing chickens is an extremely self-rewarding behavior for dogs, so punishing her afterwards will not be effective at fixing the problem. In many dogs, this behavior can be significantly improved by teaching her to voluntarily look away from the chickens to get a treat - you have to start with lots of distance, and go very slowly in order for this to work. Even then, she may never be able to be trusted around them off-leash. If this is something you want to work on, I would recommend getting in touch with a good reward-based trainer who can help you in person. You can search for one in your area here: www.ccpdt.org In the meantime, Penny should be kept completey separated from the chickens using a secure fence, a leash, etc. to prevent any further problems.

My dog kills chickens. How do I stop it? Punishment isn't working.

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