Mariah,

All dogs are different, and it's very hard to determine exactly how any dog will act in all situations. That said, it's very much a part of the nature, psychology, and evolution of most dogs who have the size, strength and ability to chase, catch, kill and eat something that looks like a chicken. On the other hand, dogs have undergone thousands of years of domestication, and I believe we do have some ability to train them, communicate with them, and ultimately to trust them.

The fact that you're concerned enough to write and seek advice based on your observations tells me that you definitely have something to worry about. You should take some action if finding a dead chicken or two is something you really don't want to have to deal with. You can spend days, months, years training and socializing your dog, but only you can be the judge of whether you've adequately reduced the risk to your own satisfaction to something you can feel comfortable with.

All that said, if I considered my chickens pets as you seem to or even if I considered them important enough to try and preserve and give them a good, stress-free life to the extent possible, I wouldn't tolerate any 'play-pinning' or 'play-carrying' of any sort.

Mark

Mariah--Hey--since I don't know your dog I can't be sure about Zora, but she sounds as if she might could hurt or possibly kill one of them someday. If she is already grabbing them and carrying them in her mouth she may decide she wants to play with one and get too rough.

I had a bloodhound who got along well with the ducks, and while I wasn't outside she tried playing with my favorite duck and accidentally killed her.

Golden Retrievers love to retrieve things. I had a chow once and she was really sweet and got along with my dove.

Zora sounds harmless, but since she carries them in her mouth I'm just thinking she could kill it just like that--even if she didn't mean to--it could still happen. Chickens are so delicate.

Who knows--Zora may never harm a feahter on their body, but no one can be sure. And, since you know Zora best only you really know what to expect. So, keep an eye on her and if you think she might be getting too rough I would definitely keep her away from the chickens unless I could watch her with them at all times.

Good Luck

Genny

She may not INTEND to kill one, but she certainly could by accident. She's much bigger than they are. We tried raising 2 chicks that my daughter's class hatched, and our dog ,a real mongrel, (probably Shepherd/Rottweiler)was OBSESSED with them, and eventually killed one. He grabbed it in his mouth and whether or not killing was his intent, that was the sad outcome. By the way, he chases the 2 ducks and will nose their tail feathers, but he clearly reacted more strongly to the chickens.

Seems to me it is normal for a dog to want to "play" with the chickens, but I think you should take time for a little training NOW because once she kills one it will be much more difficult to change her ways.

Next time you are out in the yard with dog and chickens, put Zora on a leash. If she is not accustomed to this you may need to reassure her that she is a good dog. The last thing you want is for her to feel she is being punished.

When a chicken approaches and Zora shows signs of wanting to "play" with it, take up the slack in the leash and say-very calmly and firmly: "No, Zora, those are Mariah's chickens." If she backs off, praise her. If she continues to try going toward the chickens, let her feel the pressure of the leash (don't yank it... you are trying to communicate, not punish) and repeat "No, Zora, those are Mariah's chickens." Over and over until she gets it. Lots of praise for not moving towards the chickens. No punishment or anger when she does, just a calm, matter-of-fact reminder that the chickens are yours. Say "Mariah's chickens", not "my chickens" because dogs are not good with pronouns.

Believe it or not, my friend Brian trained our CAT not to bother the chickens or frighten the caged rabbits in just this way. She's a smart moggie and it only took about an hour before she began to ignore even the most provocative of invasions of her space by some half-grown chicks.

There are limits though. Marilla is a clever cat and she refuses to believe that wild young cottontails or chipmunks are "Maggie's". We tried, but she knows better. She is never outside except when wearing her harness and leash, but she still manages to catch them now and again if we leave her unattended long enough to make a cup of coffee. But the domestic rabbits and the chickens are safe from harassment.

Also understand that retrievers were bred specifically with heightened instincts to retrieve birds, and shepherds were bred to chase animals (a modification of the hunting or stalking instinct). There is of course something to be said for competent training, no matter which types of words the dog is trained to understand, however you are fighting millions of years of evolution, thousands of domestication, and hundreds of years of breeding with the mix you have. If she is inclined to chase now, you may never be 100% sure that she won't harm the birds if left unsupervised with them. Also know that sheep farmers who have the most well trained herding dogs never allow the dogs to be unsupervised with the sheep. They know that the herding instinct is too strong, and the dogs may just do what comes naturally.

Zora's aggressive behavior has been increasing over the last few days (peaking with the full moon), and she has even "nipped" my 5 year old in the eye and my 2 year old in the lower lip - both were unprovoked.

This is a wonderful dog who needs more regular attention and discipline than I have been able to offer her, and she needs to find a new home where she can get out in the air for an hour 2x per day without exception, and also would be more happy in a home without young children or other pets to compete with.

Should I attempt to send her into a home with acreage? She seems like a city dog to me, but loves our trips out to the Columbia Gorge woods. Hopefully the glut in animals up for adoption won't make rehoming her imposssible!

Thank You for sharing your perspectives with me! This is a heartwrenching decision...

Mariah

Heartwrenching for sure. I had a Lab chow mix, and we just had to put him down. He was increasingly getting more aggressive and bit my son in the face causing him to get stitches. He was trying to get a bone from him that was raw and unsafe to chew. It was the second bite that caused stitches.
Chows have a strong tendency to be very territorial and will attack anything that it feels is intruding.
I feel they are not great dogs for young children.
I could not place my Dog safely in a home knowing his past behavior of chasing men down, and then nipping, and then the 2 bites that caused stitches. Both were kids. He always nipped up high seemed to be trying for the neck, or face.
He was a gentle dog, until he felt someone or something was intruding on his turf.
We should have gotten rid of him the first time he caused stitches, but really seemed to be an accident since his tail had gotten stepped on as the kid was bending down to pet him.
In hind sight we never want to believe our beloved pets will harm anyone, but pay attention to aggressive behavior, it is a warning sign that should not be ignored!
Brenda

Yeah, Chows are aggressive with people they don't know. We had a black female chow named Monique. She was perfect with us kids and wouldn't have ever harmed us in any way. But, she didn't like strangers and when someone she didn't know would come over we would have to hold on to her and tell her it was ok, or she would have bit them.

When my friends use to come over she would bark at them and I couldn't walk out in the back yard with my friends unless I showed them to Monique first and told her it was ok. But, she was great with us, and even got along with our pet dove. We could sit her on Monique's back, and she wouldn't move.

Monique was a great dog, and we miss her so much! She passed away in 2003, because of cancer. She was one of the sweetest dogs we've ever had.

Genny