How to Introduce A Dog to Your Chickens

Well how’s that for a niche title, huh? But it’s true – we have backyard chickens, and we adopted a new dog for our family; it took a few weeks of consistent work for us to get her acclimated to our backyard chickens (and them to her!). Here are all of our suggestions of how to introduce a dog to your chickens, including a multi-step video demonstration at the end!

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A Quick Backstory

We lost our corgi in October 2019 and had been looking for a new companion for our heeler mix Sadie. We also have two kids, aged four and six, and of course our Fab Five flock of chickens.

I fell in love with our Penny Lane in March 2020 and we adopted her a few days later. She’s been amazing for our kids and Sadie, with great energy and sunshine and just that happy-go-lucky quality that the best dogs all have. But I hadn’t even considered, amidst our move and adoption and everything, that the new dog may take some adjustment with backyard chickens! This is that process, which took work but has been 100% successful!

Two Things to Consider Before You Introduce a Dog to Your Chickens

I want you to think about two things before we get into the training of the dog. These two concepts need to be decided before you do anything else!

The first: What do you want? What exactly is the goal? What do you want your dog to do/not do? Before you start training, you need an end goal in mind. Some options are:

• I want my dog to protect my chickens, but stay away from them.
• I want my dog to be friendly with my chickens so they can share space together.
• I want my dog to ignore my chickens and keep away from them.
• I want my dog to be left out with my chickens unsupervised.

The second: How are you going to do this consistently? Consistency is the number one most important concept when training a dog. You must always let them do what they’re allowed to do, and you must never allow them to do what you don’t want them to. A dog will not master a concept if you’re not consistent. 

This not only means that you always have the same expectations, but that you use the same commands. For example, I have to consistently use the word “Down” and not “Down, get down, hey get down,” etc. You can see in my video below that the syllable I frequently use is “Chh”, from the mind of Cesar Milan the Dog Whisperer. (And if you’d prefer to see how to introduce a dog to your chickens in video form, check out that progressive video below!)

The Process of How to Introduce a Dog to Your Chickens

The ultimate goal here is that your chickens, your dog, and your family all remain safe. So I recommend that everyone be in communication about what the expectations and commands are, and that you start out really slowly.

This means that you’ll probably be taking your dog out to go potty on a leash for at least a few days. Yep, every time. It’s frustrating but worth it I promise. 

I found that my strong, high energy dog did respond better when she had a harness like this, or at least a special anti-pulling leash like this. (We actually still use one or the other on our walks!) I never advocate use of violence or shocking an animal.

I let my dog use the bathroom before we attempt to be in the same area as our chickens. I double check that the chickens are secure in their run. (If you have other people to help you, it’s a great idea to have them guard the chickens, body shield style.) And for the first few days, I don’t do anything to excite either party; I simply want to break my dog’s focus and attention on the chickens.

Remember that dogs don’t want to upset you and they don’t want to be violent or mean; they’re animals and they run on instinct. That’s a nice thought in a way because your dog isn’t trying to be a jerk, but the thought of entraining instinct is pretty daunting. You can do it! It’s a matter of being consistent.

Here’s what I mean: Every single time my dog fixates on the chickens – and you know that look, right? Ears up and forward, body alert, attention unwavering – I break that concentration with “Chh.” Every single time. I want her to be relaxed, leash slack and loose, and be able to walk around and do other stuff without OMG CHICKENS going through her brain every three seconds.

(If you like, you can also use something like this inexpensive clicker to reinforce good behavior. I just found that it was one more thing to carry around, and abandoned it after a few days. Instead, I use my tone of voice and lots of pets to encourage her and show her when she did “right.” (Oh, and these tiny little treats help a lot too!)

If she seems completely focused on the chickens and my distracting sound isn’t enough, it’s time to walk away. Don’t sit there with a hyper focused dog who’s starting to obsess about the chickens, and not do anything. This will probably be the toughest part of how to introduce a dog to your chickens: Sometimes you need to remove them from the situation.

One day you’ll go to take your dog out on their leash and you’ll realize you’re not having to distract your dog hardly at all! Then it’s time to take it to the next level. 

Now you need to deliberately be walking your dog closer to the chickens, or calling your chickens so that they run to the gate. You need to do something to stir up the energy. And then you’ll do the same thing you’ve been doing: Stopping that focused energy as soon as it starts. You have to break their concentration (even though you’re sorta instigating them now) every single time.

Be prepared to have to correct your dog as soon as she starts to focus on the chickens, and also be prepared to praise your dog for obeying you the first time! Remember that they’re fighting instinct but they do want to please you.

Final Thoughts On How to Introduce A Dog to Your Chickens

Here are just a few final ideas on making sure that your dog and chickens can live in harmony!

You will have to be consistent for life. If you want to change those expectations, then you need to be newly consistent with those. I personally will never let my dog in with the chickens because there’s no need and I don’t want to push it. (Remember that everyone else involved in the training and care of your dog needs to be on the same page!)

Your dog needs ways to let out energy! A regular walk or run, a doggie park, playtime outside… A dog with too much extra energy will be more likely to be destructive. So make sure they have ways to release that energy and get some exercise – it’s good for you too!

And your dog needs to be busy if they’re locked up or left alone. When you have to go to work or school, please have music on and give your dog chew bones or other toys. A dog who is stressed and anxious (a panicked dog, especially one who’s been adopted and fears abandonment, will often be destructive if you leave them alone) will be more likely to attack your chickens. We get the flavored bones that are safe for dogs, and never use anything which can swell up and choke them like rawhide can.

There are ways to discipline your dog without using violence. In my personal opinion, it’s ok to be “strict” and to show your dog that something is not ok to do; but it is not ok to hurt your dog. Fear is not an effective way of working with your animal and it’s not necessary to get them to listen. Please don’t ever physically hurt your dog in any way. (If you’re having serious issues with your dog, seek a professional trainer and consider upgrading your coop/run security.)

I hope that this has given you some ideas on how to introduce a dog to your chickens! All of our pets are precious little lives who need us and depend on us to keep them safe and happy. Let me know in the comments what you’ve done and what’s worked for your family!

And check out this video showing our progress with Penny Lane!