[mom4life]

We're gonna hopefully get a pup tomorrow. We're excited, hoping my German Shepherd girl will be just as happy, she's fixed. We want a female but then one of the males (I'm told) has markings of a St. Bernard which I'm starting to like and can't wait to see him.
They live on a farm so we'll most likely buy a milking goat and a few chicks too.

[ScarletBloodDoll]

Congratulations! Its always exciting to bring home another dog.
(Side Note - I hope your GSD doesn't chase chickens!)

[mom4life]

haha we did get a few chicks but they're in a pin. She (GS) was very interested in them, we tied her up during the night but let let her loose this morning. So far she's been fine but I have had to call her away from the pin a couple times today. dh said it's very well made. I'm hoping the fencing he used is strong enough.

[ScarletBloodDoll]

I hope so too!
My GSD likes to chase the neighbors chickens and they don't always make it over the fence alive.

[mom4life]

Well sad to report but she managed to stick her head under the fencing and somehow got one chick. dh thought it was odd because her head wasn't in all the way so he was like "What happened did she say come into my mouth and the chick jumped right in?" LOL
So now she's tied up and isn't let loose until dh gets home and does some work outside. Our yard is practically always shaded except for 2-3 hours of the day when the sun it above it, which in this case she's shaded by our porch overhang. A farmer friend of mine told me I'd better hope that the pup didn't see our GS kill the chick or else the pup has just learned what to do with chickens. Fortunately I'm pretty much 95% sure the pup was asleep by our door when the GS got to the chick.
DH has taken the pup into the pin with the chicks to get her used to them and she's done great. She's licked them.....I told dh "well they're finger licking good." LOL bad joke I know. LOL
The pup was born on a goat farm so when we get our goats from the same place tomorrow I'm hoping she will be more preoccupied by them then the chicks. I'm hoping.

[ScarletBloodDoll]

Originally Posted by mom4life

"What happened did she say come into my mouth and the chick jumped right in?" LOL.

I can honestly just picture that. Hope it wasn't to much of a gruesome scene.
How has the new pup been with the goats?

[mom4life]

hahaha she's been head butted a few times by the goats. LOL
We got the pup from the same farm as where we got the goats. The owner keeps telling me to let the pup go with the goats because the pups were raised around the goats so she needs to get used to them. Thing is they don't like her.
dh tried taking the GS out with the goats and her first instinct is to herd them. He worried about what she would do but it sounds like herding instinct, he said she was running low to the ground and trying to go after their heels. He told me he wanted me to go out there with her to make sure it wasn't an aggressive act. I haven't taken her yet, so she's not allowed to go near them till I see her with them.
If it is that she's trying to herd them, any ideas on how to break that?

[mom4life]

Originally Posted by ScarletBloodDoll

I can honestly just picture that. Hope it wasn't to much of a gruesome scene.
How has the new pup been with the goats?

Not gruesome at all. The chick was hurt but not bleeding in anyway. I think the GS just probably got to it and had no clue how to get it out and that's when I called her away. The chick was barely moving when dh got home a couple hours later.

[ScarletBloodDoll]

Did the chick survive? (Every time my GSD is near chickens she snaps their necks and brings them back to me and thinks she's hilarious as I scream bloody murder.)
You are correct about her trying to her the goats, if she gets head-butted at least it teaches her a lesson. GSD are notarize for trying to herd anything, my GSD who is a service dog was specifically trained to in a way herd me and shield me when I should have a panic attack.
To break a GSD of herding, its takes a lot of time. First, the animal has to learn the recall command/leave it/stay to perfection. Once you do this, then you should try to bring her around the goats and have her lay down and wait till she relaxes and tell her to stay. Generally, with enough time it shouldn't break them but teach her that the goats are something not to be played with.

[mom4life]

My dh had to....you know. He didn't want to but I hated the thought of it suffering.
We got her at a shelter, I know she's been trained but no clue for what. We live in a farming community so who knows. She's very alert, as soon as I call her name she comes. She's awesome on a leash. When dh goes out to tend the goats, he leaves her tied up. She makes a huge fuss when he goes out with the goats. So I'm not sure if its just instinct or if she was trained to herd.
I'll take her out this weekend and watch her and use those commands until then to see if she knows them. thank you.

[Phoenix301]

Just wanted to say your description of nipping at heals of the animals is very typical of herding instincts. I have a border collie Australian shepherd mix that if she gets too bored, will nip at the cats and even our own heals at times. I agree with ScarletBloodDoll tho, you must have a solid foundation of movement commands and recalling..i unfortunately took this for granted with my dog and she is increasingly less attentive to me. We got her at 4 months and she did great but now at 9 months she has learned that she doesn't HAVE to come when called so its been very much back to basics! So start early and make sure you are consistent and have it down to perfection before shes a rebellious teenager