Does anyone know of any way to clicker train a dog to get pet chickens off of a porch?
Friday, June 4th, 2010 at
5:15 pm
How can I clicker train my dog to get chickens off of a porch without motivating it to chase them or bite them.
Tagged with: anyone • chickens • Clicker • know • porch • train
Filed under: Dog Clicker Training
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yes when the dog looks at the chicken use the clicker and then each time it moves toward the chicken with out just chase it click again./ it is going to take a little bit of time to do this.
Oh, that is going to be tricky!
The problem with this is, if you teach him to chase chickens he may decide to chase them all the time, or at your neighbor’s home, which might get him shot..
I would really consult a professional trainer, especially if the dog is not one of the herding breeds…
Sorry, but without seeing your dog, it is almost impossible to responsibly answer that any other way! Blessings- dd
It’s hard to say without seeing how your dog responds to the chickens naturally.
I am a big fan of clicker training, but I will say that herding tends to be a natural instinct, and teaching dogs to herd usually involves shaping that instinct. It’s one of the few training applications where clicker / operant conditioning is not particularly helpful. That said:
1) Is your dog a herding breed, or has some sort of herding instinct?
2) What does your dog do around the chickens now? Mellow? Excitable?
3) Do you currently feel safe with the dog around the chickens?
4) Will the chickens move away from the dog today if he approaches them?
If you already trust the dog around the chickens AND the chickens will move away from the dog, you could click train him to respond to hand commands to move one or more steps in a particular direction. You might use targeting to do this, either using a target stick that you can hold away from your body, or perhaps put colored tape or plastic lids on the floor to make it clear to the dog where you want him to go. This wouldn’t so much teach the dog to herd the chickens as it would let you possibly direct the dog around to move the chickens while you are able to stay put. If the dog has any herding instinct, it’s possible he would get the idea after a bit and start doing it on his own, but more likely you’d have to micro-manage the process.
I’m very much a novice in the ways of herding (one of my shepherds just got their first sheep herding title last weekend… yay!) but if your dog does show some inclination toward trying to move or circle around the chickens AND is safe around them, you might practice somewhere other than the porch at encouraging your dog to *gently* move the chickens around, then slowly refine your ability to get the dog to move the chickens where you choose, and then start working with the dog to actually round them up off the porch. In this scenario, I’d actually skip the clicker or any treats and instead just encourage the dog to stay focused on the chickens themselves. This really requires that the act of herding is internally motivating to the dog.
Good luck! I love when we can find practical and functional jobs that our dogs where our dogs can help us do everyday things.
IFIN YOU GOT CHICHENS ON YER FRONT PORCH……CHANCES R YOU JUST MIGHT BE A RED-NECK.