My dogs are attacking my goats!

[thebobbitts]

We rescued two mutts from the pound over a year ago (medium sized dogs, a springer spaniel mix and a harrier hound mix). Since then, we started investing in goats (pygmies for pets and kikos for breeding). We have fenced in pasture land where they live and graze. One day, a baby pygmy goat escaped from an unsecured area of the pasture and we found it dead and torn apart... We knew it was our dogs for sure, because of the way they were acting. We took measures to secure the fence to make sure it wouldn't happen again. A few days ago, we found 4 more dead baby kiko goats... this time IN the pasture. My husband found our dogs in the act and they ran for the fence and jumped over the 4 foot pasture fence! Cleared it like Olympic hurdlers. Now we realize, our dogs and our goat investment will continue to conflict unless we make serious changes. We had a donkey that we just sold... we didn't think she was doing any guarding because the dogs didn't seem to mind her (she would sometimes wander around the general property). Our dogs are totally loving and obedient in all other respects, it baffles me that they would do this! They are outside dogs and I'm guessing, have adjusted to being hunters as I know they like to catch armadillos... but they leave my cat alone! I don't want to get rid of my dogs, but the goats have been a big investment and we were hoping to create enough revenue from breeding to help pay for our land. Should we get another donkey? A llama? Or a guard dog like an Anatolian Shepherd or Great Pyrenees? Or is this risk too great, and should we try to find our dogs another home? Does anyone have experience with dog attacks?

I would just like to see if anyone here has any guidance for my predicament. Thanks for reading.

[deafgoatlady]

Well i had almost same problem. But I took the dogs away and chain them up with LONG line and they can walk anywhere but cannot go to the goat barn. I need them becuz they will drive the raccoon and possum away from the barn. That what i would do that.

[cjb]

If you are that committed to keeping the dogs, I would probably kennel them with enough space that they can exercise etc. and take them out several times a day and/or let them be in the house for company.

Personally, I would rehome the dogs to someone that doesnt' have livestock. I can't imagine keeping the dogs, than getting another dog to guard your goats from them. Your LGD may join the "pack" of the original dogs and start killing goats too.

[WeaverRose]

Once dogs kill livestock, they aren't safe any more, because if they get any kind of chance they'll kill again. They are just following the natural hunting instinct, and a four foot fence is no deterrant, as you sadly found out.
If you find new homes, be sure to tell the people what has happened. The idea of a goat-killing dog chasing down a toddler is what gives me chills when I read posts like this. It's not worth it, IMHO.

[WeaverRose]

PS - forgot to add: we had the same situation, with a border collie that came from a rescue. He'd been abused in his former home, and was trying to heal emotionally and physically. One of our little lambs got through the fence, and he promptly ran it down and killed it. Then he went after a couple of other lambs, and the last straw was when he went after the neighbor girl who was out walking. She wisely froze, stood stock still in the road, covered her face, and yelled for us. We got him away, shortly thereafter he bit my husband when he was out doing the feeding. Attacked him from behind, got him on the leg.
The rescue, when consulted and told the events, decided to put him down. It was very sad, if he'd had a better start in life it might not have happened, but aggressive behavior can get worse in no time, and often before we realize how dangerous it can get, it's too late.
Hope you can find a good solution, for the sake of your goats and everyone concerned It's just not an easy situation to face when you care about the dogs and your stock, I sympathize since we've been there.

[mwhit]

Sadly, they would be dead dogs if they lived at my house. I will not keep a livestock killing dog-- I might give a dog a second chance after the first kill if I was very fond of them and they were still young (learning), but after it becomes a habit they seldom stop. As mentioned above, a dog that will kill livestock may decide to target other things (kids, cats etc.) if re-homed. A dog that has gotten the taste for blood will almost always kill again. Sorry if that's not what you wanted to hear, but that's my humble opinion.

Michelle

[Alice In TX/MO]

Shoot the dogs. I'm serious.

[TedH71]

Buy an electronic collar and when they try to attack the goats, ZAP them! That's how we train our hog hunting dogs to leave cattle alone.

[thaiblue12]

I doubt they are a threat to people. Weaver yours was abused so he was mentally unstable, poor thing.
I would not chain them up, chained dogs become a larger threat. They get very aggravated and then turn that into aggression. I read a book about dogs breeds and their attacks/deaths on people and more than half were from chained dogs. It was very frightening.
I have a small dog that liked to pick on my chickens. She would hold them down and lick them and pull out their tail feathers. I held her down and let the chickens peck at her and she has not looked at a chicken since. If she gets too close they run at her. Thankfully she never killed one.
Like your dogs I have hunting dogs as well. My Golden has never hunted and respects all the animals but I have raised him snce he was 9 weeks old. Sadly when you get older dogs you have no idea what their history is. Owners who drop them off are less than honest and it is awful since the poor things get returned like a bad fitting pair of pants.
I would either build them a large dog run with 6 foot high fence, with supervised exercise. If they get too close to the goats be firm and put them right back in the kennel. Or if you are not that attached to them re-home them to a non-farm.

[Backfourty,MI.]

Ditto on the training collar. We have a beagle & a jack russel & 40 acres of land so you know both my dogs hunt everything, we've had the dogs longer than the goats so my dogs stay. They have never attacked my goats but I bought a training collar & they don't like getting zapped. Now I say NO GOATS! when I let them out & they don't go near the goats!

[mpete]

I am sorry for the goats getting killed. I am sorry, but you should find another home for the dogs... when I was a kid, we did all we could to keep our dog from getting the livestock, one day, he got out taking our other 3 dogs with him and he killed a couple of neighbor goats, the owner of the goats missed (shot) and hit the dogs that were just chasing, not killing. We had to pay lots of money to replace the goats that were killed, plus some, and we had a very hostile neighbor from that point on... I am sorry, but finacially, you should get rid of them. They could turn on other animals and you'd be responsible.

[chris30523]

I have 2 Blue Heelers.They attacked one of my goats when she got her head caught in the fence.The LGD kept them out of the pasture. I got better fence and kept the dogs.They are very good now but they are older and slower I still wouldn't let them loose and unsupervised with the goats.

[crazygoatgal]

I have a wonderful German Shepherd who is my best friend, but she tries to chase and bite my nd's. This was unacceptable behavior and I bought a remote collar and it does wonders. You don't need to shock the crap out of them. You start low and work up to the level that causes the change in behavior. When I have to zap her, she runs right to my side and wants reassurance(she doesn't know I am the "zapper") that sheis alright. The minute she displays the correct behavior, the zap stops. I never believed in remote collars, but I swear by them now. A smart dog will learn fast and a dumb dog, well........

[Trey]

Actually if you are doing aversion training with an e collar, Ie: don't go near goats, they bite. You don't start off at the lowest level and nag them to stop, you hit them with the heaviest the collar has, important not to say a word, so they think the 'bite' was caused by the goat, or the action of chaseing the goat, or chicken, or car, or deer.
The better option (as you won't be around all the time, or watching the dogs all the time) is to get an electric fence (they have radio ones now that you don't have to bury the wire) and keep the dogs around the house (you can set a radius from 90 feet on up). I would get the heavy duty collars with it, and still not leave them unatended in the yard until I was sure they were staying in the area.

[XCricketX]

I had a dog who killed 30 of my chickens in an hour...

Someone told me that they trained their dog by putting a dead chicken on a VERY hot live wire. The dog went to bite it and got the shock of his life... never touched a chicken again "he" said.

Cricket

[Minelson]

My problem is my goat attacking my deaf, arthritic, never hurt a soul, 14 year old dog!

[crazygoatgal]

Originally Posted by Minelson

My problem is my goat attacking my deaf, arthritic, never hurt a soul, 14 year old dog!

I'm sorry Minelson, but I had to laugh at your post. I have a nd doe name Blackberry, who is my herd queen. She happened to see my brothers half grown St. Bernard pup (who was tied up near where my brother was working on my deck). He was minding his own business but Blackberry jumped the fence in the pasture and ran up to this poor pup and proceeded to ram him and knock him on his butt. Moose(pup) let out a cry for help, but couldn't run away as he was tied. Blackberry must have been satisfied with the reaction she got from pooor Moose because she sauntered back,jumped back over the fence into the pasture and went about her day eating. She never did it again, but poooooor Moose is terrified of the goats. Its so funny because he is so big and they are so little. I just love him though.

[chris30523]

I put high tensile electric on my new pasture .These dogs are called heelers for a reason.They are not happy unless they are stepping on my heels. Well after each one of them was shocked once(I tried the expensive shock collars with them and they are in the dumb dog categorie) they don't even leave the porch when I go in the electric fence.

[prairiedog]

Well on this homestead we can't afford to lose livestock so the dog would be promptly gone.

[Rockytopsis]

You also need to consider that the dogs may start killing other livestock near your farm. Here on this farm they would be put down.