I suppose I should explain myself better next time.

I choose not to call me dog off when on the hunt for small animals (unless it's a cat). Not because of a lack of control.

I have the control, yet I allow him to hunt, nothing makes him happier then jumping mid air and catching a bird, or chasing down a mouse in our yard and killing it.

it's also nice to know that my dog is going to hunt down and kill any mice or rats that might make there way into my house.

thanks for the input so far,
ted

Squirrels have nasty bites - they can take off a hawks toe and so most people don't fly their birds at them. Animals carry lots of diseases - especially ones that live near where people are like mice, pigeons, rabbits and rats. Ones that are more likely to be caught are those that are sick. I think I heard on the news that in Denver a monkey that killed a squirell died of the bubonic plague.


I'm with some of the others in that my red flag is twitching - if you wouldn't want your dog to do something why allow it sometimes? It is a bad set up for a lawsuit or injury to a person or animal. Killing animals isn't something I want to mess with. I have a deaf PB and I expect 100 percent compliance in any situation where she could get into trouble. I don't sometimes correct her for barking at kids through the fence or sometimes stop her from chasing a cat. Each time - every time - because it will pay off in case it is the one time some serious trouble could evolve. It is like saying "Well of course I don't let him bite the postman - just door to door salesmen".

I know there are dog sports where dog agression is used (like Schuzhund) but my understanding is that it is done with a lot of control and specific commands and rigorous training.

So I hope you aren't offended - just my 2 cents. Kelly

We may all be overlooking the point - I think Ted WANTS his dog to continue killing things, under his supervision & control - it's not an issue of "sometimes it's ok, sometimes it's not" - he's just concerned there may be health risks associated... understood.

Unfortunately, I can't answer that one in any detail, but a few people have offered some good information. While the occasional kill isn't something I personally would worry about, I think I'd be a lot more leary if I knew my dog were killing multiple species on a daily or even weekly basis. The more animals he comes into blood contact with, the higher his chances of contracting something unpleasant. I would hope he's been vaccinated against rabies at the very least (I know some people are very anti-vaccination, but this is one situation where I'd be darn sure my dog was protected against everything under the sun...).

Just my 2 cents as well. (If things are as you say - and I SINCERELY hope they are, for the sake of both of you - Good on you for having complete control over your dog's fierce prey drive - I'm worlds away from there yet, but I know how difficult it can be. Do keep him safe though... he's such a handsome boy.)

~Natalya

Ted ,I understand your point , I think you must think about the diseases your dog might be catching by killing these rodents and other small critters, I know when we had mice at one point we were hoping that our cats would take care of that problem but then we thought that maybe it was not a good idea because of what rodents carry(diseases) .
I understand though, i think maybe you should go another route to get rid of the rodent problems, we had pigeons problems too and thought hey let's hope the dogs kill a few, but at the end we went another route and saved us the headache of maybe our dogs getting sick..
Good luck..
Angelique

Some great advice here, I'm really starting to re-think everything just incase.

One the one hand, I don't mind my dog killing critters, but on the other, the risks may be high on his health.

Prevention is better than fixing the problem down the road. He's such a good dog, I love him to peices. Praise God for Phoenix.

Thanks for all your input over the last few months, the bond I have with my dog has only grown stonger!



ted

Ted, I'm not going to comment on the killing since so many have already but have you ever thought about channeling all that drive into learning herding. Watching a Kelpie herd is fascinating and herding is controlled prey drive.

Just a thought.

 Quote: Elaine Haynes

Ted, I'm not going to comment on the killing since so many have already but have you ever thought about channeling all that drive into learning herding. Watching a Kelpie herd is fascinating and herding is controlled prey drive.

Just a thought.

I agree, I realy wish I had more access to sheep really. The closest farm with sheep that would be willing to let me teach my dog herd is about an hours drive from my house, each way.

So maybe if I move to the country some day I can get some sheep and get him to work really hard. Right mow he and I are doing other things, but herding will for sure be in his future!

Dogs can get "Lepto" from Rabbits. We still had two pet rabbits when we first got our puppy, but our vet told us the Lepto Vaccine was not likely to be the same Lepto that the pup might get. So, in the end, we re-homed our rabbits, and kept the pup away from the rabbits.

As the former owner of a young puppy that was litterally eaten alive by another dog while on my property, I think that allowing him to kill and chase small animals with your consent is asking for trouble.

The "Canibal" Dog that did this to my pup was put-down due to his actions, and after the fact many animal carcasses including cats & small dogs were discovered in the woods between our house and theirs. My pup survived the ordeal, 1000's of $ later that was paid by the other owner's home owners insurance policy, but the pups personality was completely different. However, personality wise, I lost complete control of my pup. She was only 6 months old when this happened. It was a very sad sad ordeal all the way around, and why I waited so very long before I got another pup. It was a very emotional time for me.

Your dog isn't living on his own and having to find his own food. It doesn't sound like you are training him to be a "working dog" (for ducks, or whatever) where they retrieve but don't destroy.

Do you get joy out of seeing this? I'm sorry, but people that enjoy hurting other living creatures bothers me, even rats & mice. I don't want them in my house, but as long as they are not in my house, I'm not going to go hunt them down.

*** shudder ***

I live in a rural setting with tonnes of ground squirrels. Most people call them gophers, but they are really ground squirrels. Most people think of them as pests. Anyways...I have many friends with pet dogs and actually every one I know lets their dogs chase these in the fields, parks, wilderness off leash. The "PEEP" they let out gets the dogs going nuts!

Many dogs are not fast enough to get them, some are. I have never known any of my friends dogs to get sick from killing these squirrels. I also know that lots of these dogs are not cat or dog killers. I do know some that have been skunked or quilled mind you, so you can see where it could lead.

HOWEVER, I do know two of my friends dogs that were killed by cars because of chasing ground squirrels. One chased a ground squirrel accross the road and met it's demise, the other jumped out of a moving truck when it heard the "peeps" in a field and was killed. One dog was a Kelpie X , the other a Border Collie. Not saying this could happen to your dog, but food for thought.

Cheers