raptors, but none has been as successful as the simple presence of our large retriever mix. She’s not a traditional guard dog: She’s a big, playful and goofy mutt more interested in chicken poop than anything else in the yard. But she has a very low prey drive and was raised around our flock from puppyhood, so everyone has had years to become acquainted. She doesn’t know she’s guarding the flock, but the results speak for themselves. We wouldn’t trade her for the world.
If you’re looking for a canine protector, here are some great livestock guardian breeds:
•Akbash
•Anatolian shepherd
•Great Pyrenees
•Komondor
•Kuvasz
•MaremmaHome on the Range: Preparing Your Backyard
Komondors, with their unique moplike coats, are best known for being extremely protective guardians.
A Great Pyrenees dog makes an excellent livestock guardian.
For just a minute, put this book down, head over to the window, and take a look at your backyard. What do you see? Do you have an expansive green lawn? Flower gardens? Large established trees? How about a deck or patio? Once chickens are introduced into your outdoor space, they will quickly make themselves at home in every nook and cranny within their reach: Flower pots, water fountains, veggie beds—it’s all fair game. Through the investigative powers of their beaks, talons, and sheer curiosity, no stone will be left unturned (so to speak).
To immaculately manicured flower beds and perfectly mulched gardens, a flock of chickens can be a frustrating nuisance at best and a devastating force at worst. Chickens scratch at soil, dig craters in the dirt for dust bathing, and eat the foliage and fruit from favorite flora. If they find something particularly tasty in your garden, they’ll eat it down to the roots. They’ll also overturn compost piles searching for bugs and grubs (it is up to you whether that’s a boon or a nuisance), without concern for making a mess. In the process, they’ll deposit droppings in their wake. With free-range chickens, these scenarios are not a matter of if but rather when.
Like any other preparation, chicken proofing a garden is a project best started before any peeps come home. The easiest and only foolproof way to keep chickens out of areas where they’re not welcome is to put a barrier between them.
Tales from the Coop
It’s probably becoming clear that I’m quite an animal person. When my husband and I started our first flock, we had three dogs: two Chihuahuas and a shepherd-retriever mix, all rescue animals. Our most timid Chihuahua, Lucy, steered clear of the chickens completely; our boisterous and outgoing Chihuahua, Ruby, happily followed our hens (to eat their droppings, of course) and taunted our rooster by zipping and jumping around him. Whether she was genuinely trying to play with him or gleaning joy simply from irritating him was anyone’s guess.
We got incredibly lucky when we adopted Winnie, the shepherd-retriever mix. She was just a few months old when she met the chickens and, since they were pullets themselves, both species grew up together. Once fully grown, Winnie ended up reaching a whopping 90 lb. (40 kg). Lucky for us, she was respectful and gentle around the chickens. She acted as a wonderful guardian when the chickens were free ranging, and, aside from her penchant for chicken droppings, she completely left them alone.
We also fostered dogs for our local shelters over the years, but not all were as respectful of the chickens as our three. Some of the adult dogs we brought home had very strong prey drives. Others were rowdy puppies that were driven solely by the desire to play. Thankfully, no chickens have ever been harmed in our fostering adventures (which continue to this day), but we always played it safe and exercised extreme caution.
Tales from the Coop
A life with animals was one I had long known well. The responsibility of their care came naturally and always held joy for me. For the most part, the change in routine that came with keeping chickens felt seamless for my husband and me, city slickers though we used to be. Overall, they fit right into our homebody lifestyle.
But mistakes are made, and nobody is perfect. The first time we experienced a fox attack was early one fall morning with our first flock of hens. I had failed to close up the coop the night before (we had been out to dinner), and the chickens were out roaming in the dewy, unmowed grass (a chore that my husband hadn’t gotten to the weekend before). Between the two of us, we had unintentionally set up the perfect conditions for a fox to have a chicken breakfast. By the time I realized what was happening, it was too late for Rita, our white Easter Egger hen. I caught a glimpse of the fox at the edge of our wooded property just as she was fleeing the scene. The vixen paused and turned to look at me, with Rita in her mouth. Then she gracefully dashed into the tree line.
It’s important to be as prepared as possible for the lifestyle changes that come with keeping chickens, but it’s equally important to forgive yourself when you do your best and accidents happen. Every chicken keeper will experience the loss of his or her birds sooner or later. We can then learn from our mistakes and become better wardens of our birds.
Fencing
Fencing used to keep chickens out of gardens need not be fancy or even heavy duty for that matter. It only needs to serve as a barrier to keep marauding chickens out (or in, depending on how you use it). This means most of your options won’t be terribly costly or difficult to install.
If your chicken fencing serves dual purposes of protecting your gardens from chickens and protecting your chickens from predators, turn to chapter 10 for a more detailed guide on predator proofing. If your neighborhood is home to loose-roaming dogs, it would be wise to consider dual-purpose fencing.
Assuming you simply want to deter your chickens from destroying your gardens, there are several simple fencing options.
Chain Link. Chain-link fencing is very durable and a common fencing option for many homeowners; however, it is quite expensive to use for simply keeping chickens out of unwanted areas. Consider chain-link fencing for perimeter use or for your own use. If you already have chain-link fencing erected on your property, it will work very well at keeping chickens corralled. Fortunately, for those putting up new fencing, there are many other chicken-friendly options.
Chicken Wire. Though the mesh is too thin for all-purpose predator protection, chicken wire fencing is one of the best options for keeping chickens out of unwanted areas. It’s inexpensive (comparable in cost to plastic), supereasy to find, and installation takes minutes. Farm supply stores will often sell metal posts for bracing that do not require hardware or the use of tools; wood posts also work well but will require some minor hardware to install properly. Chicken wire is available in a variety of lengths and widths, is easy to move, and looks clean and rustic in a gardenscape.
Decorative Garden Fencing. Decorative landscape fencing is usually available at home and garden stores and is manufactured in a dizzying array of styles, colors, height, designs, and patterns. Decorative fencing is commonly made from new or recycled plastic or metal. While inexpensive and pretty, decorative garden fencing is usually rather ineffective: Many styles are too low and chickens will simply hop over them. Others are tall but have wide openings through which a chicken can easily squeeze. Decorative fencing may work to deter new chickens for a little while, but they’ll eventually become curious and determined to investigate what lies on the other
