once a dog has killed another pet, will it kill the same species again?

Question

The dog did not tear up the animal, it was found, with no scratches, or wounds, and it was a chicken. Did the dog just want to play?( This dog is the nicest dog I have ever had, and would not harm a human)

Answer 1

Not necessarily. And killing a chicken is ABSOLUTELY NO REASON to put a dog down. It is ridiculous to think that a dog that has killed a chicken will attack a child. Dogs will chase and kill small animals because of their prey drive. Anyone who believes that a dog cannot distinguish between a child and a chicken obviously knows NOTHING about dogs!! Your dog's behavior is completely normal for a dog! What breed is the dog? Some breeds, and even individuals within a breed, have a stronger prey drive than others. If you want to keep your dog from killing chickens, don't let him near them. Your dog may kill other small animals, but this has nothing to do with how your dog will behave around people. Please, do some resaerch about the drives dogs have, and don't take advice from fools who tell you to put your dog down. Even the gentlest breeds will kill small animals occasionally. Consider the Golden Retriever.... one of the gentlest breeds to humans, but do you realize what these dogs are bred for?? Golden Retrievers are in the Sporting Group, and so are HUNTING DOGS. It is natural for them to want to chase and capture prey. This is what they are bred for!!! I had a Golden for 15 years (who recently passed away) who would always catch rabbits, chipmunks, even the occasional bird, but he never showed aggression towards ANY human. It is natural for dogs to behave this way, and it is ABSURD for someone to tell you that your dog needs put down. Please, people, if you don't know what you are talking about, DON"T ANSWER QUESTIONS!!!!!!!! You could be responsible for someone losing their beloved pet, and for no reason!! Have a little decency, and do some research if you want to be of help. Otherwise, stop giving people false information and idiotic answers. I have to add one more thing, since so many answerers seem to have no idea what they are talking about. A dog killing a small animal, especially an animal that would naturally be prey, has NOTHING TO DO WITH AGGRESSION. This is a dog's NATURAL INSTINCT!!!!!!!!!!! "Tasting blood" will not turn your dog into a bloodthirsty monster. Even the Pomeranians I have now will try to catch and kill lizards, frogs, and birds... and they even killed a hamster when it escaped from it's cage. But to a dog, these animals are PREY!!! My dogs would never behave aggressively to a human, but ALL predators are aggressive towards PREY. Get a clue people.

Answer 2

I absolutly agree with dogtrainer416 there is a WORLD of difference between agression to chicken and a child! There is no reason to think a chickenkiller will harm a child. This apparently will be a shock to some, but ALL dogs are PREDATORS and well chickens come labeled "prey". Practacally the only dogs that won't recard chicken as lunch, are either raised with chickens or are smaller than the chicken, so I guess we'll have to put the entire species down.
It IS possible to break a dog a chasing chickens - we had several high prey drive dogs while we had chickens (and one took several chickens before we got him chicken trained). Take the dog near the chickens on a leash and when they give the chickens a bloodthursty look, give them a leash pop & scold , when they look away praise.. And for petes sake if you try chickens again put a fence between the chickens and the dog. An iffy dog may ignore chickens on the other side of a fence but not under their nose

Answer 3

I can tell you from experience that once a dog kills a young calf on a farm, he's put down immediately. A farmer knows that once he's tasted blood from a kill, he'll do it again. So you can take your chances, but he will most likely do it again. You can either get rid of the dog or the chickens. But if you give the dog away rather than have it put to sleep, make sure the new owners know of the dog's history.

Answer 4

Yes, chicken killing is usually repeated. But, it doesn't mean that your dog will attack other types of animals or people.

All Canines kill chickens (foxes, wolves, dogs) unless they are trained not to & it can be a hard behavior to break.

I have had several dogs that killed chickens. Most of them were broken of the habit. But, I still have a poodle that will get them if she can.

PS - why would anyone keep a chicken as a pet?

Answer 5

It could kill the same species again or another species. I'd be very concerned if I had a dog that killed a pet.

Answer 6

If a dog has killed another pet, it probably will not be choosy what the next victim will be. If he is aggressive, he will most likely kill another animal. If this is your dog, let this be a lesson...do not let him mix with other animals (particularly cats). You may have to choose to get rid of one or the other to avoid anymore deaths.

Answer 7

im sure its fine (im really sorry about the chicks tho) the same thing happened to my sister she had a dog and it was SOOO nice thought of her (my sisters) kids like they were her own the prob was my sister brought home a kitten bout 2-4 weeks old and it got into the dogs food dish so the dog picked it up by the back of the neck (like mother dogs do to their kids) and its neck wasnt strong enough so it snapped. the thing is you have to be very careful about these things because it could do it again so i suggest you keep the dog away from the chicks and thats all i would do :)

Answer 8

Absolutely, once a dog progresses to a "kill" it will have a taste for it and will most likely do it again. I'd say do not have any other "pets" of that species again.

Answer 9

It's a very good possibility. I had a large mixed breed dog and I was unaware that he was hurting my two smaller dogs..until he grabbed one of the smaller dogs by the neck and was shaking him like a rag doll. ...and yes I had the large one put to sleep..I felt that if he could be this vicious to a small dog...I wasn't going to take chances of him turning on my other dog or worse yet a child.

If your dog is doing this please think before you decide to keep him...it may decide to turn on you next.

Answer 10

My dog has killed a baby beaver and a possum that got into my yard. However, he's great with other dogs and cats in his yard...I think he was just trying to play with both the animals he killed! (He knows how to not hurt cats as he comes inside and plays with our two kitties.)