Will any breed of dogs protect a flock of free-ranging chickens instead of killing them?
You don’t want a HERDING breed, you want a GUARDIAN breed, there’s a huge difference. Herding breeds (Collies, Shepherds, etc. – Herding Group in the AKC) are meant to drive stock from one place to another, working in tandem with the stockdrover. Leave a herding dog alone with the stock, and the herding dog may harry the stock to death by constantly moving them from place to place. It’s what they do, and what they’re bred for. Guarding breeds (Great Pyr, Anatolian, Akbash, Maremma, Kuvasz, Komondor – they’re classified as Working Group in the AKC) are meant to live with the stock and protect it from predators. They have been bred for this for thousands of years in some cases, and the “prey drive” instinct that so many other breeds have is severely controlled in these breeds. http://www.lgd.org Here is a specific article about Livestock Guard Dogs (LGDs) and Poultry: http://w
