09/07/2026
Three months ago, Boomer, my own 20 month old Boxer, killed one of my chickens.
Last summer, as a young adult, he had happily shared the garden with them. But after they’d been shut away in their run for 5 months over winter, once they’d been let out again in Spring, I took massively for granted that everything would be ok.
I could have chosen for them to stay separated and never be together again. The easiest option but not the best quality of life for either species. Instead, I went back to basics.
Through careful management, desensitisation and teaching appropriate behaviours, I have rebuilt his understanding of how to behave around them.
This hasn’t happened overnight, it has taken consistency, patience and a lot of work.
But the result is no fixation or obsession, just a calm coexistence 🐶 ❤️ 🐔
Training isn’t about hoping for the best, it’s about setting dogs up to make the right choices, one step at a time 🐾
(Excuse all the football training paraphernalia scattered across the garden ⚽️)