My Golden Retriever keeps killing rabbits... any way to make her stop?

[Papa Deuce]

We get LOTS of rabbits in our back yard. Well, I don't think she is killing them on purpose, more like they get killed while getting retrieved, but do you have any suggestions on how to get my dog to stop killing the rabbits?

She's a retriever, so I am sure a hopping rabbit just looks like a big toy to her. There isn't a mean bone in this dogs body.

 

[Hercules10]

She just might be doing her duty...Goldies do have some hunting blood in them. My lab was the same way. Gentle as they come but she cleared out every squirrel in our backyard. Might not be much you can do about it except restrain her when Bugs is on parade.

 

[DisneyAddict_M]

I heard Rabbit Stew is good.

 

[zagafi]

She's doing what hunting dogs do, plain and simple.

 

[RUDisney]

We get LOTS of rabbits in our back yard. Well, I don't think she is killing them on purpose, more like they get killed while getting retrieved, but do you have any suggestions on how to get my dog to stop killing the rabbits?

She's a retriever, so I am sure a hopping rabbit just looks like a big toy to her. There isn't a mean bone in this dogs body.

The solution is simple... stop letting the rabbits in your yard!

 

[Fire_Eater]

Once they get the taste for blood it's almost impossiable to get them to stop....try switching her over to cats.. Sorry couldn't help myself

 

[NMAmy]

Well, I go out in the yard before my golden goes out and scare off all the bunnies myself and then I let her out into the yard.

She caught a mouse once in our yard and it traumatized me. I can't imagine what I'd do if she caught a bunny. So I am now the Bunny Early Warning System.

 

[Aimeedyan]

There isn't anything, really. It's just in her genes. My Schnauzer does the same thing.

We discourage bunnies as much as we can, and protect any nests we find so she can't get to them, and hope they can outrun her.

 

[Papa Deuce]

The bad part is that she just carries them up to the house and drops them at your feet, like she is all proud of herself - which, I guess she is....

Funny, I guess I never thought of them as hunting dogs, though they are. I just tend to think of her as the gold colored shedding thing that wants to be petted all the time.

 

[Castlebound]

Our mutt hunting dog mix likes to kill small animals also. He is always very proud of himself afterwards. He didn't understand why nobody wanted to pet him after he killed a skunk! Our vet told us that he is a hunting dog and that is what they do. The only thing we can do is keep his shots updated.

 

[terri01p]

I had a beagle that did this very thing, she tore my nerves up so much over the 10 years of her life, anything that hopped, flew, ran she would stock and chase until she killed it, she massed murded a whole family of birds that I have never hardly gotten over to this day and my beagle has been dead for a year now, that was the only thing I couldn't stand about her.

Bottom line we treated our dog like a baby, and nothing and I do mean nothing could get her not to hurt rabbits and birds...nothing! We tryed everything we could and still she would fly out the doggie door and go, go ,go, it wouldn't have bothered me as much if she would have instantly killed it but she would hurt it and I would end up having to run the poor thing to the vet , nothing ever lived.

 

[PlainJane]

My dog is a bunny killer. It's not really a problem now because she's old and too lazy to chase things. In her younger years though, she would kill anything that moved.

Nothing worked to stop the behavior. After a while, the woodland creatures learned not to go in our yard.

 

[Luv Bunnies]

This thread is making me cry! I'm glad my two bunnies are safely in their cages in the house!

Do you have a fenced yard that the bunnies are getting into? Is there some way to reinforce the fence so they can't get in? Bunnies like to dig and some people put a layer of wire about 3 feet down below the fence. They'll try to dig under the fence and get discouraged and move on.

Also, is there some kind of safe bunny-repellent you can put outside of the fence? There must be some smell they don't like that will keep them from coming in the yard (but not something harmful to them).

Your dog is probably just following his instinct as a hunter. But the bunnies need to be protected too.

 

[Brit17]

Well, I go out in the yard before my golden goes out and scare off all the bunnies myself and then I let her out into the yard.

I find myself doing the same thing, except I'm also trying to scare away groundhogs ... I also make sure to clap my hands and/or make some kind of noise before I even open the screen door ... I also leave the radio on outside all day (we have speakers throughout the yard) hoping that will keep uninvited guests away too ... I've also bought this product called "Repeller Tape", it looks like mylar ribbon, and I tied it to the fence around the yard ... it's supposed to scare away animals because it reflects in the sun and moves in the wind ...

Funny, I guess I never thought of them as hunting dogs, though they are. I just tend to think of her as the gold colored shedding thing that wants to be petted all the time.

I hear ya ... that's what I tend to think of my two fur babies too, but the vet bills from the unfortunate groundhog incidences sometimes makes me thinks otherwise ...

 

[daisax]

Technically speaking, if she were a really good "retriever" she wouldn't put a dent in them. However, she is a dog and probably just grabs and shakes, which is enough to kill a small animal.

Frankly, I'd be concerned for her health -- wild rabbits carry Godknowswhat in terms of disease, and at a minimum I'd be worried about ticks, fleas, and lice.

 

[olena]

Oh....please bring her here. The bunnies in my backyard ate my stargazer lily garden and ruined lots of my other flowers....

 

[Papa Deuce]

This thread is making me cry! I'm glad my two bunnies are safely in their cages in the house!

Do you have a fenced yard that the bunnies are getting into? Is there some way to reinforce the fence so they can't get in? Bunnies like to dig and some people put a layer of wire about 3 feet down below the fence. They'll try to dig under the fence and get discouraged and move on.

Also, is there some kind of safe bunny-repellent you can put outside of the fence? There must be some smell they don't like that will keep them from coming in the yard (but not something harmful to them).

Your dog is probably just following his instinct as a hunter. But the bunnies need to be protected too.

I have to say, I don't want her killing rabbits, but I'll be honest and say that I'm not going to spend big dollars or time trying to keep rabbits out of my fenced in yard. I have personally reached in to the holes they live in and taken them all away before but sooner or later we have lots of rabbits again.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

It is normal for dogs/cats to hunt and kill. Eventually you will have no more rabbits.

However, rabbits carry all sorts of parasites and worms.

The best thing you can do is go out with your dog and teach them to recall on command. This is the ultimate test to see how well trained your dog is.

Needless to say we flunk at this level.

 

[Papa Deuce]

Make it number 3 in thelast 2 weeks, but the really bad part about the one today was that he dropped it at the feet of our babysitter, and she is a huge rabbit fan.