# Prey Drive



## widogmom (Mar 23, 2011)

Wasn't I the one just cautioning somebody about prey drive in Dobermans? Last night, when I let the kids out for their last potty break, there was a rabbit in the yard. The snow has melted enough now for them to get in through their bunny-gaps under the chain link. Kali is pretty easy to call off a rabbit (I think she has an arrangement with them - she leaves them alone and they leave her "raisins" LOL) but Pablo...PABLO! PABLOOOOO! LEAVE IT! I swear, he's a big Chi, but that rabbit was almost as big as him, and I was worried that he'd get kicked or scratched or bitten. At one point, he had the dumb thing cornered, and I was sure he'd come back covered in bunny guts (a friend's Westie did that awhile back - can you imagine, on a white dog?) and I'd be cleaning him up until midnight. Well, he finally got the idea that I wanted him to come in the house (so did the entire neighborhood) and I went back out to usher the rabbit out under the gate. Has anybody else had their dog go after wildilfe? Kali likes to chase chipmunks, but they're smart enough and small enough to get away. The rabbits just panic and their tiny little bunny brains shut off (Watership Down notwithstanding).


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## Natti (Jun 24, 2010)

Pippi goes mad at birds of any sort, and when she was first rescued she did catch and kill a couple - now she barks at them still but she'll leave them alone. Maisie though has no interest in wildlife at all.


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## kimr (Nov 14, 2010)

Pedro wants to go after anything and everything. Gracie just hides behind me and growls.


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## Brodysmom (Jan 8, 2009)

Brody goes nuts for squirrels. I have no doubt that there would be a fight if he could actually catch one. He is out for blood when he sees one. Luckily they are faster than him. If one would get caught or cornered, I think he would get badly bitten. I try to always give the squirrels a head start when I let him out so he never gets lucky enough to catch one.


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## 4syth (Apr 24, 2010)

All of my dogs have high prey drives except for the shih tzu. All of them except the shih tzu stare out the windows and watch birds flying in the sky, look at squirrels in the trees and Gibson can actually climb trees and try to get the squirrels.

My chi-mix Fibi has actually caught and killed a small bird and proudly strutted up to us with it in her mouth thinking she was just the best little hunter in the world not realizing we were horrified at what she had done (she hid under a bush that the birds were staying in waiting for one to land near her).

Jenna


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## Gingersmom (Mar 12, 2009)

Porch lizards...nuff said...LOL luckily the lizards are faster then the girls


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## widogmom (Mar 23, 2011)

Ok, thanks for your help! I thought I was done checking the yard for rabbits before I let the dogs out after Dary passed away, but I guess not. Who knew Pablo was such a little predator?

Easter story - when Dary was about two years old, I let the dogs out Easter morning and there was a rabbit outside. Dary chased him, and the rabbit tried to get through - rather than under - the chain link, but his hips were too wide...I thought, oh, this is it. Dary just stood there in a play bow and pulled tufts out of the bunny's tail until I could get to him and drag him off (he minded then and went up on the deck; the bunny extricated himself and found the gap _under_ the fence, as he should have done in the first place). I always told Dary after that it's his fault dogs can't have chocolate - because he bit the Easter Bunny in the butt!


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## huskyluv (Oct 24, 2008)

Our husky Dakota, well I don't really think I need to say it but he has a VERY high prey drive.

Our chi, Faith, well she thinks she's a princess and princesses don't have any interest in prey.

Our chi, Glory, has a high prey drive towards birds and squirrels but that's about it. Now if Glory encounters an itty bitty little frog that is WAY smaller than her she goes running away. She'll chase birds and squirrels but tiny frogs scare the daylights out of her.  She makes me laugh!


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## widogmom (Mar 23, 2011)

My first Dobe, Casey, was very high prey drive - she would chase down squirrels and other substantial creatures, but one day she saw a mouse in our cabin and literally jumped up onto a chair while our other dog, Decster, chased it into a closet! I was laughing so hard I could barely pull Decster back and grab the mouse (with a cup and cardboard, like a moth) and dump him outside! From then on, Casey slept curled up in that easy chair!


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## Chihuahuasloveme (Jan 8, 2010)

Ninja and prada chase squirrels and birds ninja would 100% kill something if he caught it not sure prada would have the balls to although she's starting to bug the crap out of the cats lol 

Baby would probably just chase and then run away 

Beau would duck and pee at least that's what he's doing around the cats lol


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## mymicody (Apr 6, 2011)

These are great stories! Mine will watch out the window but they really haven't ever had an opportunity to chase anything. Our back yard is big but also escape proof.. nothing getting in OR out! LOL


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## sjm (Mar 7, 2011)

we got skunks around here... ick


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## Yoshismom (Jul 6, 2005)

Yoshi will growl at a bird from time to time but mine really do not pay other critters much attention.


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## rocky scotland (Jun 15, 2008)

Rocky is pretty obsessed with birds and ducks if we are in the park, silly boy as they are much bigger than him lol!


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## Tyson's Mum (Dec 26, 2010)

We used to have a LC German Shepard, on day we were walking along the seafront promenade, she was strutting along with her look at me walk stopping to check out anything that caught her interest. On a wall on the oposite side from the beach was a tiny kitten, couldn't have been more that a few weeks old, she stopped sniffed the kitten, the kitten gave a tiny mew, she jumped about 3 foot in the air, lept the wall on to the beach and ran as if the devil was on her tail. It took us 20 minutes to catch her at the other end of the beach hiding behind a stack of deck chairs. I think her prey drive had deserted and as for a guard dog I would have been ok as long as they didn't send in the kitten first.


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## huskyluv (Oct 24, 2008)

Tyson's Mum said:


> We used to have a LC German Shepard, on day we were walking along the seafront promenade, she was strutting along with her look at me walk stopping to check out anything that caught her interest.  On a wall on the oposite side from the beach was a tiny kitten, couldn't have been more that a few weeks old, she stopped sniffed the kitten, the kitten gave a tiny mew, she jumped about 3 foot in the air, lept the wall on to the beach and ran as if the devil was on her tail. It took us 20 minutes to catch her at the other end of the beach hiding behind a stack of deck chairs. I think her prey drive had deserted and as for a guard dog I would have been ok as long as they didn't send in the kitten first.


LOL That is hilarious!!! :lol:


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## LostLakeLua (Sep 6, 2009)

Brodysmom said:


> Brody goes nuts for squirrels. I have no doubt that there would be a fight if he could actually catch one. He is out for blood when he sees one. Luckily they are faster than him. If one would get caught or cornered, I think he would get badly bitten. I try to always give the squirrels a head start when I let him out so he never gets lucky enough to catch one.


AW c'mon Tracy, Brody's just trying to help make his own investment into the raw diet!


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## Joey's Dad (Jul 30, 2009)

Birds and squirrels... yeah, can't imagine what would happen if they actually caught one. One time when Joey was young, he bolted after a rabbit so fast that his harness actually disengaged. It was pretty scary because he went near some traffic, but luckily he came back after I shouted for him a few times.


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## jazzman (Apr 8, 2009)

All of my dogs have the drive - Birds and Squirrels in particular drive them batty.

Stella is the one I have to watch, as she is more than capable of hunting and knows how to finish the job. The chi's probably wouldn't know what to do if they did catch something.


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