Adding a dog with a bird?

[GreetingCardReligion]

Hello there everyone!

I've been looking into adopting an adult dog (preferably some kind of spaniel) but I was wondering what the best way to go about doing that was, with a bird at home!

I certainly don't want to bring in a dog I don't know or trust around my grey and typically if I am home (and its not his bedtime) he is out and about on a perch or with me and the dog would be mostly indoors so it really wouldn't work out if he was aggressive or preditory towards the bird.

I know many dogs can be trained to ignore or be nice to a bird, but what if the learnign curve isn't quick enough?

Is it worth taking a risk? How would you introduce a relatively unknown adult dog to a bird? Obviously I wouldn't throw them in the ring together and would always supervise if "out" in the same room, but I want to make sure I play it as safely as possible.

I'm going to visit a 5 year old spaniel at a shelter early this week, and I'm only going to bring home a dog who is friendly and laid back I'm wondering how if its even a good idea to bring a new animal like an adult dog into the home.

Any thoughts? I hope that made some sense.

[grandma]

If your fids are out of the cage most of the time, I wouldn't suggest getting a dog. My dog is 9 and very layed back. She grew up with fids from the time she was a puppy. She loves the birds and they love her. They share food and will cuddle up together. But, as I said she grew up with fids.

[2horse]

I dont know if an adult dog is a good idea, or even a med sized dog like a spaniel, remember they have been bred for generations to retrieve waterfowl. My cat is bird safe, a very laid back timid cat, my dogs are not, they never come in the house.

My sister has small adult dogs and a golden retriever who came after the grey who do not touch or go near the bird. He has imtimidated everyone to who is the boss pet in the house. They also know mommy will get seriously angry for looking at the bird.

I would think it depends on dog and bird. Is the bird strong enough personality wise, or is he a timid hide away bird? I have found that "if it runs, hunt it down and kill it" is a dog motto. Dogs smell fear and act accordingly. I dont mean that it should ever come to a fight because even if the parrot wins, dog saliva is dangerous. Does the bird believe he is an eagle or a hummingbird?

[svolk]

My dog is part springer spaniel and it's in her nature to go after things like birds and squirrels and rabbits. Therefore, we don't trust her at all when the birds are out. We have to either keep her in our backyard (when weather permits), or she gets locked into a bedroom with the cats when the birds are out. She has been known to find baby birds who fall from the nest in our backyard and run around with them in her mouth "playing" with them. She's a wonderful dog, but we know it would be a bad situation if she were around the birds uncaged. And Jerry seems very trusting of the animals when he's in his cage, I kind of think that he would fly right over to the cats or dog and want to play

[stepht25]

We have 4 dogs - the only one that really looks interested in the birds (meaning I think he'd really like to chase them down) would be our Jack Russel/Beagle mix, Shorty. The other 3 are more interested in the birds eating food and dropping it on the floor for them to clean up! So - we're very watchful of Shorty - he's not allowed in the house unsupervised, if the birds are out (which they usually are).

[bb100]

It depends on the Dog. Our pooch is the protector of the bird room & does not let the cat enter it. His lips go up and growls so the cat has learned to do a u-turn & steer clear of our birdroom. We have a German Pinscher a relatively new breed to the US (smaller than a dobe but bigger than a minpin).

So again it depends on the Dog.

[CheekyBird]

I would say it really depends on the dog, and sometimes dogs that grew up with fids are better--although I got my birds after my dogs and they have a great relationship--dog sits by birdcage and bird throws dog food! all the time!! But I still watch them very closely and wouldn't leave them unattended. It really depends on the dog though. Like they said before spaniels were bred to catch waterfowl, so maybe a different breed? Either way--Good Luck finding the right pooch! :)

[GreetingCardReligion]

I don't think they know much about her past unfortunately.

I know it depends on the dog and I would try to have some sort of a trial period in case it didn't work out but how would I even know that it would?

I want to see if it would work out but not take any risks.

As for my bird, I'm not sure he thinks he's a bird to be honest - lol. He's very outgoing though and I haven't seen him shy away from anything or anyone.

I know its probably better to get a puppy or a dog who was raised with birds, but I'd prefer to rescue an adult dog simply because the puppies aren't at risk.

Shes a spaniel mix but the part of her that is spaniel is a cavalier king charles, which are supposed to be pretty gentle/laidback/lapdogs.

[Sally]

Some breeds do better than others as far as the prey drive. It is hard to say how it will work until you have a dog. Trudy has always loved birds. As a tiny baby, she would just watch the wild birds come and eat the food I put out each day. Now, the wild birds hop around her and are not afraid of her. She and Chipper are buddies. You just have to always be around. Safety is the most important thing.

[Eliza]

The April issue of Bird Talk magazine has a brief article about bringing a dog into a home w/ a parrot. I just got my issue in the mail; I'd imagine that it will hit the stores in the next 4 weeks or so. You may want to give it a quick read.

Best wishes,

-e-