Bees and Dogs

[Bryon]

I've heard about Dogs eating bees quite a few times and have wondered if being stug by teh bees would hurt them at all. I friend has a hive in a tree on his property and when ever the dogs catch the bees getting water from their bowls, they catch them and eat them. They seem to really like how bees taste.

Another friend just gave me a dog yesterday and so farm it's cought and ate ever been it's seen too. I've seen it catch and eat at least a dozen bees so far and I know it's had to have ate a lot more than that.

She dosn't seem to mind getting stung. If anything it adds to the reason why she must kill and eat the bee.

I'm just kinda worried about her getting stung too much. It can't be good for her.

I've also seen this dong catch and eat a few other bugs since I got it.

I'm starting to call the big dumb dog the Great Bug Hunter.

[USCBeeMan]

Is the dog a lab?

[Ken&Andria]

This is a picture of my Setter pup after he met his first bee. Chief was about 11-12 weeks old? He didn't really seem to learn anything....


http://i331.photobucket.com/albums/l...a/P1010216.jpg

http://i331.photobucket.com/albums/l...a/P1010215.jpg

[Joel]

The bees often chase our Austrailian Sheperd from the yard when we kept hives at home. What she really learned to avoid though was the bacon on the bear fence!

[Bryon]

Is the dog a lab?

Yeah. She's a Chocolate Lab with some Pitbull in the mix somewhere. she's almost all black.

Good dog but can be a bit think headed sometimes. Seems to focus in on one thing at a time sometimes. If she sees a bee, thats her world until she eats that bee. or it flys away an she cant' see or hear it anymore.

I know she likes water. I took her for a walk yesterday before I brought her home and as soon as I got her back to the Pen, she went to get a drink and sat down in the water tub.

Dumb dog. Now I had a while to wait for her to dry off.

[USCBeeMan]

Reason I asked if she was a Lab..... I had a Lab that loved to eat grubs. He would dig them up out of my garden. But it was my fault. When I was tilling up the garden, I uncovered grubs. I threw them out of the garden onto the ground. He started eating them. From that point on, whenever he could smell a grub he would dig them up. Didn't matter where they were.

Labs love to chew too! He chewed up everything that was left outside. I still have a hoe with the top of the handle chewed off (that was in 90). He carried chopped wood around chewing on it. His father was known for chewing up coke bottles!!!

[Bryon]

Dogs seem to do some of the Goofiest things. I've seen Shepherds that had a thing for chewing or carring firewood. Same with rocks. Never heard anything about doegs eating Bee's until about a year ago. Now this one seems obsessed with them.

I noticed the xhewing thing. I gave her a Tennis ball and in less than a minute she had the skin ripped off it. The Rawhide bone didn't last much longer than that before she had one end ripped off. But so far, she hasn't chewed up anything I haven't given her.

I think we both got some learning to do. Last Dog I had ran away with the gold fish while I was away at Boyscout camp when I was 10. That was quite a few years ago.

[Ravenseye]

I've got one dog who learned her lesson just by having a bee get stuck in her coat when she walked by. Another one runs up to each hive and sticks his nose right in the entrance. I don't think he's been stung yet and I have no idea why. Sometimes, you never can tell.....with dogs or bees!

As far as being allergic, my littlest pooch got stung last year by a bee that I think she caught and then brought into the house. She got stung on top of her head and she really felt it. She laid down and got real hot for a few hours. I don't know if other dogs have more severe reactions but our vet told us to use Benadryl (I forget the smaller dose) and it seemed to work.

[Jesse]

My labs don't want to be anywhere near the hives. They all have been stung and they never have forgotten. I had a overwintered Nuc a month ago in my Jeep - on the passenger seat - my yellow lab wouldn't go between the seats to get out the front - I had to open the back up.

He was with me in one of my yards when he was about 9 months (summer last year) - I had my most agressive hive open and he got a little too close - I know he was chased a good 30 yards - I found 4 distinct stings on his head, he was miserable for hours - he probably weighed 70 lbs by this point, but I was actually worried for a little while that he might be allergic.

Another day I left him in the truck with the window opened - It was Summer and I wanted him to have some air - I had parked in the shade - I was working my 6th hive and I heard a loud noise - I looked over and saw the truck rocking - a bee had flown in and my puppy (Drake) remembered well his episode a few weeks earlier. I ran over to rescue him, he was huddled tight to the floor on the passenger side. I've decided to just leave him at home when I go to the yards- now that he doesn't chew things anymore!
My dad has two black labs (sisters - one is the mother of mine) They don't like to get near me after I work the bees - they recognize the smell - they both have been stung, but never had a reaction the way my puppy did.
I've heard about dogs eating bees - two were pit bulls, one a german shepard - but I have a feeling my labs will stick to pheseants, fish, mice, squirrels, etc.

[adamf]

Our dog likes to eat bees too. She'll occasionally get stung on her tounge or inside her mouth but that doesn't seem to deter her much.

She doesn't like when she gets buzzed by curious bees. She'll then spend at least an hour jumping around worried about phantom bees on her back.

She also likes to "skin" tennis balls. We call her "the old ball-skinner from way back".



Adam Finkelstein
www.vpqueenbees.com

[bnatural]

My 11 year old Chow doesn't bother the bees, but that's because 10 years ago he got zapped by the electric net fencing. Ever since then he has kept a safe distance from the hives.

Bill

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Sting low, sweet chariot

[Sundance]

Keep an eye on them the first sting or two. My
sons Weimariner was allergic and we had to rush
him to the vet. Almost lost him.

[notaclue]

My Chessie licked a bee at each hive and learned to leave them be. She still sat and lay on top of the hives and they left her alone. My wifes peekapoo on the other hand is terrified of them. He walks as far away and quickly by them as he can.

[xC0000005]

From an older discussion on this, I offer Dogs and Bees. Bees run on instinct. Dogs are supposedly trainable. You can decide which is smarter for yourself.

[danabee]

bee venum is known to have a chemical that is 100 times more powerful than any antiinflamitory on the market and is known to eliminate joint pain maybe your dog isnt so dumb after all. danabee

[Southern Bee]

My Belgain Shepard checks our hives out all the time, sticks his nose in the entrance, calm as can be and has never been stung as afar as I know. He has a thick coat but the bees could still get him on the nose or ears if they really wanted to. I think he is curious about the bees but more curious about the opossums that try to raid the hives.

Now our Border Colley is a whole different story! She follows me everywhere and would go with me out to our backyard hives all the time. One day she got to curious and ended up getting stung in the butt. After that she kept a respectful distance staying down at the other end of the yard. She was stung a 2nd time when she chomped a few in the garden. Then I got one stuck in my hair. She is very protective of me and as soon as I combed the bee out of my hair she ate it. It was already dead, I dont know if the stinger still got her mouth or if swallowing it did it but in less than 2 min. she had a major allergic reaction. Her eyes rolled back in her head, she toppled over, her whole body was limp. I rushed her to the nearest vet. Her gave her a shot and said we were lucky we lived near by. I almost lost her. I make sure she stays indoors when I work the bees now. Even though she has the sense to stay at the other end of the yard, away from the hives, I do not leave her outside by herself anymore. If a bee comes near her, she will move away, and if it follows her she will still chomp it. I have seen her walking around eating dead bees on our deck. I watch her closely and keep a supply of benedryl on hand.

[Jorn Johanesson]

My German shepherd always cleaned my beekeeping suit for bees when I was entering the car after a days work. Outside the car she just stayed at the car and was not interested in the bees, but the car was her domain and she kept is free of bees. Of course she get sometimes stung, but ignored it.

[goeken]

It must depend on the individual dog, I have two pugs one loves to eat bees and as soon as I put on my suite she will not leave me alone. She follows me out to the hives, I don't think she is fast enough to catch a bee but any dead ones she finds are eaten. My wife's pug could not care less about the bees.