[MaxHollyNoah]

Hi Tractorqueen,

I am sorry to hear that your dogs killed your kids pets. It sounds terrible.

The first thing came to my mind is -

How much time the dogs get to spend with your human family members everyday? You said they are outside dogs so they might be by themselves most of the day. I understand you have 2 acres and the dogs have each other to play with. People tend to think they are getting enough exercises and a lot of fun that way. But I don't think so. Dogs like to mingle with human beings and get a lot of attention from us.

I don't think it is fair to expect outside dogs to behave like dogs that live inside the house with us humans all the time. I can see your dogs having fun pulling/attacking and chewing the garden hoses! Dogs retain dogs' natural traits and behaviors more when they are with other dogs, especially if they are left outside.

My suggestion is to put all the objects including your kids pets away from your dogs' reach until they master basic obedience. It is hard to train them together so do it separately. If you expect your dogs to behave well, I am afraid you will have to spend a lot of time and energy with each of them until they learn to respond to your commands and reprimands. At this point it doesn't sounds like they are not paying much attention to or are not understanding how they are expected to behave when living with your family.

I personally think all pet dogs should live inside the house....