Official BYC Poll: The Worst Predator

The worst predator?

  • Raccoon

    Votes: 696 25.1%

  • Opossum

    Votes: 65 2.3%

  • Weasel

    Votes: 135 4.9%

  • Mink

    Votes: 70 2.5%

  • Mountain Lion

    Votes: 16 0.6%

  • Bear

    Votes: 47 1.7%

  • Coyote

    Votes: 145 5.2%

  • Fox

    Votes: 321 11.6%

  • Eagle

    Votes: 17 0.6%

  • Hawk

    Votes: 474 17.1%

  • Owl

    Votes: 42 1.5%

  • Dog

    Votes: 413 14.9%

  • Snake

    Votes: 33 1.2%

  • Man

    Votes: 105 3.8%

  • Bobcat

    Votes: 58 2.1%

  • Skunk

    Votes: 26 0.9%

  • Rats

    Votes: 56 2.0%

  • Cats

    Votes: 52 1.9%
  • Total voters
    2,771
Pics
Date sort Score sort
I lost a third of my small flock this winter before we caught a mink in the coop.
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Mink are so sneaky...thats what we battled when we were kids. Every year we got chickens we seemed to feed the mink too. I remember as a kid wondering why they didnt make chicken wire with smaller holes...
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I live on 2 acres and will not let my chickens run free in fear of losing them. I have heard if you have a larger encloser and want to cover the top to use deer netting...large and easy to work with.
 
I hate racoons
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I have only seen then twice in real life but every time I see them on TV it's either them being nasty hissy and growly or just evil. I was about to tell my second oldest Sister about how evil racoons are and then as soon as I mentioned racoons she laughed and told me a cheery story about how they saw a racoon jump from one house to the next and then stand there and stare at them, they thought it was cute. I would have killed that sucker or run it off with a pellet gun
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well... until she loses a pet or has her Mini Chihuahua's hurt by the racoon she probably will still think they are cute.
 
Raccoons are the leading carrier of parvo distemper. Highly contagious to dogs and can be spread by dogs coming in contact with raccoon feces. I know folks who have never seen a raccoon yet any time traps are set in their area an unbelieveable number are caught.
 
My first flock was lost entirely to a weasel so they are on mu @$&* list but my neighbors are doing battle with every manner of preditor. Coyotes, and Foxes are very common and I have a red tail hawk that roosts nearby so I fully enclosed my 8x16 ft run. I hope this does the trick!
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I lost my first chicken last night.
a five week old French Black copper maran was roosting on a firewood pile inside the wired run and fell down between the woodpile and the chicken wire and couldn't get out. this morning we found it without a head or feet. I'm sure being stuck pinned against the wire one of our rescue cats got it through the wire when it poked it's little head through.
 
How about a wild pig - we are plagued with the things here, usually in the late winter / early spring, when they roto-tiller our lawns like you wouldn't believe. Just 2 days ago my son came to feed animals for me, and found a pig rooting around my chicken run . Fortunately we put an electric wire around the base of the fence, which I'm pretty sure is what kept him out. We also spread an apron of fence wire out away from the fence, covered it with gravel - which would have kept out a normal digging animal. But Mr. Piggy managed to root up some of the wire too. Mr Macho Man, my son, was able to think quickly and sent Piggy to pig heaven before he could do any more damage. I love electric fence! It's not very expensive for the wire and a small charger, and seems to have saved my girls!
 
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lost one last night to a coon . a new black star hen 5months old . its on tonight getting the dogs and going coon hunting. some how this coon knows when i'm not home at night had to go to my sons school last night and guess what mr. coon came and killed! he's going down tonight . get ready mr . coon its on tonight you me a gun and dogs you have no chance and traps to.
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