Lost a Rhode Island Red to a chicken snake

that's awful.  that is a vulnerability my run has.  the coop is safe, but the run is open to such. 

A friend of mine found a BIG chcicken snake in a nest box last week. She ran to the house for her shotgun, forgetting it was loaded with buckshot........yup, she got the snake-and the nest box too!  Bits of snake and nestbox splinters were everywhere.

Good grief, I'm so sorry.  Many people say not to worry about these types of snakes as they're not supposed to be able to "eat" full grown chickens, but what's the difference if they can kill them in the process of merely trying to eat them? It's amazing how strong those things are. Even if only once in a blue moon, but one time is an awful enough experience. 

My dogs over the years have been pretty good as preventives from such experiences, though the more I read about stories like this, the more I'm going to stock up on the hardware cloth. 

I am so sorry!!! I hate this to happen to anyone!

I am SO paranoid about predators. I am always on the look out- I walk down to the coop at night with a flash light. I am always inspecting the hardware cloth and boards for openings, and any dig marks. :-( I know this can't stop it- but I worry! 

sorry about your loss. last week there was a thread about this. many pro snake people claimed a snake willn't kill something to bg to eat. How wrong they are.

Chicken Snakes, or rat snakes kill all sorts of bad things like poisonous snakes, rats, mice.  You shouldn't kill them.  Snake-proof your coop.  I found a 7 foot chicken snake in my coop.  It just ate the eggs I think, though I've lost a few hens.  So, I just made sure it couldn't get back in and I've had no problems, nor mice nor moccasins, since.