Technically the hen is the one in possession. Until you put the poult in a pen, you haven't possessed it. Maybe she will raise it and it will go back to the wild like mine did. If not, it may linger around the property but it isn't a crime. Just don't put the poult in a pen.
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I found that clipping once after they are mature was enough. By the time their flight feathers grew back they had forgotten they could fly. The following generations almost never got their wingd clipped.
Depends on which state you are in. Each state has its own regulations.
WOW like a cuckoo bird?? That is wild. My hen had a hidden nest and I never figured out where it was until she brought the poults home. Rats. I guess I'm not allowed to eat this one.
Check your state laws. I bought a couple of turkey licenses when one of the wild hens brought her two juvenile toms here with her in the fall. I don't mind the wild hens showing up but I don't want the wild toms around having the opportunity to breed my hens.
Poults will pretty much follow just about anything, won't they?
That is not applicable to your situation. You have to look through the game & fish laws for your state. The fastest way to find out the regulations is to call your local game & fish warden or DNR agent.
yes thats how they kill, but they kill everything they can and try to cache their kills for later. this one was trying to get it out and ripping off as it tried to pull it. this was around 2pm on a sunny day. Usually the hawk and owl kills have the neck feathers ripped off. or the neck up is missing. This one was very fresh and little damage to the neck except the base. I put her in a box trap and nothing went after her, caught the mink one night and a weasel the next 10 ft way, Caught another weasel this morning......
Please - someone w more experience correct me if I’m wrong!
But my understanding of mink/ weasel kills is that they tend to bite the back of the skull / neck and the kills can be (somewhat) identified by the close spacing of the canine teeth - mink/ weasels have a smaller mouth than opossums / raccoons.
But. Based on my research (I do have some weasels here but
-knocking on wood-
they have not managed to get into my coops
....the weasels/ mink tend to go for the head/ brain and leave most of the rest of the bird intact. And you will often have several/ heavy losses, if that is the predator that made its way into your coop.
Based on what you are reporting..... I’m thinking that the mink happened upon a kill and tried to take advantage of the situation. They don’t tend to do the type of damage that your bird had.... The “feathers around” sounds more like a raptor kill- hawk, eagle, ...maybe owl. but most likely a hawk.
They are more prone to pull feathers and then tear up their kill.
It’s - possible - that it was a raccoon (possum, skunk) but. Those critters tend to drag the birds away (esp coons) and you will just find someone missing- esp a youngster :/
A raccoon will grab one and take it right over the fence, even if you only have a small hole in any cover / top netting that you might have.
So. Do you have a cover over your run to keep the predatory birds out?
The mink also now knows there may be a meal source there... so. Do you have a secure coop adjacent to their run?
Mink -tend- to be most active at dawn and dusk. If you have a secure coop, you may want to consider letting them out a little later in the morning, and putting them to bed a bit before dusk.
....they are very savvy. Keep trying with the traps.
Or. If you have the “constitution” and are in and area where you can, I might just put some raw chicken out and wait with a shotgun to take care of the (secondary?) predator quickly and humanely.
If your run isn’t covered, I’d suggest pulling netting over the top.
Also, what type of fencing do you have on the run?
How is your coop set up?
I'm hoping that's the case with mine. The Royal Palm Tom I have has been in a pen his whole life and I don't think he would fly if he didnt have a clipped wing. I clipped his wing when he first got here as a precaution but it doesnt seem like it was necessary. He still sleeps on the ground under the hydrangea.
