chicken killer got about 7 hens last night.

[john in wa]

ok last night i lost about 7 hens. all i found was some feathers in the back of the pasture and a lot of feathers in the barn where they all roost. i am guessing this is a dog or coyote. if i use a red heat lamp as a light sorce can they see the red light. i want to lay and wait for them tonight and maybe the next few nights to see if they come back. if they do it will be the last trip to my barn they make. i am sure it has to be dogs or coyotes i cant think of any thing else that would pack off that many birds and leave nothing but feathers. no bones no feet nothing just feathers. i will lock the three hens i have left as soon as they go to roost. i am also going to be culling some quail today and was thinking about using the left over parts as bait. maybe make a sack with the parts in it and tie it up to the shed so they cant run off with it. should give me a little time to make sure i hit my target.any other ideas? thanks

 

[gkeesling]

It wasn't a dog. A dog would have just killed what ever moved and left the carcass there. It was a wild woodland creature that was looking for food. Like you said a coyote, or maybe a fox. You might want to set some steel traps around the bait. Maybe you will get lucky

 

[john in wa]

i was thinking coyote i have not seen a wilf fox around since the 70s but from time to time we get a pack of coyotes in the fall months or when it gets really dry up in the hills. this is the first coyote problem i have ever had. i have 3 hens left and one is wounded. i will need to go under the deck and see if i can drag her out and see what her wounds look like.

 

[ChickenCat]

The red light supposedly cannot be seen by the coyotes. I'd try exactly what you said. red light on, gun ready and wait. Whatever it may be, sorry.

 

[PortageGirl]

Yeah, dogs kill for fun, maybe they'll gnaw on one, but I guess they've hung around humans too long. It does sound like a pack of coyotes. Fox tend to get carried away too, really the hens flap around and cause so much chaos they just kill everything they can, then can't usually carry more than one away. (don't blame thm, don't like it, but that's the way it goes.)

A pack of coyotes will take away all they can. Sorry you lost so many, heh, well, sorry you lost any at all, but you know what I mean I hope.

 

[Bizzybirdy]

Not dogs...hope you get whatever it is. Maybe even racoons.

I have sat out many a night, all night, waiting with my 20g. It is how I finally got rid of them for awhile, except for the last racoon that killed my old cat. I set a trap for it and it was a done deal the next night.

So sorry for your losses. Sometimes we have to declare war on predators!

 

[john in wa]

well now that its about time to roost 3 more have showed up. i dont know where they were hiding but the seem in good shape just a little flighty. i still have not been able to catch the wounded hen but should be able to pick her up off the roost as soon as it gets dark.. i have the red light hooked up so i will be able to see anything going in or out of the barn. i think i am going to park the truck in the second driveway and just hang out in the truck tonight with the dog. thanks

 

[chookchick]

Great to hear that some of them showed up! Keep us posted on the wounded one, and progress on identifying that critter. I used to see fox once in a while when I lived in Burien, of all places! But they were very quiet and stealthy.

 

[john in wa]

I am sure its a coyote kids seen one about a 3rd of a mile up the road tonight. and i thought i could hear really faint yip yip yip just after sun set. now i play the waiting game. i also seen a skunk tonight but will deal with him after the coyote.

 

[gsim]

In your place, I would set traps. They never sleep. Sounds like coyotes which are a real problem in E Tenn too. Heard of a guy in neighboring county who lost around 32 hens overnight to coyotes. He thought they were safe in the barn too, but learned differently. Incidentally, I was talking to a guy who works at our local tractor supply and he said that he caught a coon in a catch-and-release trap and it tore the trap apart and escaped. When I buy one, I will reinforce it with 2x4 welded wire fencing scraps and galvanized wire.