Entire Flock Attacked... help please!

[ChickenCanoe]

.... Domestic cats if allowed to be outside can maintaine their hunting instincts and do more damage than some people might think.... I watched her one time make a b-line at a stray cat standing next to my coop and tear the crap out of it like she was protecting the flock.... but I never thought my cat would play a protective role, ... Never rule out domestic cats, some of them can be pretty nasty.

Especially people that look the other way when their cats devastate wildlife.

That's pretty cool about your cat protecting your flock. Sounds like a pretty dominant aggressive cat.

 

[cgmccary]

Yesterday I got home to find that our entire flock (8 hens) had been attacked during the day and 3 were killed. They free range on our acre lot that has a 6 ft fence all the way around. We did not see any signs of predators (hawk/crow feathers, footprints etc) and have no clue what got our girls.

The Details:
- It happened in the middle of the day
- 6 ft high privacy fence around entire property so not likely dogs
- All 8 had been attacked and were missing lots of feathers and had wounds that looked like scratches and punctures. Some had bigger wounds.
- 2 were dead when we found them and missing their heads, but not much else was eaten
- 3rd chicken was still alive but really struggling so we ended her suffering. She was on the opposite side of the property from the other two and had extensive wounds that were actually already full of maggot eggs.
- There were piles of feathers from all 8 girls all over the yard so it was like it was a prolonged attack with something or multiple somethings attacking.

Our guesses are hawk, crows or maybe fox and raccoons but being the middle of the day the last two are less likely.

Any help identifying the killer would be great! Thanks

A hawk would not attack, kill and eat multiple birds. It does not kill needlessly. A hawk would have eaten the breast meat of one bird and let the others alone. No, not a crow. I have crows and they do not attack grown chickens but forage with the chickens. I could see a crow taking a chick (as I witnessed one pick up a baby Robin), but I don't lose them to crows because the chicks free range with a game hen mother (which speaks for itself).

My educated guess would be raccoon or a member of the weasel family which do attack all the birds needlessly. Both take off heads and kill and attack all the birds. A fox or coyote would have taken the whole bird away.

 

[cgmccary]

I have an outside cat and she has taken wild turkeys down and eaten their heads off. Domestic cats if allowed to be outside can maintaine their hunting instincts and do more damage than some people might think. I have to get her involved with all my new chicks when they are young so that she looks at them as pets and not prey. She does pertty well with my girls, she may make them a little nervous at times but she wont hurt them. I watched her one time make a b-line at a stray cat standing next to my coop and tear the crap out of it like she was protecting the flock. I hoped my dog would bond with the hens but I never thought my cat would play a protective role, heck I was just hoping she wouldn't chew their heads off. Never rule out domestic cats, some of them can be pretty nasty.

I had chickens in the city at one time, and I had MANY stray cats (and other people's cats) everywhere. They never bothered my chickens & did not even take baby chicks much less a full grown chicken. And my cat is scared of my chickens. I admit I have heard here and there on forums of the rare cat who would attack a chicken, but it is not common. When I had turkeys, they would be a danger to a cat themselves.

 

[Biginner]

I had chickens in the city at one time, and I had MANY stray cats (and other people's cats) everywhere. They never bothered my chickens & did not even take baby chicks much less a full grown chicken. And my cat is scared of my chickens. I admit I have heard here and there on forums of the rare cat who would attack a chicken, but it is not common. When I had turkeys, they would be a danger to a cat themselves.

city cats are usually well fed. I live out in the country and get quite a bit of feral cats that most likely were dumped. I've killed about half a dozen this year that were caught in the act of killing chickens.

but that being said I only had cats kill 1 at a time.
I've had weasels kill a couple dozen pigeons and they would just bite the heads off and leave the rest.

 

[ZooKey]

My cat is a little more chill now than she had been in the past. I found her in very poor condition on my deck one night and nursed her back to health. I had her fixed and set her back outside but left her a food dish on the porch. She has worked her way into the house over the years and has given up some of her hunting ways but feral cats in my area are a huge problem. I probably have 60 or so living in the woods surrounding my property. I myself only have 3 acres but I'm surrounded by farms. A friend down the street came home to find her flock of ducks under attack by two cats, they saved 6 out of 9. Depending on where you live cats can be a pain in the neck....

 

[crzymomo8]

It sounds like the raccoon I have attacking my flock. He's apparently confused that he's supposed to be nocturnal, and has killed eight out of our fourteen chickens. I have not managed to catch him yet, but the remaining girls seem to be staying close to the dogs, and I race out any time I hear a ruckus. It's tough losing birds.