I woke up to a mess.Dead birds everywhere!Graphic! UPDATE!

[TheFeatheredTempest]

Moles are insectivores, only eat insects, harmless to chickens and good for aerating the soil and bringing nutrients to the top.

 

[Iheartchicks<3:)]

cool!! we have lots of field mice and rats too tho!!! but in run they are ok?

 

[RedRoosterFarm]

tHANKS,I DIDNT THINK ABOUT THAT. wILL DO

Hillary and friend's eggs :

I'm so sorry for your loss! I can see why you would be very upset! One thing though, since you included a pic you may want to say so in your thread title so people who don't like to see graphic pics can stay away from the thread. I hope you feel better soon!

 

[WhiteMountainsRanch]

Omgosh I can't even imagine how heartbroken I'd be if I spent all that time and money getting good breeders together just to have that happen. I just posted in another post about my dogs, but it totally applies here as well so I will post it here too... hope this helps!

I just wanted to add that my dogs are also dual purpose. My animals are my babies, all of them. But I do have to tell a tale about a 110 pound male that I rescued. I named him Dakota and at first we had him in the house as well as outside. He wasn't happy being inside so we started putting him on the porch at night and out in the yard during the day. Before I got him I would see raccoons walking along the top of the fence and near the back porch. Never saw a single one again after I got him. We have since moved out the sticks and he free runs at night (we have no fence, but he doesn't go far). I have seen and heard him chase down and literally eat coyotes. I found out he came from off the local indian reservation and he must have learned a bit growing up there- he is so smart! If there is only one coyote, he's chasing it like a greyhound! But if there is more than one or two he will stay safely by the driveway and just bark until they run away. I even saw a mountain lion once on the hill behind our house! He stayed right by my side, and barked and huffed until it sauntered off. I have no doubt in my mind he is 100% effective at keeping those nasty critters out of my chicken and rabbit pens. He is such a good dog. Oh, and knocking on wood, we have done this for close to two years and he has never come back injured from his escapades. But just to be on the safe side I got a mastiff pup to follow in his footsteps and back him up.

 

[DIYSeattle]

Someone mentioned the Thai and Filipino chickens being safe. Many of those guys (and girls too) use tie outs (like a leash for the chickens legs) and individual lean-to's for the roosters. They generally also have a dog that watches over them as well as they are in an open area and not in small enclosures.

 

[Strange_Screams]

good luck, shoot straight, and get em......I cry for your loss

 

[Wolfwoman]

Quote:

If it were that soft you WOULD see claw prints, no way around it. In the mud with rain, there are ALWAYS claw prints with canines, whether wild or domestic. Also, if it were that wet, a cat WOULD sink in, and the rain distorts the print. I'm betting on a cat with no claw marks. If no one was around to stop it, a cat would kill them all. Try to get some pics of the pawprints if you can!

Best of luck catching whatever it was!

 

[chkn]

How awful for you. It's odd the thing was able to open all the coop doors. Whatever did it seems smart and determined.

 

[Suechick]

So sorry, what a nightmare! I hope you find the predator.

 

[Kittymomma]

So Sorry! I don't have any of the breeds that you need to replace, but I have a few hens that are still determined to be broody so if you find some eggs and want a hen to brood them pm me and I'll see what I can do. My crazy EE girls won't break unless I stick them in the wire bottom rabbit hutch. I think they'd stick thru a short evening drive, I could let you borrow the lg. dog crate I sometimes use for broody hens too. I lost one young roo to the neighbors new dog a couple of months ago and that was bad enough, I can't even imagine how horrible that was for you to wake up to.