My "FORT KNOX" Coop & Run >Is not that secure!

[fishingman]

After all my hard work! and care & consideration !
There has to be one thing over looked, & Shame on me!

Being a Country person most my life , you would think I would know just about all when comes to "predators "
I put a lengthy story in about if I was over indulging my birds which lead to there death, where in fact a set of new seeing glasses and a med.report from a local

farmer put the whole situation in a whole diff. Light!

Mink! Yes those little long lengthy critters who has a taste for blood >frog's, fish,baby birds , baby rabbits,& chickens & have a very nasty temper!
Thing is along time ago about 30+ years I use to water & feed thousands of these ummmmmmm, he! he! lil fella's for a farm in upstate NY. for a well known at that time tourist attraction 1.000 Animals In Lake PlacId , NY. ABOUT 35 YRS AGO! My first real job!
A hole the size of "a pencil eraser" in the neck of one hen slit side ways from canine teeth of a dark brown mink led to the death of my two girls! Crushing their windpipe & breaking their neck! within less then an hour & myself nor my dog heard anything ! My dog can hear a deer walk across the lawn inside house with out seeing it & raccoon even a possum!
But not this guy!!!!!!

I am getting to my point !{Fort Knox) Our RUN & COOP!
360 DESIGN FRAMED OUT WITH FENCE
Latch lock's for window's on all doors & spring hooks double chained on main cage due to bears around
12inch skirt with rocks 20lb.s or more around & onto of skirt for digging PRED'TR'S.
Even with 8 inch underground vinyl covered 2 X3 in. garden fencing full floor of run!
One would think of Heck nothing going to get in there maybe a mouse?
Never thought of the 3x3 inch chain link holes which is big enough for a wild Mink to stick it's head through Seems we think of every thing! and things so simple slip our minds !!!I am sad to say was my fault as I guess with all we can only do so much! & there's always something missing or we could do more! never think!! nothing can get in one has to think like a predator to detain one or keep one from entry in all forms shapes & size's .!!!!chicken wire will be installed this day!! TOP TO BOTTOM & FRONT TO BACK! These bad boy's & girls can climb!!!!!

You may want to know how I new color? of mink?
Looking for trace of hen which was removed & put on top of 4 foot run for later examination was gone couple hrs. later & found in brook 20 yds. away being dragged by mink of brown color! Mink split / took off , leaving headless carcass.
I have pic's thought was a bit graphic to put in here of bite area's shape and dissection to find int'l cause besides bite hit a main vein and crushed neck bone.

My girl's were around 20+ lb. so you can imagine how strong these 18 to 24 inch critters are & nasty, nasty, nasty!!! Temper wise !!!

 

[Mtn Laurel]

So sorry for your loss. I've been fortunate to have never seen any mink in my area although I supposedly live within their range.

We're just finishing up a new run and half-inch hardware cloth will be installed along the bottom 4 feet of the wire. Although we don't have mink, we do have raccoon's and I understand they love to reach in and grab a bird, eating it through the wire. Expensive to install but certainly worth it.

 

[OScarlet]

We have electric around our coop and see much less wildlife in our garden now!

 

[tcstoehr]

I am so glad not to have any members of the weasel family around here. I count myself lucky for that.

So, it got thru the chain link fence, and then into the coop? Is the coop itself not secure? I can see why you wouldn't bother since you have chain link and welded wire surrounding the whole thing. I suspect the mink could get through that welded wire on top too.

What's the plan going forward? How will you prevent this from happening again?

What I really don't understand is how that mink got those 20-pound chickens out of that cage.

 

[fishingman]

Not out of cage.
In cage one out side in run was eating Salad // Is why my first thought was choking on food! > reason I left first notice!!
Other inside coop nesting door had window turn latch to lock birds in at night & was left open for others still eating, door was not secured when chicken's were in house after finding the one outside in run dead.
Mink came back in & killed 2nd one .
The first was left outside on top of another run for exam for following morn a mistake on our part as mink came back a third time and climb run where coop is not!
It grabbed dead hen off top of run and dragged to brook where we caught it draggin it down side of brook trying to get away.


Plan now is to use chicken wire and 360 the whole interior!
I have to remove sand in bottom but it's ok sand better then dirt! easy to handle and better drainage wise plus girls like the crush shelled grit.
lay down a covering there and do walls & then ceiling as "floor & ceiling" have 2x3 in. garden fence.
top Totally enclosed for hawks , bald eagles ,owls, coon's Etc.
& as stated bottom totally enclosed for digger's with additional 24 in, skirt with rocks on it for diggers fence falls in as digging is done with rock pushing down on fence . Very discouraging scenario for diggers believe me we have watch!! ""coyote's'' gave up digging as rocks would not allow entry with fence-skirt/ then neighbor shot them!

 

[fishingman]

Was thinking of that ?? how to hook up to kennel???

 

[fishingman]

North west , NY We have a bit of everything!! even now wild hog's up this way!! I could make a nice list of predators living around here !& some it's obvious I forgot about!

 

[fishingman]

I'll offer a couple more to be on your guard about as well!! I have friends in Virginia & All of the state has ////foxes, and hawks too! My friend does trappin down that way!