Poultry Predator Identification

[3rdGenFarmer]

Tonight when i went to put my ducks in i counted only four and could not find the fifth one. Until i saw her body laying near the path to the coop and then saw her whole body was intact but really chewed up at the belly and around the neck. but head was not ripped off. What would have done this and not went after the others or chickens?

 

[jajeanpierre]

Need some help. I lost three chickens in September.

The first was a Silkie in my back yard (that backs onto other 3-acre properties with bush). I found a poof of feathers near the coop about 30 feet from my back deck. I found some feathers on the fence where whatever killed her took her through the fence (about 40 feet from where she was initially taken/killed). I never found any blood or body parts. I assumed fox.

Next were two very big 7-month Ameraucana cockerels. I was away so don't know when they were taken. My son was taking care of them so who knows the truth. He did tell me one night some roosted in the trees. It took me a few days to find the feathers of these birds.

One bird was initially attacked on my side of the fence (huge amount of feathers) and ended up on the other side of the fence with poofs of feathers in several places. He fought hard for his life. Again, no blood, no body parts, no wing feathers, just neck, body and tail feathers in patches.

In the same area, I found a big poof of the other cockerels feathers and a few places where it looked like either he had gotten away and been grabbed again, or the animal just put him down. Again, no body parts, no blood and no wing feathers.

While searching the area (my neighbor's property) looking for a trail of feathers indicating either a den or a direction the animal took them, I found a lot of scat with lots of seeds in it. It wasn't in a pile, but there was a lot in an area about 15 x 15 feet. I would guess the animal was larger than a big house cat.

At first, I thought a fox but now I wonder if I don't have a raccoon (because of the latrine). Or maybe I have both.

I also have a smallish opossum that climbs into one of my pens and eats the spilled feed during the night. I would guess s/he is about 8 to 10 pounds. (My dog had it cornered on top of the pen one night so I had a pretty good look at it. I just left it alone--I don't think it will touch my big chickens and they are locked up safely at night.) Do opossum leave a lot of scat in the same area?

I intend to get the largest human trap I can find and set it hoping to catch whatever is getting my chickens. My neighbor lost a chicken around the same times as well.

Will a raccoon take away a big chicken the way a fox will?

I'm in South Central Texas and we also have bobcats and a mountain lion or two fairly close. Lots of deer (neighbor feeds them) and lots of road kill deer, so I would think many of the predators are really well fed.

I would appreciate advice/opinions. Thanks.

 

[dekel18042]

How large was the scat? Could be a fox or do you have coyotes?

 

[jajeanpierre]

How large was the scat? Could be a fox or do you have coyotes?

Not all that big, probably the diameter of a cat's. Lots of seeds in it. I was surprised that there was so many piles in such a small area. Don't raccoons do that sort of thing? Defecate in one area? The area was about 15 feet by 15 feet. I was looking for a feather trail, so didn't pay a lot of attention to the scat other than note it and then do some research on the internet.

I know I have fox. I've seen them crossing my road. My neighbor has seen them walk up her drive at mid day. I know I have a smallish/medium sized opossum coming into my yard. I haven't heard coyotes, but they SHOULD be in the area (Hill Country north of San Antonio). I wonder if the noisy ones have been shot or poisoned, leaving the quiet ones to breed producing more quiet ones. I found a Ring Tailed Cat (Bassariscus astutus) killed on the road near my house but they are too small to make that sized scat.

Would a raccoon leave no trace other than the poof of feathers? Maybe I have two predators. I'm going to try to trap whatever it is but am afraid that will only catch the opossum, showing the fox that the trap is dangerous. I'll call the state wildlife people and ask for guidance, but would appreciate suggestions. I can just see whatever it/they are just popping over to my house twice a week and taking all my chickens one at a time.

 

[dekel18042]

Unfortunately we have #%^&*()*&^%$ foxes. and they have the utter audacity to go in our upper driveway, away from the yard.
Their scat is similarly shaped to our shelties'., but is slightly smaller in size and full of seeds. Speaking from experience, if you set a trap it will probably catch everything except the intended fox.

 

[macombcochick]

Did you ever figure out what killed your chickens? Today I found three of my four in the middle of the day, without obvious injury- just their heads at odd angles and in various parts of the yard. One is missing and presumed carried off. Our yard is enclosed- it must have happened in the one hour we were all gone. Right now my husband is buying a live trap in hopes of catching the culprit.-- macombcochick

 

[jajeanpierre]

Did you ever figure out what killed your chickens? Today I found three of my four in the middle of the day, without obvious injury- just their heads at odd angles and in various parts of the yard. One is missing and presumed carried off. Our yard is enclosed- it must have happened in the one hour we were all gone. Right now my husband is buying a live trap in hopes of catching the culprit.-- macombcochick

I think a fox got my chickens. My neighbor lost a bird in the September as well. I haven't had a problem for the past month but I am out in my yard a lot and my dogs are out a lot. My attacks came when my husband and I were out of town--I don't think my son was out and about the way I normally am, nor would he make sure the dogs were out a lot.

Could a dog get in and out of your yard? My understanding of predators is that, with the exception of dogs and the weasel family, they generally will not kill more than one at a time. Could your missing bird have gone over the fence to escape?

 

[gawildlife]

http://icwdm.org/

Internet Center for Wildlife Damage Management

http://fishwildlife.org/?section=best_management_practices

Best Management Practices for Wildlife Trapping

 

[dekel18042]

Foxes, especially if they have young or certain times of the year will kill many chickens, Only what looks like a blizzard of feathers remains. They will store the extras in a cache for eating later.

 

[gotthefever]

Need some help. I lost three chickens in September.

The first was a Silkie in my back yard (that backs onto other 3-acre properties with bush). I found a poof of feathers near the coop about 30 feet from my back deck. I found some feathers on the fence where whatever killed her took her through the fence (about 40 feet from where she was initially taken/killed). I never found any blood or body parts. I assumed fox.

Next were two very big 7-month Ameraucana cockerels. I was away so don't know when they were taken. My son was taking care of them so who knows the truth. He did tell me one night some roosted in the trees. It took me a few days to find the feathers of these birds.

One bird was initially attacked on my side of the fence (huge amount of feathers) and ended up on the other side of the fence with poofs of feathers in several places. He fought hard for his life. Again, no blood, no body parts, no wing feathers, just neck, body and tail feathers in patches.

In the same area, I found a big poof of the other cockerels feathers and a few places where it looked like either he had gotten away and been grabbed again, or the animal just put him down. Again, no body parts, no blood and no wing feathers.

While searching the area (my neighbor's property) looking for a trail of feathers indicating either a den or a direction the animal took them, I found a lot of scat with lots of seeds in it. It wasn't in a pile, but there was a lot in an area about 15 x 15 feet. I would guess the animal was larger than a big house cat.

At first, I thought a fox but now I wonder if I don't have a raccoon (because of the latrine). Or maybe I have both.

I also have a smallish opossum that climbs into one of my pens and eats the spilled feed during the night. I would guess s/he is about 8 to 10 pounds. (My dog had it cornered on top of the pen one night so I had a pretty good look at it. I just left it alone--I don't think it will touch my big chickens and they are locked up safely at night.) Do opossum leave a lot of scat in the same area?

I intend to get the largest human trap I can find and set it hoping to catch whatever is getting my chickens. My neighbor lost a chicken around the same times as well.

Will a raccoon take away a big chicken the way a fox will? I

I'm in South Central Texas and we also have bobcats and a mountain lion or two fairly close. Lots of deer (neighbor feeds them) and lots of road kill deer, so I would think many of the predators are really well fed.

I would appreciate advice/opinions. Thanks.

Hey there, sorry to quote the whole story. I have been researching Opossums and they are not an 'Attack", type of creature. They feed on easy pickins and a great job of cleaning up human messes. They are so slow, as you know, almost sloth like, it's hard to believe they would kill a chicken. They are known not to predate but eat carrion. If you worry about Foxes, Weasels, and Raccoons, the possums are the least of the worries.