Raccoon killed chickens - feed to dogs?

[Amart]

Hi All,

I'd appreciate this groups feedback. I had a sad morning. Yesterday, I had 14 hens and 3 roosters, all happy with excellent egg production. This morning I found all dead. 1 set of raccoon tracks, only 1 chicken with it's head gone. Very sad to see, and very wasteful raccoons.

Anyway, I bagged all 17 up and put in my outdoor fridge. Outside here it's cold, snows on th ground.

Do you think it would be reasonable to cook up the birds and feed them to our outdoor dogs?

Thanks!

 

[centrarchid]

Yes, that is OK. I now let the dogs it dead birds raw. It does not seem to effect dogs interest in chickens. I also would keep one in freezer for use as bait later. When I suspect a critter is probing poultry area, the frozen bird is pulled out an placed in live-trap.

What does your setup look like? Do you have a handle on how raccoon got in? What evidence beyond one set of tracks make you think raccoon?

 

[Rhodeislandsilkie]

If you would like to feed them to your dogs, I’d say it’s safe. Anyway, Sorry for your loss.

 

[Amart]

Yes, that is OK. I now let the dogs it dead birds raw. It does not seem to effect dogs interest in chickens. I also would keep one in freezer for use as bait later. When I suspect a critter is probing poultry area, the frozen bird is pulled out an placed in live-trap.

What does your setup look like? Do you have a handle on how raccoon got in? What evidence beyond one set of tracks make you think raccoon?

Thanks for your reply! I have an open top to my outdoor run, I assume the raccoon climb the hardware cloth and hop in through the top. No other damage elsewhere, nothing dung underneath. I haven’t been closing the coop door at night, so I suspect that’s the issue. When I get new hens, I will be vigilant about closing them in their coop at night and letting out in AM. In previous yrs we’d have attacks that might take 2-4 chickens, then i’d be more vigilant. I never thought all 17 would be taken out in 1 night without warning.

I’ve included a couple of pictures of prints in the snow of the predator. One of the heads was bitten off. The remainder of birds were killed By one or 2 puncture marks in the neck. The killing method and the fact that 16 of the 17 birds were killed without anything really eaten and the nocturnal attack suggest to me - raccoon. Only other thing I can think of is cat...but the prints would have been huge for a cat, and I don’t think cats would kill
that many.

Thanks

 

[centrarchid]

Cover run and close doors. What other predator do you have?

 

[Labradors]

The chickens will be fine for the dogs, but please do not cook them first. Cooked chicken bones are not good.

 

[50-45-1]

You dont list where you are located, but if i had that result here in northern michigan with those tracks i would almost be sure i had a mink or martin.
Your unwelcome guest will return tonight for more fun. Take a whole chicken or a bloody piece of one that he killed and wire it to the trip pan, or in the back of a have a heart trap. It depends on what type of trap you have. Some have trip doors on each end, others one trip door. If you have to go buy one or borrow from a friend or neighbor, do so. Make it the medium size for racoon. Test fire it several times to make sure its not hanging up. Put it right in the coop where the chickens were.
Only trap this animal of you are prepared to kill it. You can not relocate as you will only give your problem to another chicken owner.
I am sorry for your loss!5
Last fall a weasel (a small cousin in the mink, martin family) found a way into my coop at night. A coop that i thought was impurvious to preditors. He killed my broody hen, all of her chicks and 2 other adult birds. The next night i caught him by wireing one of the dead baby chicks to the pan of a small have a heart trap. Its almost a sure thing your ermine will return.
Here is my weasel the next morning.

 

[roosterhavoc]

Do you have bobcats??

 

[Redhead Rae]

I had a raccoon take two cockerels I had set aside to butcher. My fault, death row wasn't predator proof. One was completely gone and all that was left of the other was a leg and the ribs and a wing. I put what was left of the second bird in the back of the have-a-hart live trap and the next morning I had the coon. It didn't live very long after we found it in the trap.

 

[Amart]

You dont list where you are located, but if i had that result here in northern michigan with those tracks i would almost be sure i had a mink or martin.
Your unwelcome guest will return tonight for more fun. Take a whole chicken or a bloody piece of one that he killed and wire it to the trip pan, or in the back of a have a heart trap. It depends on what type of trap you have. Some have trip doors on each end, others one trip door. If you have to go buy one or borrow from a friend or neighbor, do so. Make it the medium size for racoon. Test fire it several times to make sure its not hanging up. Put it right in the coop where the chickens were.
Only trap this animal of you are prepared to kill it. You can not relocate as you will only give your problem to another chicken owner.
I am sorry for your loss!5
Last fall a weasel (a small cousin in the mink, martin family) found a way into my coop at night. A coop that i thought was impurvious to preditors. He killed my broody hen, all of her chicks and 2 other adult birds. The next night i caught him by wireing one of the dead baby chicks to the pan of a small have a heart trap. Its almost a sure thing your ermine will return.
Here is my weasel the next morning.
View attachment 1633577

I’m located in Western Canada. A rural area of British Columbia called the Okanagan. We do not have weasels or minks.

Cayotes and raccoon are our main predators. There are owls and birds or prey....I don’t think I are ever had problems with them. There are bobcats in other areas, but I’ve never heard of one around here. There are neiboughhood cats as well.

Thanks for your thoughts about raccoon traps!