Tell How Predators Got Your Chickens. Save Somebody Else From The Bad Experience

[bruceha2000]

My daughter tells me I have the worst predators living in my house - two miniature dachshunds. Have you had any problems with your dachshunds and the chickens? Of course my dream is that everybody lives together peacefully, but I know I have to be realistic and aware they have been bred to be little hunters.

I bet she is right. Dachshunds were bred to chase rabbits through thick brush/thicket. I really doubt you can take the hunter genetics out of the dog. Just like chicks know what to do immediately after they hatch with no help. You might be able to train them to ignore the chickens when the chickens are full grown but I suspect a little chick dashing off when spooked (which my 4 week olds seem to do for no reason at all!) would trigger a chase without so much as a microsecond of thought and those little mini dachshund legs are FAST. Instinct doesn't require thought and isn't controlled by it, at least not at microsecond number 1.

 

[Achickenwrangler#1]

So, the something after my chickens struck again this afternoon, the kids were visiting and I wasn't home, my dil says the chickens flew all the way down the hill and went to the coop. Head count tonight, but since the oldest hens are gone...maybe no body was taken...plus Sam the largest dog was loose...she was too scared to go outside (good) I hope it gets hungrier.

 

[Achickenwrangler#1]

Quote:div>

One of the smartest things I've read ..I never thought my five lb chihauhau would bring down a field rat, what a little hunter. .(meanest most fearless dog I ever had) she'd prob enjoy killing chicks, if she was still around.

 

[twindaddy43]

Had a hen go broody she was sitting on her nest which is pretty low to the ground. I didn't lock them up and I paid the price. She was killed by what I am suspecting was a skunk but he will not make it much longer as I plan to HAVE MY REVENGE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[laura877]

One of the smartest things I've read ..I never thought my five lb chihauhau would bring down a field rat, what a little hunter. .(meanest most fearless dog I ever had) she'd prob enjoy killing chicks, if she was still around.

My yorkie got her first mouse. Crunch, crunch and it was over pretty fast. Someone was just telling me of a pair of yorkie their dad had that eould jump on the back of full grown rats and grab underneath to kill them.

 

[laura877]

Yesterday I was looking at the tail of one of my mutt 12 wk rooster. I was trying to figure out who the momma was. This morning, I'm sitll sleeping and I hear my hubby come into the room, remove the window screen. I ask what he is doing and he siad he thought he saw one of the cats and realized it was a fox. In 41 yrs of living here, I have never seen a fox. The fox is gone before he can shoot. He leaves for work, I go down to the barn to do my chores and here is my poor mutt roo with no tail. Him and a bunch of other mutt roos are not allowed in the coop with "Old Man" and his hens so they roost on a trailer at night in the indoor arena. The fox must have got a hold of him just before daylight and was still after a meal. Not sure. But you can bet that I am learning how to trap fox and putting up more hardware cloth today for the chicks in a stall.

 

[Ragingsun]

I bet your friend feels really awful as well. Hard way to learn a 'lesson'.

She was in tears because my Girl was sobbing. Then her mother started to cry, then her daughter started to cry because they just had to put down their two dogs. It became a cry fest! Good thing I am a crisis counselor LOL. So I went into work mode and proceeded to counsel the whole house. It was tragic.

 

[Achickenwrangler#1]

I still have one roos tail feathers in a jar, he lost them this spring to a wolf hybred, which is how I noticed a hen missing when he came limping in at dusk...lost one hen that day, well we shot at the wolf and he dropped the hen, I found his tail when we went tracking and decided to pick it all up...we dressed the hen. Roo is finally grown his tail back and walking OK now. He's unusual - calico they call it.

 

[koko]

A couple of weeks ago one of my barred Plymouth Rock roosters got killed by a fox. The day after when I noticed him missing I quickly looked at my surveillance camera and saw that the fox dug under the coop and was scared out by the rooster picking at the fox's neck and legs. when the fox picked up one of my 14 hens, the roster (Jimmy) went crazy. He put up his wings and ran all around the fox and picked at him and everything. (P.s- The fox took the hen by it legs and dragged it out of the coop, then the roster followed the fox, the other hens were too scared to leave the coop). the next day I saw a couple of feathers, and beside it was Jimmy who had blood all over the higher portion of his body. Both his breasts were eaten the blood appeared to have come from inside the throat of Jimmy.


I was going to upload a pic, but it was just too sad and nasty. RIP JIMMY YOU WILL ALWAYS be remembered! :'(

 

[Adenium]

Oh my goodness. We plan to keep a game cam trained on the coop, and I imagine it's heartening to see your roo doing his best to protect his hens, but I feel for you watching that footage. I can't imagine finding my poor chicken and then seeing his final moments - don't know if it would be better or worse. Thanks for sharing your story.