Weasel Attack Caught on Video (Mildly Graphic) - And How I'm Trying to Prevent Another Attack

[Penpal]

Weasels don't go on blood sprees. Chicks can't get through chicken wire, which is why we use it for chicks. Weasels can get through chicken wire. They will go in, kill a chick, then bring it outside. However the chick won't fit through the wire. So they kill another chick. They never figure out the problem, so they keep killing chicks. They will even hide them in the enclosure to return to them later.

Hardware cloth.

Also, please put your location in your avatar.

 

[Preston Family Farm]

Weasels don't go on blood sprees. Chicks can't get through chicken wire, which is why we use it for chicks. Weasels can get through chicken wire. They will go in, kill a chick, then bring it outside. However the chick won't fit through the wire. So they kill another chick. They never figure out the problem, so they keep killing chicks. They will even hide them in the enclosure to return to them later.

Hardware cloth.

Also, please put your location in your avatar.

Not sure if you were replying to me or not. My location is in my profile but I just signed up yesterday so I might have missed something.

I agree hardware cloth is the way to go and I've covered the entire run with 1/4". Hopefully I have all the weak spots covered now. Time will tell.

 

[Penpal]

I was replying to anyone who thinks weasels waste their time killing for sport. The hardware cloth was just to pound in the thing most of us don't use until there is an attack.

I lost so many birds in the past year to: raccoon, fox, opossum, hawk, great horned owl, shin hawk, weasels.

 

[McChooky]

Yes, it is. I guess the one positive is this little critter is helping me identify all the weak points in the system. I'm hopeful I have covered everything now. But I'm even going to go to the added extent of dumping some gravel on top of the apron now just to make it harder to even dig down to that. It will also show me any spots where it is trying to dig in because I don't have the apron buried everywhere currently, just on the one side in that photo I posted.

Our injured hen stood on her own for the first time yesterday. It was for a short time, but it does seem like she's slowly getting a little better. I am taking her to the vet this afternoon because I think she might need some antibiotics etc. I'll update this post for anyone interested in how she ends up doing.

I picked up some beef liver for the weasel traps so I'm going to try that today. It's bloodier and from what I've read that is very tempting for a weasel. I'm also going to do a slight modification on my trap boxes and put some vents in the back of them where the bait is so they can hopefully smell it better.

You can save money by purchasing a bottle of 500 mg amoxicillin (capsules) at Tractor supply No prescription is needed.

 

[McChooky]

I was replying to anyone who thinks weasels waste their time killing for sport. The hardware cloth was just to pound in the thing most of us don't use until there is an attack.

I lost so many birds in the past year to: raccoon, fox, opossum, hawk, great horned owl, shin hawk, weasels.

Instinctively predators will kill more than one if a birds trapped and weasels are no exception.Their easiest entry are rat tunnels(they eat rats too)

 

[McChooky]

Not sure if you were replying to me or not. My location is in my profile but I just signed up yesterday so I might have missed something.
t would
I agree hardware cloth is the way to go and I've covered the entire run with 1/4". Hopefully I have all the weak spots covered now. Time will tell.

I commend you for all the upgrades you've done in an effort to keep out predators however I'd consider covering the 1/4" hardware cloth with chain link or woven wire later as a precaution. Heavier predators like to jump against the sides and will try to climb it.This can tear holes in 1/4" if they're very heavy. Adding a layer of wire over top of it will help keep the hardware attached and prevent tears.

 

[Preston Family Farm]

I commend you for all the upgrades you've done in an effort to keep out predators however I'd consider covering the 1/4" hardware cloth with chain link or woven wire later as a precaution. Heavier predators like to jump against the sides and will try to climb it.This can tear holes in 1/4" if they're very heavy. Adding a layer of wire over top of it will help keep the hardware attached and prevent tears.

That’s a good tip. I do have some more heavier wire I could use. Thankfully we haven’t had anything larger coming around during the day. But we’ve seen fox and coyotes at night. But the chickens are all inside the coop at night which is on a concrete foundation and built like a house.

 

[McChooky]

That’s a good tip. I do have some more heavier wire I could use. Thankfully we haven’t had anything larger coming around during the day. But we’ve seen fox and coyotes at night. But the chickens are all inside the coop at night which is on a concrete foundation and built like a house.

Yes I only mentioned this because your profile shows you living in Alberta Canada and they're supposed to have wolves and mountain lions both in some places.They can wreck havoc on a coop if its not built stout.It might be easier to add a couple strands of electric wire later. I pieced one together this summer but redid it after my cousin shorted it out playing horse shoes.I hadn't turned it back on yet when a bob cat got after my chickens .She took flight an escaped so I'm very proud of her!

 

[Preston Family Farm]

Yes I only mentioned this because your profile shows you living in Alberta Canada and they're supposed to have wolves and mountain lions both in some places.They can wreck havoc on a coop if its not built stout.It might be easier to add a couple strands of electric wire later. I pieced one together this summer but redid it after my cousin shorted it out playing horse shoes.I hadn't turned it back on yet when a bob cat got after my chickens .She took flight an escaped so I'm very proud of her!

Glad your hen survived. And yes, not far from here there have been reports of cougars, bears, and the other day someone found some wolf tracks in the snow. The spot where we are isn't really known for either of those three but it's always possible. Our run is actually setup with the egg layers on the inside and then there is another long run that runs all the way around those inner two. I have some heavier gauge wire on the outside run but haven't fenced it all the way to the top yet. I also need to add hardware cloth to the outside run to keep weasels out of that part. We currently don't have any chickens in that run but the plan is this will be for the meat chickens next year. I'll make sure that is beefed up before any chickens are introduced next year. But for now, it essentially creates a "moat" around where the egg layers are.

Injured hen update; took our girl to the vet yesterday afternoon. They gave us some liquid Meloxadin to give her once a day. I gave her the first dose yesterday when we got home and within a couple of hours she was much more alert, able to drink and eat on her own without us assisting her at all, and she was moving her head and neck around better. She still has balance issues and can't walk but she can stand and support her body weight without issue. We will see if she can get to a point of walking again over the next few days.

 

[littlecoopnextdoor]

Glad your hen survived. And yes, not far from here there have been reports of cougars, bears, and the other day someone found some wolf tracks in the snow. The spot where we are isn't really known for either of those three but it's always possible. Our run is actually setup with the egg layers on the inside and then there is another long run that runs all the way around those inner two. I have some heavier gauge wire on the outside run but haven't fenced it all the way to the top yet. I also need to add hardware cloth to the outside run to keep weasels out of that part. We currently don't have any chickens in that run but the plan is this will be for the meat chickens next year. I'll make sure that is beefed up before any chickens are introduced next year. But for now, it essentially creates a "moat" around where the egg layers are.

Injured hen update; took our girl to the vet yesterday afternoon. They gave us some liquid Meloxadin to give her once a day. I gave her the first dose yesterday when we got home and within a couple of hours she was much more alert, able to drink and eat on her own without us assisting her at all, and she was moving her head and neck around better. She still has balance issues and can't walk but she can stand and support her body weight without issue. We will see if she can get to a point of walking again over the next few days.

thank you for giving her such good care. I hope she recovers fully and can join her friend again. what a scary ordeal! my heart was pounding watching that video.