Weasels & free range chickens?

[Howard E]

We just saw a weasel run through the yard early this morning, with a mouse-size creature in it's mouth. The coop is fairly secure, but I think maybe I should avoid letting the chickens roam around today.

Last year we lost 7 hens to a mink, before we were able to trap it. The mink was coming up through a rat hole in the dirt floor. The dirt floor has since been lined with hardware cloth and we had no rat problems last winter.

The nearby compost and garden area is another story, - full of rodent holes. The weasel may have lived here for years and we just didn't know, but seeing it out there makes me nervous.

Your experience is why in days past, when chickens were on most farms and on a lot of urban back lots, the A#1 floor of choice was always cement. It offered a ton of benefits over dirt, and stopping rats and a whole host of digging predators was at the top of the list. It allows so much greater security. To anyone contemplating more or less permanent chickens on a large enough scale to warrant it, a cement floor should be considered. And doubly so if you live in an area or neighborhood infested with rats.

BTW, weasels, minks, etc. are not the only predators attracted by these vermin. Skunks, fox, coyotes, snakes, hawks and owls also prey heavily on them. All of them also like the taste of chicken, which is often a big, easy meal for a hungry predator.

 

[Howard E]

We have had these little guys in the past, and last year their bigger cousin, the mink. My experience with the little weasels is they will bite a chicken in the neck or under the wing, and lap up the blood as they bleed out. Those chickens just little teeth marks that were hard to spot. The mink ate the backs of my chickens' heads.

ETA - my weasel and mink kills were chickens that were confined. I think when they're free ranging, a mink or weasel would have a hard time catching and killing a chicken.

On the marks found under the wing, most likely those are from their toes and claws. They dig in and latch on while they get busy killing the animal with bites to the back of the neck, where they severe the spine. By digging in and latching on, they can stay with the roughest, toughest "bucking bronc".....read wildly flailing victim...... until they can kill it.

 

[Folly's place]

My coop is on an old farm building foundation, with an old broken concrete floor. Finally this winter, critters managed to colonize it (mice!) and it's going to be redone as soon as possible this spring. Meanwhile, secured rodent poison, and hardware cloth over the worst section, with stall mats over that. Before the weasels find it!
Mary

 

[kynewbchickie]

We are renovating an existing 8x12 coop on a property with a creek running long and close enough to count for weasel threat prevention. We will be using 1/2" 16ga hardware cloth to line the interior window, vent, subfloor/wall and roof/wall junctions before installing roosts, nest boxes, birds. Already collecting pallets and wire to fence in their yard. Am thinking once we get the electric fence up for the small pasture and ridge, we could possibly tie in the wire on the poultry fence for added daytime protection. We have a LGD mix but also looking into a bull terrier.

 

[Folly's place]

Many terriers (terrors) are enthusiastic killers of varmits, but also anything that moves in their territory. Also, difficult to train to leave selected critters (chickens) alone. They are very independent and self-motivated, not ideal obedience dogs, who hunt for themselves rather than with a human, like a retriever or pointer type.
In short, a bull terrier may be a poor livestock guardian, at least for small animals.
Mary

 

[kynewbchickie]

We located a homesteading family in eastern KY that raises and trains their bull terriers to hunt rat, weasel, mink, ermine, mole, etc - their flocks are secured with fencing and the only casualties of birds are crows in the gardens. Some area farmers, landlords, and contractors have hired their hunting pack of 5 to come in and “rat” where infestations are found.
Our fence will be permanent, with electrified wire (eventually) to deter fox, coyote, dogs, etc from going into the chicken area. Our biggest concern for predators is weasel, by and large.

 

[Folly's place]

That's what Rat Terriers, Jack Russells, and some other smaller terriers were bred to do.
Mary

 

[kynewbchickie]

So were bull terriers. Nothing wrong with having terriers of any kind on a farm.