If it disappears with no trace no what so ever then I also think a human being may have taken the chicken. Why? because only a human can take it without leaving any trace.
Sorry for your loss, guess its time to dust your self up and move on. Now what you have to do is provide proper fencing for your chickens. Maybe even consider adding electric wires around the coup for that extra protection.
Nice girls. Free range is the way to go but with hawks and other predators it makes us scared to let our chickens roam free. If you believe its a hawk noise then I suggest you don't let them out free range.
6 weeks old I think they can go out during the day since they are old enough. Again at this age they can move to a coop. As you say your winter gets very cold, so incase the temps drop very low you can have some heater devices to heat up the room.
The best chicken coops or poultry houses have several characteristics in common:
1. The chicken coop should protect your backyard flock from hungry predators such as weasels, hawks and your neighbor’s Golden Retriever.
2. The coop should be constructed of economical building material...
One of the greatest investments I've made was building a large chicken coop.
Your chickens want lots of space to run around and stretch their wings. The more space you give your chickens, the happier and healthier they’ll be.
Generally, you should provide your backyard chickens with a...
Its really interesting when new born chicks sleep, if you don't know better you would think that they are dead.
Besides that congratulations on your new chicks, also make sure you give them nutritious feed as early as possible.
Sorry about your loss, it happens sometimes. From your explanation I would think its a hawk or some kind of bird, that's if you have hawks around your area.
Yes some hens do crow, but sometimes the noise is different from the one roosters make and can be continuous. They usually make this noise in the morning especially when she has chicks.
Interesting question Sabz, I think they will get electrocuted because I've never seen birds on a electric fence. But I'm not sure hey. I'd also like to know.
Fencing is very important for protecting your livestock such as chickens. If you want to put an electric fence what I do is first build a wall using blocks let's say I meter high, then we have a normal fence, then right on top we install the electric fence.
This helps in that children or your...