3 missing hens

[Madie'sOddFlock]

We noticed a bit of feather lying around that seemed a little out of the norm. So we carefully counted as we put birds to bed(early, might I add, but still after dark). We discovered that we had the correct number of birds in all coops except one where we found three hens missing. We found 2 under a backhoe and a tractor, about 5 feet from each other... We still can't find the last one. Neither of the dead ones is bloody, there appear to be no puncture wounds, but there's a ton of feathers all around them. We also had a rooster show up like this about a week ago, but he was old so we just assumed that his feathers had broken away in the wind or were plucked out by other chickens, and he had died of old age... I'm not so sure anymore. Any ideas on what could be getting them?
Thanks for any and all help!
Madie

 

[Madie'sOddFlock]

I would say dog, fox or coyote.. Coyote and fox usually take away their prey to eat in peace and leave a ton of feathers. Dogs play and kill only for sport unless you have packs of dogs that literally run wild.

We did just have a fox(a rather skinny one at that) that waltz through our yard the other morning, thankfully before we opened anyone up(I was literally walking out the door to go open them up and chased it off the property, then waited another hour to let them out to make sure the coast was clear). I'm thinking this is the most likely thing. I just wanted to ask around since the only predators we've dealt with were a weasel last spring and an owl that got one of our guineas.

 

[HomesteaderWife]

I have had a dog attack caught in action where my birds were not bloody or punctured- the dog essentially chased then "played" with them until they passed.

 

[floppysquirrel04]

look them over and see if you can find and scratches or bite marks. Can you setup a camera? It might be some kind of cat, they usually take a bite to the neck to kill prey and leave little evidence. Sometimes they’ll leave scratches and feathers.

 

[hayley3]

Sounds like a dog or a fox to me. Were any of them wet or their feathers matted? The missing one makes me think fox also. A fox might kill a few and then take one and plan to come back later for the rest.

 

[Madie'sOddFlock]

Sounds like a dog or a fox to me. Were any of them wet or their feathers matted? The missing one makes me think fox also. A fox might kill a few and then take one and plan to come back later for the rest.

They didn't appear wet or matted, but it's also winter in Maine, and we're not sure how long they were there.

 

[hayley3]

Maybe so. Friends of mine had a few bobcats come through and destroy their flock of 70+ in about a month. They would kill a few and leave them hidden all over, but only eat one somewhere else.

I feel fortunate not to have to deal with bobcats or bears!

 

[hayley3]

Maybe so. Friends of mine had a few bobcats come through and destroy their flock of 70+ in about a month. They would kill a few and leave them hidden all over, but only eat one somewhere else.

I feel fortunate not to have to deal with bobcats or bears!

 

[hayley3]

LOL do I really have 4 duplicate posts or is my screen wonky?

 

[Chelsa'sChicks]

I would say dog, fox or coyote.. Coyote and fox usually take away their prey to eat in peace and leave a ton of feathers. Dogs play and kill only for sport unless you have packs of dogs that literally run wild.