5 year record broken!!!!

[twentynine]

5 years, 5 whole years without loss to a predator, the record came to an end lastnight.

During the night I lost a barred rock hen to an unknown assailant. Found her dead in the middle of the run. Head, neck, crop, gizzard eaten, nothing else touched. With the exception of 2 small wounds on the lower legs.

I keep an electric fence going around my runs 100% of the time. Check it every evening after I gather eggs and pass out feed. Yesterday and lastnight were no exception. Wire was hot when I tested it.
What is suprising is the other hens and rooster in that run are not upset or winded this morning. I've had a few attacks in the past, and I have always noticed the roosters not crowing, nobody comes out the coop, or if they come out the coop the slightest noise sends them scattering. Not happening this morning, the remaining chickens are completely calm as if nothing happened.

ID of the predator? Who knows? Coon, maybe, but only 1 hen attacked, lower intestines entact- I leaning to a no on a coon.
Possum?
Coyote?
Fox?

 

[farnorth]

Weasel?

 

[Twinkkitten]

Hawk?

 

[Twinkkitten]

And sorry for your loss.

 

[Ridgerunner]

If it was at night, my guess would be be an owl, both from what was eaten and that they fly right over the wire. I assume you don't lock them in a coop?

 

[twentynine]

No I do not lock them in the coop. The chicken door stays open.
Weasel- not native to my area. But we do have mink. But it have had several predations by mink, they kill everything, bite only the neck, and I have never had one actually eat meat. They drink the blood.
The wire has no holes, absolutely no holes, no dig marks, no scratches, scrapes, or tracks. Whatever got in got in over the wire, prabably didn't climb the wire. Wire is 6' high, 12" into the ground. Have a hot wire 3" - "6 and around the top circumference. Every time I've seen evidence of a predator try, I find tracks circling the run right to the point where the wet nose touches one of the charged wires. The charger I have has killed mink, snakes, rats and small birds. So I don't think it's 4- legged, I think it's winged. Spent the day stringing wire across the top of my runs. I am running another charged wire about 3" higher than the top wire. If he lands on the top he will ground on the fence and top wire, he is going to get a zap out of the charged wire.
Also setting a radio to play all night plus a moving scar crow in the runs.

 

[happybooker1]

Now I'm confused. We have Great Horned Owls in the woods behind my house. A year or two ago I even got pictures of one resting 60' up in a pine tree right before dark. But.... my hens are always in the coop before dusk even. Do owls fly BEFORE it gets dark? Right now it's about 7PM when my hens put themselves to bed. But it's still light enough outside I could mow the yard with no extra light. Real twilight comes about 8PM.

So..... this is possible? Well I guess *anything* is possible but it just seems contrary to what Nature intended.

 

[twentynine]

Now I'm confused. We have Great Horned Owls in the woods behind my house. A year or two ago I even got pictures of one resting 60' up in a pine tree right before dark. But.... my hens are always in the coop before dusk even. Do owls fly BEFORE it gets dark?  Right now it's about 7PM when my hens put themselves to bed. But it's still light enough outside I could mow the yard with no extra light. Real twilight comes about 8PM. 

So..... this is possible? Well I guess *anything* is possible but it just seems contrary to what Nature intended.

Wow!

Where do you live your post is timed 2 hours ago, and it's 5:30 pm here so you are 4 hours a head of me.

To my knowledge, yes, owls fly in daylight.

No tracks and whatever did the deed didn't hit the charged wires. Speculation says whatever it was flew in. Or walked straight up, didn't investigate, didn't sniff, just leaped over a 6' wire fence.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Many normal nocturnal predators will come out at dusk or dawn. They don't necessarily wait until full dark.

Also, I've had an owl go into a coop and take a chicken outside. If the pop door is open an owl can go in.

 

[TheEggCollecter]

Hawk or owl...