Arkansas folks speak up.........

[Ohmyheart]

We just had our first broody hatch! Six beautiful Olive Egger chicks.

I need help! We're looking to add turkeys ASAP. Does anyone in or near the Ft. Smith area have poults for sale? I'd love to not have them shipped!

Congratulations!

 

[DarthRooster]

Well after 7 months on the new farm, we've got a mystery predator. I free range my flock during the day and due to rain let them out at around 11am today. We left to go to Easter celebrations and came home at 6 to find 2 barred rock hens, mottled java rooster, and lavender guinea missing. We live in the country so I'm assuming foxes or coyotes. No dogs around for miles and no feathers or anything at all. The mottled java was a huge rooster. Part of me is thinking the chickens may have just wondered off, got scared and roosted somewhere. The guinea is a complete mystery. All 14 stay together but I did notice another one with a limp. Could have been makes fighting as well. Good thing I have 50+ chicks in the brooder and grow out pen.

 

[Sarkchick]

That is so sad. I'm very sorry. Hope it or they do not return for more dinners.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Guineas are known to roam a lot, who knows what happened there. Was that your only guinea? Maybe if it got scared it just left.

One big problem I’ve had is that people like to drop dogs off in the country. My biggest losses have come from dogs abandoned out here. Don’t be sure it isn’t a dog. If it is don’t be surprised if it comes back today.

On one of those attacks I was volunteering at Walton Art Center at a midday event. When I came home I was missing 8 chickens. I found one body and two piles of feathers. The other five were just gone. I shot both dogs the next day when they came back.

The other time I was visiting my grandkids when the person taking care of the chickens found 5 dead. She left them locked in the main run until I got back, I never saw that dog, but it was a few days before I got back.

If you are in Washington County you can drop a dog off at the county animal shelter for free, just show you are a county resident. I’ve done that with dogs abandoned out here when I could get them before they started killing chickens or other farm animals. I don’t know how other counties do it. I don’t think Washington County has changed that policy. City of Fayetteville is free to drop off too for city residents, or at least was before the county built their own shelter.

With no evidence left, it’s something fairly big. I’d suspect a coyote if not a dog. A fox is possible, they don’t always leave a pile of feathers, especially if she has babies to feed. Humans also usually don’t leave any signs or evidence. I can’t think of anything else big enough and quick enough to take that many without leaving evidence.

Good luck, I know it’s a frustrating experience.

 

[DarthRooster]

Well the rooster showed back up. I have too many guinea roosters so after talking with some other folks, this could have been an overcrowding issue and he may have just left. I'm leaning to fox or coyote because the chickens go into the woods a lot and plenty of room to ambush them. I checked all the main deer trails the chickens stay on, no signs. Then yesterday had a guinea get killed playing on the road but I don't see someone stopping after hitting one and throwing it off into the woods. I'm hoping the barred rock hens decided to go broody together but that's a long shot. Lol

 

[ducksanddoxies]

Bout midnight Monday morning, my baby chicks start going crazy. (Very unusual). Yankee (our dog) darts off the bed to the living room, I'm close behind half asleep, not turning on lights. Only the hallway light is on. I look in on the chicks and they are crazy and something in my sleepy head doesn't look right. I reach in and grab the chick that looks weird and it feels weird. Not like a chick. I set it back down and what I actually picked up was a SNAKE coiled around the chick in my HOUSE!!!!! It uncoils and slithers under a shelf in the kitchen and I'm yelling at Jonathan to get up there is a snake in the house. He gets up and gets the BB gun and a crowbar. He shoots it and hits it a few times and it slithers into the living room. It's ticked and striking now. He gets a 2x4 and pins its tail and then he grabs its tail and pulls it out while I smashed its head. It was a black chicken snake about 4+ ft long. I have no idea how it got in my house. Didn't sleep much after that.

I usually like to let snakes live if they aren't venomous but getting woken in the middle of the night and it being in my house, well that all went out the window.

 

[Ohmyheart]

Bout midnight Monday morning, my baby chicks start going crazy. (Very unusual). Yankee (our dog) darts off the bed to the living room, I'm close behind half asleep, not turning on lights. Only the hallway light is on. I look in on the chicks and they are crazy and something in my sleepy head doesn't look right. I reach in and grab the chick that looks weird and it feels weird. Not like a chick. I set it back down and what I actually picked up was a SNAKE coiled around the chick in my HOUSE!!!!! It uncoils and slithers under a shelf in the kitchen and I'm yelling at Jonathan to get up there is a snake in the house. He gets up and gets the BB gun and a crowbar. He shoots it and hits it a few times and it slithers into the living room. It's ticked and striking now. He gets a 2x4 and pins its tail and then he grabs its tail and pulls it out while I smashed its head. It was a black chicken snake about 4+ ft long. I have no idea how it got in my house. Didn't sleep much after that.

I usually like to let snakes live if they aren't venomous but getting woken in the middle of the night and it being in my house, well that all went out the window.

I would have been terrified.

I'm still not used to venomous snakes and can't tell one snake from another. One of my biggest fears -snake in the house.

 

[Ridgerunner]

That’s kind of funny now but I totally understand it was not at all amusing at the time. I’ve grabbed a snake before when I did not now it was a snake, that does something to your heart when you realize it. At least the two of you were able to handle it.

It doesn’t take much of an opening for a snake to get in, check in the kitchen and bathrooms around plumbing. Your drier vent line may have let one in. Or maybe someone just eft a door or window open for a few minutes. Or they might climb up your house and into the attic if they can find an opening.

For something like that to happen in the middle of the night, you done good!

 

[ducksanddoxies]

On a happier note, here are my sweet lavender orps asleep on my back.

 

[Sarkchick]

Bout midnight Monday morning, my baby chicks start going crazy. (Very unusual). Yankee (our dog) darts off the bed to the living room, I'm close behind half asleep, not turning on lights. Only the hallway light is on. I look in on the chicks and they are crazy and something in my sleepy head doesn't look right. I reach in and grab the chick that looks weird and it feels weird. Not like a chick. I set it back down and what I actually picked up was a SNAKE coiled around the chick in my HOUSE!!!!! It uncoils and slithers under a shelf in the kitchen and I'm yelling at Jonathan to get up there is a snake in the house. He gets up and gets the BB gun and a crowbar. He shoots it and hits it a few times and it slithers into the living room. It's ticked and striking now. He gets a 2x4 and pins its tail and then he grabs its tail and pulls it out while I smashed its head. It was a black chicken snake about 4+ ft long. I have no idea how it got in my house. Didn't sleep much after that.

I usually like to let snakes live if they aren't venomous but getting woken in the middle of the night and it being in my house, well that all went out the window.

Wow, brave girl. Did the chick survive? Hope you get some sleep tonight

Linda