Black racer near the chicken coop!

[gcbsmommy]

It's funny... Some people say kill it - all snakes will try to eat your chickens, chicks, and/or eggs. Some say don't kill them - they won't eat your chickens,etc. but will take care of rodents... So hard to know! This is our first "flock" - 27 in the brooder... and the coop has yet to be used - we just have the goats in the stall "next door"... So we don't have our "sea legs" (or "chicken legs") in this poultry world yet. I am not sure if we can make the coop impenetrable... but I guess we need to keep tryping! We've already closed up the holes we saw with cement and chicken wire...but that space between the two stalls... that will be hard to do. Between this and the snake and deciding what to do about my poor scissor-beaked chick - cull or keep - I am almost paralyzed with indecision! But thanks for all the input and I certainly am open to more!

 

[Back2MyRoots]

Fix the gap he can get into the coop. Racers eat the "bad" snakes don't they.
And where are you in FL that you are seeing snakes already? I was hoping we had much longer before I have to worry about what is slithering around our yard.

King snakes eat poisonous snakes, but black racers don't. Two different but similar species of snake.

I am a huge fan of reptiles, so I never advocate killing a "harmless" snake. With that being said, a three foot snake could easily do harm to your chicklets. And don't get me started on egg-eating snakes that rob the nest day in and day out! It would take a very large snake to kill a full grown chicken, but chicks are easy pickings and so are eggs. Having him around does ensure that you don't have rats feeding around your birds, leaving poisonous droppings. It's kind of a "darned if you don't/darned if you do" scenario. I would probably re-home him simply because I have dealt with an egg-eater I was trying to leave alone. Good luck with your decision!

 

[Baymule]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...-out-there-that-hate-king-snakes-black-snakes

 

[effie]

not real sure what your gap is like but I have used expandable spray foam for cracks and holes --worked great and the chickens didn't bother it.

 

[Campine]

I've frequently got black snakes in my coop, they eat mice, but never harm the chickens. They probably eat eggs sometimes, but no biggie. Just look in the nests before you stick your hand in.

 

[Mtn Laurel]

You can cram deer netting in that small crack and it will keep out the snakes but may kill any that get entangled in the stuff. Here's a BYC link re: snakes and deer netting.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/346915/deer-netting-works-great-for-snakes

 

[gcbsmommy]

Thanks for all the good feedback, folks! I really appreciate it! So far, we haven't had any problems. The space between the two stalls is still there. We haven't had any problems yet, but my husband and I will be revisiting this in the weeks ahead. I know if we wait, any mishap will be our fault. Again, thanks so much for all your help and kindness!

 

[Dilligaf1068]

I'm in central Florida, I have seen two probably close to 5, 6 foot black racers in my yard now in the past week! I know its about mating season for the snakes... should I worry about my hens well being? Two hens, no rooster, getting an egg a day from my red, the lil hens not laying yet. any suggestions towards the snake harming my birds would be greatly appreciated!