Chicken predator

[SCE]

I live on a farm and have about 90 chickens. I've recently lost several chickens during the overnight hours to a predator that only takes the heads. It also looks like the hens have been drained of blood. Can anyone tell me what type of critter this might be? The bodies appear in tact. Needless to say, I am now locking up the hen houses at night but I really want to catch this thing. It's also gotten two of my 90-day old ducklings. Any help will be very much appreciated! Thank you!

 

[ChooksinChoppers]

This is from one of the "sticky" threads at the top of this page.

Parts Missing
A dead bird found inside a fenced enclosure or pen with its head missing is likely the victim of a raccoon that reached in, grabbed the bird, and pulled its head through the wire. Or a bird of prey could have frightened your birds into fluttering against the wire, and those that poked their heads through the wire lost their heads.

When you find a bird dead inside an enclosure with its head and crop missing, your visitor was a raccoon. If the head and back of the neck are missing, suspect a weasel or mink. If the head and neck are missing, and feathers are scattered near a fence post, the likely perp is a great horned owl.

Just as a raccoon will reach into a pen and pull off a chicken's head, so will it also pull off a leg, if that's what it gets hold of first. Dogs, too, may prowl underneath a raised pen, bite at protruding feet, and pull off legs.​

 

[chi-rn]

Agree... 'coon. They'll start with one bird for food & take entire flock for sport. Although there are a few other predators who do this, heads taken off & most birds left at site is common sign of 'coon.