chicken pulled through fence

[louloubean]

After three years of no predators, they finally found us.

I shot a coyote one night he had already killed one young rooster. bugger.
mind you, this was at 2am, and i was wearing a headlamp and my fancy pink nightgown O_O
he had worked at a loose section of fence for a few nights i realized afterwards, and i tightened up ALL the fences.

and NOW something has pulled two other roosters THROUGH the fence. one time it was a wing, this time it was a breast.
in both cases, i am culling the birds, and eating what isn't 'damaged.'

any idea on what kind of critter this is? i figure either a raccoon or a possum. what do you think?

 

[suki'smom]

mind you, this was at 2am, and i was wearing a headlamp and my fancy pink nightgown O_O

Sounds like a coon.​

 

[chicmom]

A raccoon will grab them through the fence and literally pull them apart.....Soooo sad. Just terrible news, and so sorry for your loss.

Sharon

 

[mick&cori]

I also think it was a raccoon. I lost 3 chickens to a raccoon(s) about a month ago (and 1/2 of my sweet corn from my garden). A live trap and some lead poisoning took care of it.

So sorry for your loss. Its hard when you lose something that you put so much time, energy, and money into raising and caring for it.

 

[coz74]

We have had owls work in pairs and cause the same sort of damage before. A DNR agent also told me that they loose a lot of pheasants in rearing pens to owls that rip of heads and limbs.

 

[louloubean]

thanks everyone! i am thinking it's raccoons too.
no, not owls, since they are in a closed pen at night, whatever this is, grabs them THROUGH the chicken wire fence and tries to pull them through, not killing them, but maiming them. i cull the poor birds in the morning.

yes, i will be trying to trap and lead poison whatever critter this is, since these birds are supposed to be MY food.

 

[mamabigbird]

I've been there. So sad! I know mine was a raccoon because we staked out the coop/run at dusk and caught her trying to get in after three young chicks had been torn through the wire in the same way as your roos.
She died of lead poisoning too.
We left her carcass beside the pen for a day as a warning to any others that may come looking for her.
We have had no returning visits so far.

 

[sourland]

An owl will get birds flying or running blindly in the dark and then when they are near the fence will strike with their talons. They then pull heads, legs, whatever through the wire and feed upon them. I lost many pheasants to GHO in this manner. The more likely predator is a racccoon. A box trap should soon tell the tale.

 

[Amethyste]

My guess is coon.

Every time we had a loss to due predation so far, it has been one that was grabbed thru the wire and yanked right thru. It stopped after we got the hardware cloth installed on the fence on the run. But yes coons love to pull them thru and do the deed that way...we never saw much blood and almost all were missing wings/head/legs where the coons grabbed them by.

 

[mrpekinduck]

Oh I'mm so sorry! To me it sounds like a coon just cover the bottom foot and half of your fence with half inch hadwaare cloth then they cant reach through.