chicken taken by dog...my photogenic avatar

[peeboo]

thanks all, i am glad i have a shotgun, but i have never seen a feral dog in my neighborhood. so i have no idea where to look for one. i have been patroling and i have the neighbors on patrol too. i am so so so sad. i loved her so much. but if i catch that dog, i'll have a fur skin rug to keep my hens warm with.

 

[amazondoc]

Quote:
I'm very sorry for your loss -- but what do you mean, there's nothing you can do? There's a LOT of things you can do -- including putting up a fence and/or a secure pen for your girls.

Good luck!

 

[peeboo]

I have a large lot, i dont have the money to fence even a part of it off at this time. my coop was built for sleep and not adequate size to live in unfortunately. i wish i had someone home for part of the day so someone could keep watch, but unfortunately that's not possible at this time since i'm at work 10 hours and home on weekends.

 

[amazondoc]

Will it be cheaper to build a pen, or cheaper to replace the birds that are going to be killed?

If you want to be "fancy" and/or easy, keep an eye on Craigslist. You can usually buy 10 x 10 x 6 dog kennels there for $100-$150, if you keep reading the listings for just a few days. I know this for a fact, because I've bought several of them myself over the last couple of months.

If you don't need fancy or easy, then you can buy 2 x 4s for just a few bucks and build your own. In fact, I'm about to buy a bunch of 2 x 6 x 8 cedar boards for just $4-$8 each (depending on whether I get A or B grade) at my local saw mill. Lots of people have posted on BYC over the years about how to build coops and pens cheaply by checking scrap yards and recycling.

Don't say there's nothing you "can" do. There are a lot of things you CAN do in order to protect your birds. Whether you *choose* to do them is another matter.

 

[peeboo]

Ok guys, need your opinions, it looked like dog tracks but the only evidence i found were fluffy butt feathers strewn in heaps about the ground in the coop and out around the house. can not find blood evidence, just ALOT of feathers, missing hen and dog tracks leading in and out of the coop. from what i can gather, the hen was chased and picked from the free ranging group because she was the biggest and slowest, she ran behind the house and into the run to get to the coop thinking it would be safe, dog got ahold of her in the coop and was dragging her alongside the house where the trail of feathers just dissapears. i know it didn't happen at night due to the fact that all the hens were tucked away in the coup, unharmed and unafraid, if it happened at night i would not assume they would be in the coop and uninjured. i searched all night w/ dogs, flashlights, and driving around neighborhood looking for loose dogs. NOTHING no blood no corpse, i thought that if it was a dog it usually leaves a mess. is that true?

 

[Nifty-Chicken]

Sorry for your loss! A big stray dog got into our yard a month ago and killed the first hen we ever had. I can't really blame the dog for doing what comes natural, but if I see him in our yard again he'll get a pellet to remind him not to come around here again.

 

[peeboo]

amazon,
i most certainly will build an indoor pen or somthing w/ adequate room for my girls. i just think i have to wait until my flock is downsized a bit due to the fact that i live in a very residential area w/ about 3/4 acre lot and it's a giant hill, so the level areas are hard to come by. not to mention i have to save a bit. i know there are some affordable options and i guess it's time to look into them, they were just so happy free ranging and all that good stuff. happiest girls. they would go from house to house begging food from neighbors, spend their morning chasing feral cats away from the cat food left out by strangers. it's just sad to have to put them up.

 

[peeboo]

true i dont blame the dog, even though it makes me so mad, i know it's the people who are SUPPOSED to be responsible for the animal. but there's so much ignorance around here, they won't understand that point.

 

[swampwander]

Quote:
And, this is different from the free ranging dog in what way?? My point is, you are just as responsible as the owner of the dog. And, if your birds free-range through the neighborhood and a neighbor takes and eats one, they would not be at fault. We faced this with some chickens a few years ago at DH's old house. The neighbors had a big BBQ, a fresh RIR BBQ. His birds free ranged onto the neighbor's property.

Look for cull lumber piles at the Home Depots and Lowes in your area. We were able to get about $900 in lumber for $200. We got enough 8 and 10 foot 4x4 to fence 220 linear feet plus 2x4 and fence pickets. Plus more for the new coop. Check out your local fencing people to see if they have rolls of used wire or chain link fence they will either give you or sell for cheap. Post on Craig'slist and Freecycle of your need, plus keep your eyes on these lists.

 

[peeboo]

I most certainly understand what you are saying, i have always expected somthing to happen eventually, it's just sad. they are happier free ranging and all i can do at this point is try to keep an eye on them as much as i can. start building a larger coop and some place for them to be safe, contained and have adequate room i suppose and i may even bring 1 or two into the house as pets in a spare room made up to be the chicken room...oooh good idea.