Chickens killing birds?!

[Cara]

Last week I thought I was seeing things when my chickens hunted down a hummingbird, killed it and ate it. Today they got a sparrow. Is this normal?!

 

[Krazy]

Are you sure? I don't think they will eat other birds. Maybe something else is killing it.

MAYBE THERE ARE HUNGRY!

 

[nuchickmama]

One of my 4 month old pullets got a hold of a small bird that was eating some of their scattered feed and killed it and then ran away like a keep away game. I ran after her and took it from her with great difficulty. So, yes, they do kill other birds. My husband keeps saying how many video moments he has missed.

 

[Cara]

I couldn't be more sure, I watched them do it. They shook it like a terrier will with a rat, and I took the sparrow off them to see what it was. They did the keep away thing too, like with a worm, and shredded the hummingbird between them.

They have plenty of food! Free choice, plus a coop that's probably 150 sq ft.

 

[nuchickmama]

Same here. More than enough food, lots of space !! I saw her do it with my own eyes and it grossed me out! That's why I took it from her!

 

[Enchanted Sunrise Farms]

Wow, scary. i have seen my hen chase mourning doves that flew into our yard, but assumed she was just protecting her territory. i hope i never see her eat one!

 

[Poison Ivy]

wow that's different! I have a dove that gets in the run sometimes to get at the food but then can't find it's way back out. So far my birds never even look at and have never chased it. The dove is so use to me coming to the rescue that it sits still when I go to pick it up. Then it sits on my hand for awhile before it flies off. I hope my girls never kill it I would be heartbroken. It's been around my house for about 3 years now. It had a mate but I've not seen it for a couple months now.

 

[DrakeMaiden]

Just this week a mouse got in my duck's pen. The only reason I know is because it had the misfortune of encountering 4 of my drakes and it was very wet and very dead when I found it!

 

[Cara]

LOL my killer chickens have had a couple of mice too! I found them freshly dead in the coop, and assumed they had died, but I guess the chickens were to blame for that too. I thought they were going to choke on the hummingbird.

 

[Smitty's Farm]

WOW! I never knew that chickens would eat other birds. You would think that hummingbirds would fly so fast?????? I guess the only big thing that my chickens have tried for is a toad. That was gross. I had to try to hurry up and get it before my daughter say them with it, b/c she loves all the frogas and toads in the yard.