Coyote pack kills my chickens. HELP

[DuckLoverZach]

So this morning i came out to tend to my flocks. All seemed normal as i was feeding my flock of laying chickens and ducks. But i made a huge mistake and forgot to put away the meat birds. As i approached their coop i saw feathers everywhere and 6 dead carcasses torn to bits and eaten. i tried to stay calm and tell myself it was only 6 but after doing a headcount of the remaining i only counted 23. and i had 43. i feel absolutely terrible. just yesterday a hawk killed one of my ducks. this is the first predator problem weve ever had and i've been raising poultry for over a year. i am absolutely shocked at how many are just gone, carried away by the coyotes. their coop is 10ft away from a corn field so is it possible that some are lost? also, i went back out at around noon and there was a coyote finishing off the remains of the dead chickens.

 

[Newmamabear]

Awww what a day you've had! I'm so sorry to hear about your birds. You might have some lost in the field but not sure they'd still be alive. Count on them coming back tonight for seconds and make sure everyone's tucked in. ( prolly goes without saying) everyone makes mistakes. How are you with a .22?

 

[azygous]

Gosh, I sure know how you feel! I've lost chickens to predators, and it's very traumatic. Yes, there's a very good chance some survived the attack and are hiding out. You will need to search thoroughly for them. This has always been my experience. Just this week I had a hawk attack my chickens while they were out, and I was certain I had lost my ten-week old chick. But then I searched where I had last seen her, and there she was, wedged in between two straw bales! This time I was lucky and lost none.

It took a year for the coyotes to discover the presence of your chickens and ducks. But now that they know where they are, it's like you have a big sign flashing overhead, "Meat Market". They will return again and again until you do something to teach them it's not in their best interest.

You will need to confine your survivors for a while. Meanwhile, I suggest hot wire around your pens. Peanut butter at intervals on the hot wire will invite the coyotes to take a sniff and a taste, and instant message! The one who gets its tongue zapped will decide it's not worth the pain to try to get at your flocks. It will communicate this to the pack, hopefully, but it will be available for others to get the same experience.

Of course you can sit out there all night with a gun, hoping to pick them off, but it's going to consume way more time than you have. Rig the hot wire around the pen and coops, up close, not far out, and you'll be letting it do your work for you. It's not expensive not hard to rig. It's the only sure-fire way to protect your birds.

 

[DuckLoverZach]

Awww what a day you've had! I'm so sorry to hear about your birds. You might have some lost in the field but not sure they'd still be alive. Count on them coming back tonight for seconds and make sure everyone's tucked in. ( prolly goes without saying) everyone makes mistakes. How are you with a .22?

Quote:
Originally Posted by DuckLoverZach View Post

Thankyou. I have 24 that made it, so the coyotes got 19 the other night. no sign of them today though. I hunt, so it's not a hard task shooting a gun for me. Hopefully i can manage to find some time to stay up and try to pick some of them off.

 

[DuckLoverZach]

Thankyou. I have 24 that made it, so the coyotes got 19 the other night. no sign of them today though. I hunt, so it's not a hard task shooting a gun for me. Hopefully i can manage to find some time to stay up and try to pick some of them off.

 

[DuckLoverZach]

Thankyou. I have 24 that made it, so the coyotes got 19 the other night. no sign of them today though. I hunt, so it's not a hard task shooting a gun for me. Hopefully i can manage to find some time to stay up and try to pick some of them off.

Gosh, I sure know how you feel! I've lost chickens to predators, and it's very traumatic. Yes, there's a very good chance some survived the attack and are hiding out. You will need to search thoroughly for them. This has always been my experience. Just  this week I had a hawk attack my chickens while they were out, and I was certain I had lost my ten-week old chick. But then I searched where I had last seen her, and there she was, wedged in between two straw bales! This time I was lucky and lost none.

It took a year for the coyotes to discover the presence of your chickens and ducks. But now that they know where they are, it's like you have a big sign flashing overhead, "Meat Market". They will return again and again until you do something to teach them it's not in their best interest.

You will need to confine your survivors for a while. Meanwhile, I suggest hot wire around your pens. Peanut butter at intervals on the hot wire will invite the coyotes to take a sniff and a taste, and instant message! The one who gets its tongue zapped will decide it's not worth the pain to try to get at your flocks. It will communicate this to the pack, hopefully, but it will be available for others to get the same experience.

Of course you can sit out there all night with a gun, hoping to pick them off, but it's going to consume way more time than you have. Rig the hot wire around the pen and coops, up close, not far out, and you'll be letting it do your work for you. It's not expensive not hard to rig. It's the only sure-fire way to protect your birds.

I am going to order a fence energizer and put some strands of wire around their pen and connect that to their electric poultry netting(which i've had for several months but havnt electrified). As for the meaties, they'll be processed this weekend. Hopefully they'll have enough to protection from their coop for another 5 days. thankyou!

 

[Newmamabear]

Oh good, Handy to have that netting on hand on a Sunday! Peanut butter is a neat idea! My hubby placed a couple shots right in front of a coyote that was testing the boundrys and he yipped and took off and it's been pretty quiet around here since. Lots of snow to tattletale on them too so that was encouraging. I don't know if it's a long term solution but a reminder now and again would be doable

Best of luck!