Disappearing chickens!! What predator would you guess it is?

[matchead20]

I’m sorry you lost him
What breed was he?

No idea. The first 4 chicks we got, we were total noobs. We just kinda went in and went that one looks cute and randomly picked them from 4 different bins. Three of the four wound up being bantams, including him. Still have one bantam left. She's our pocket chicken.

 

[Brahma Chicken5000]

He’s beautiful.

 

[matchead20]

Now our pocket chicken has disappeared. No feathers, no tiny chicken tracks in the snow. Lots of raccoon tracks however.

 

[Brahma Chicken5000]

Now our pocket chicken has disappeared. No feathers, no tiny chicken tracks in the snow. Lots of raccoon tracks however.

I’m so sorry

 

[ChxLadyCass]

Now our pocket chicken has disappeared. No feathers, no tiny chicken tracks in the snow. Lots of raccoon tracks however.

So sorry! It's so sad to lose each one! Any ideas to stop the raccoon? Or potential predators?

 

[matchead20]

I’m so sorry

So sorry! It's so sad to lose each one! Any ideas to stop the raccoon? Or potential predators?

Surprisingly, we found her last night hiding on top of the green house! She was cold and wet, but we warmed her up and got her dry, and now she's safe and sound back in the garage. We really need to get the darn coop done.

 

[Brahma Chicken5000]

Surprisingly, we found her last night hiding on top of the green house! She was cold and wet, but we warmed her up and got her dry, and now she's safe and sound back in the garage. We really need to get the darn coop done.

Yeah so happy you found her safe and sound!

 

[The Moonshiner]

I do not think you're dealing with a person or persons.
To me it sounds like your set up is still not secure. You mentioned your rooster hoping out and some sizable holes still in your set up.
With a 2 foot square hole just about any predators could slip in and out or your birds could be flying the coop and getting taken outside.
I'm also in a rural area with all types of predators. I've had many birds over the years go missing without a trace. Foxes are great at it. Coyotes aren't as sneaky but also more often then not can grab a bird and be gone without 2leaving any signs.
There's so many predators out there in every shape and size with different tactics so its almost impossible to secure against them all especially if you have any sizable run.
I would not give into the human thief theory and would continue to beef up your security.
Game cam would help if you must know what it is.

 

[ChxLadyCass]

Surprisingly, we found her last night hiding on top of the green house! She was cold and wet, but we warmed her up and got her dry, and now she's safe and sound back in the garage. We really need to get the darn coop done.

That's great news! I know what you mean! The renovation for our birds seems constant! How much more work do you have to do?
I am not sure how the weather in WA is, but it is cold here with short days and busy weekends, so it's hard to get the time to make updates! Not to mention how the expenses add up! I bought $60 worth of chicken wire last month and still have gaps to fill to finish securing the run!

 

[matchead20]

That's great news! I know what you mean! The renovation for our birds seems constant! How much more work do you have to do?
I am not sure how the weather in WA is, but it is cold here with short days and busy weekends, so it's hard to get the time to make updates! Not to mention how the expenses add up! I bought $60 worth of chicken wire last month and still have gaps to fill to finish securing the run!

Weather has been horrible. It snowed Christmas Eve and Day. It's still cold, but above freezing, it's been raining non stop for at least 2 days now and today it's also windy.

Our to do list for the inside includes mounting the nesting boxes in the wall, finding and laying down vinyl flooring, building a poop board, and mounting that and the roosting bars. Last step would be to cut the access door unless we get super lazy and just take the window out for now. Might need to work on ventilation too. No idea on how to handle the run yet.