Does this sound like a snake??

[Shanna-stephens]

We have a turkey hen that has been laying in the same "nest" hidden in some brush for a couple months now... anyways, we left one of her eggs and one wooden egg and have been taking the fresh ones. I have noticed periodically that an egg would go missing but just brushed it off. A couple weeks ago we found a black snake neat her nest and assumed that was our problem. My husband took care of it. Hate to kill black snakes but I dont want them eating my eggs either!
Fast forward to today, I just went to check her nest and both the wooden and the real egg are gone.
So, my question is... if It is another snake, will the wooden egg kill it?I've heard both ways... or should I try catching it? I read that a minnow trap works well?? No idea if that is true. ... or is there another predator That would take the entire egg?? I'm in nw arkansas. Our primary predators are raccoon, opossum, coyote, skunk, maybe the occasional hawk.. what do you guys think?? Thanks in advance.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Could be a snake. Lots of critters will take and eat eggs though. I've had skunks and possum here. fox, coyote and raccoons will also take eggs. Put a camera on the nest if you want to know exactly who's doing it.

 

[Shanna-stephens]

Could be a snake. Lots of critters will take and eat eggs though. I've had skunks and possum here. fox, coyote and raccoons will also take eggs. Put a camera on the nest if you want to know exactly who's doing it.

Hi! Thanks for your reply... we just recently had 2 possums that were taking eggs and my little sebright was broody and it managed to get to her.
I will definitely put a camera up! Thanks for suggesting that.
When the possums were taking eggs, they left the shell... Do they generally take the whole egg?

 

[chickendreams24]

When we caught a possum in the coop getting eggs it was crushing and munching the eggs in the nest box. It made a huge mess and taught a few of our birds to be egg eaters(it was a couple weeks before we caught it and discovered why the eggs were going missing). Perhaps ours just wasn't a careful eater?

Another possum later killed and drug off a buff Orpington hen.

I'm sorry for the loss of your little sebright. Our sebright us currently broody somewhere on the property but she's very sneaky so we haven't found her.(it's been 2-3 days) I'm of course very worried for her. We have had problems from mink, rats, raccoon, possum, and fox all confirmed. We haven't been able to get the mink and the fox yet.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Hi! Thanks for your reply... we just recently had 2 possums that were taking eggs and my little sebright was broody and it managed to get to her.
I will definitely put a camera up! Thanks for suggesting that.
When the possums were taking eggs, they left the shell... Do they generally take the whole egg?

The possum here would leave little bits of shell too. Fox generally will carry off the whole egg. I'm not sure about raccoons. I hope it's not the snake, I have really big fear of snakes, the thought of one freaks me out.

Forgot to mention skunks too which will eat eggs.

 

[Shanna-stephens]

When we caught a possum in the coop getting eggs it was crushing and munching the eggs in the nest box. It made a huge mess and taught a few of our birds to be egg eaters(it was a couple weeks before we caught it and discovered why the eggs were going missing). Perhaps ours just wasn't a careful eater?

Another possum later killed and drug off a buff Orpington hen.

I'm sorry for the loss of your little sebright. Our sebright us currently broody somewhere on the property but she's very sneaky so we haven't found her.(it's been 2-3 days) I'm of course very worried for her. We have had problems from mink, rats, raccoon, possum, and fox all confirmed. We haven't been able to get the mink and the fox yet.

That sounds exactly like our possum... it took us awhile to figure it out also... I had lost a silkie hen a few weeks prior to losing the sebright but we were out of town for a few days when it happened so I actually had been blaming one of our young cats for it. I hadn' thought until just now but I bet the possum killed her too!!! I hope you find your sebright. I really enjoyed mine. I do have two babies we hatched that from her and a blue silkie roo. Cant wait to see how they'll grow out! They have 5 toes, are black and seem too be getting poofs on their heads.
in tiny sebright body builds!!

Also sorry about your buff... I love the orpingtons! those are our favorite laying chickens we've had so far. They'e sweethearts.

 

[Shanna-stephens]

The possum here would leave little bits of shell too. Fox generally will carry off the whole egg. I'm not sure about raccoons. I hope it's not the snake, I have really big fear of snakes, the thought of one freaks me out.

Forgot to mention skunks too which will eat eggs.

I just checked the nest again (I put 2 chicken eggs last night before I went in for the evening) and they are gone!! Headed out to put the camera up now. apparently if it is a snake, the wooden egg didn't kill it!

I too am terrified of snakes. And we live right next to a place they call "copperhead hill" I've only seen a couple copperheads since we've lived here (6 years) but I'm always so worried. Especially with a 3 year old boy.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I just checked the nest again (I put 2 chicken eggs last night before I went in for the evening) and they are gone!! Headed out to put the camera up now. apparently if it is a snake, the wooden egg didn't kill it!

I too am terrified of snakes. And we live right next to a place they call "copperhead hill" I've only seen a couple copperheads since we've lived here (6 years) but I'm always so worried. Especially with a 3 year old boy.

That's why I live so far north and put up with cold winters, we just get mostly garder snakes, but I still scream and swear up a storm, than end up crying hysterically when I see even a tiny one. I couldn't handle poisonous ones.

 

[Shanna-stephens]

That's why I live so far north and put up with cold winters, we just get mostly garder snakes, but I still scream and swear up a storm, than end up crying hysterically when I see even a tiny one. I couldn't handle poisonous ones.

Well, I'm definitely not tough about them either... In fact I went to put the camera up and was so nervous I was going to see one I was jumping at every twig breaking. Lol it's in a pretty weedy/brushy area. So, long story short, My husband will be helping put it up when he gets home.
What area of the country are you from? What a perk, I never thought about snakes being minimal, but that makes sense!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Well, I'm definitely not tough about them either... In fact I went to put the camera up and was so nervous I was going to see one I was jumping at every twig breaking. Lol it's in a pretty weedy/brushy area. So, long story short, My husband will be helping put it up when he gets home.
What area of the country are you from? What a perk, I never thought about snakes being minimal, but that makes sense!

I'm up here in Wisconsin. I get crazy too after seeing a snake, every twig, garden hose, piece of bark, they are all potential snakes to me than. It's a horrible way to spend your summer.