I feel like a total idiot. After posting last night about successfulI outdoor brooding Iwoke up this morning to a massacre in my guinea keet brooder. Apparently 1\2 inch HWC is not small enough to keep out weasel hands. It's so small! There were two dead in the brooder with heads and limbs missing. Another was missing one leg and wing and was stuck in the HWC alive. I obviously put it out of its misery. It has been a whirlwind of emotion. The weasels must have stood on a plastic tote I have underneath storing wood chips. Then did their dirty work. I feel so guilty. BEWARE OF WEASELS. I got too comfy and they rocked my worlkd. I added plastic tiles to the bottom of the broode r and removed the tote. Hopefully that can keep them out. They killed my only pied keet and 2\3 lavender. Hard hard lesson.
first, I was babysitting some chicks in a brooder for my neighbor. 1/2 HWC. I went to check on them and one was mauled like you described. That brooder was locked tight. I never could figure it out. We do have weasel’s.
second, I thought my babies were totally safe. I went out in my yard one morning. One was missing, the rest were killed. I guess whatever it was ate one and decided to massacre the rest. I know how horrible that feels.