FL predator ID wanted.

[cmom]

Can you put a game camera out? Would be embarrassing if a Bobcat is coming in and you going after wrong critter.

I agree if you have a game camera put it up because most likely once the predator has made a kill it will probably be back. We have coons, coyotes, fox, bobcat, possums and hawks and owls. Everything likes chicken.
This is a coyote at one of my grow-out coops recently.

 

[TheBeardie]

I put all of the Bantam cockerels into crates last night and put them in one of the more protected coops. The trap caught nothing, but it was messed with. The bait was gone and the trap was dragged. The hardware cloth is about to go up.

 

[roosterhavoc]

I put all of the Bantam cockerels into crates last night and put them in one of the more protected coops. The trap caught nothing, but it was messed with. The bait was gone and the trap was dragged. The hardware cloth is about to go up.

What kind of trap, bait etc?

 

[TheBeardie]

What kind of trap, bait etc?

It wasn't a large trap, it was the only one I could use. I would like a larger trap but that's not in the cards right now. Something similar to this:
https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/p...al-cage-trap-24-in-x-7-in-x-7-in?cm_vc=-10005
The bait was ham and grape jelly, I had no chicken, so I used the next available thing. I am definitely looking at some electric fence to put up soon.

 

[leslielbk]

Yeah, but that little hole is what makes me wonder. I'm in west central Florida, and my game camera picked up fox, opossum, and rabbits. No raccoon, ever. Doesn't mean I don't have any, but I have never seen one around here EVER. We have a lot of gun enthusiasts in my area, maybe that's why. Or all the dogs.
A fox picked off a hen that got outside the run during daytime, hence the camera. I heightened the fence 2', clipped wings, and now only one gets out. Having clipped her wings 3 times now, I am accepting she might get eaten. I'm not going to sit out all night hoping to shoot the fox. It shows up at midnight, 3am, 7am, and then not at all for a week or more.

​

"Then apparently it got on the roof and got in from a small hole."

Do you have weasels? That's a big hole in the ground for a weasel, but could be... BUT if it got in through a small hole, how did it get out with a chicken in it's mouth?​

Here's what I've learned after extensive research, maybe it'll help.

1. If you get rid of a fox, they are territorial and only one gets to work an area. You remove that one (trap, shoot, whatever), the next will move in, on and on it goes.
2. You can build the most bullet-proof coop and run and still have losses.
3. You will need a multi-tiered system, because one solution isn't likely to solve your problem.
4. Opossums and raccoons fight so bad one can often keep the other away, or so I read several times.

I looked into an electric fence, which has challenges like why would any determined creature be scared off by a zap? And, it'll just jump over or dig under. How far am I willing to go? And how much $$?

I used this when I lived in Wis. to keep deer out of my gardens and it worked well. I'm adding it to my arsenal.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MF8Y2O4/?tag=backy-20

I'll tell you the truth. You had too many points of entry and maybe jumped the gun putting them out there without a secure fence and more importantly, coop. They have to be safe at night, when all the predators are out. Patch every tiny hole and get on the ground and look for any gap. Make sure nothing can push on the hardware cloth and get in that way.
Good luck, man. I feel your pain.

 

[MissChick@dee]

You mentioned a chicken could squeeze through the wire. Then justa’ bout any hungry critters could too. So sorry for your loss.

 

[MissChick@dee]

I trapped this animal...it was a feral polydactyl cat.

 

[Kris5902]

So sorry for your loss, I hope you catch the pest! Double check all of your 2x4” fencing on the run... pay close attention to any seams and joins, and especially door frames. Then warp hardware cloth around everything! Zip ties work well to secure it initially then it’s easier to come back and wire it on properly. Plus it’s easier to snip the ties if you get out of line.

We have had two losses over two years (late summer and early fall) to coons through a chain link dog pen. Pulled the chickens head through the holes in the chain link, but couldn’t eat the chicken. I wrapped the heck out of it with 1” hardware cloth and 1/4” panels near the food and water which are placed against the fence (it’s what I had at the time) and where the pop door and platform are right beside the fencing. Haven’t had any problems there since, and the dogs have gotten several coons.

 

[TheBeardie]

Thank you everyone! The boys are going to be crated at night until this problem is resolved. I am checking for any possible entry sights and will be putting hardware cloth around the top.

The hardware store only had 7 foot of hardware cloth, so I'll have to wait to finish it up.

 

[leslielbk]

Here's my fella