Flock destroyed

[docmauney]

Yesterday when my 9y/o went to check for eggs on the flock he's been raising for over a year, he found all 15 chickens (13 hens and 2 roosters) dead. Two stray dogs tore into the fence overnight and killed every single chicken we had. He is devastated. He put so much work and time into being the little "chicken shepherd" as he called himself. Thanks to anybody who answered questions over the last year. Now I have to encourage him to help reinforce the fence and start working on a new flock. I feel so bad for him. Any suggestions on a hearty kid-friendly egg layer are welcomed.

 

[Blammmo]

Sorry to hear that you lost your flock, if you plan on starting over I'd recommend the addition of electric fence if at all possible, it's worked wonders for me over many many years, I run a strand just above the bottom of my fence and another at the top to stop any climbing predators as well, dogs usually get the picture after only one encounter with the lower strand

 

[thomasboyle]

Very sorry for your losses. Do you have pictures of what the coop looked like before the attack? What was the fencing made of?

 

[Pecanny]

Very sorry for your losses. Do you have pictures of what the coop looked like before the attack? What was the fencing made of?

It was made of insufficient predator defense material.

Just one more hard lesson in a long long line of Chicken predator naivity....

 

[6of6chicks]

Oh, I'm so sorry for your little boy. I'm blown away by a 9 year old taking on the responsibility of caring for chickens to begin with! What a remarkable kid! I know your family is devastated - that's a horrible thing to happen and so unfair. Let him help rebuild the fencing (maybe even help design a stronger system?) and help him start over with new chicks. Don't let him give up!

I'm so very sorry. Your post felt like a punch in the stomach. So heartbreaking!

 

[Streetview]

I'm so very sorry

 

[ChazzanHillel]

Oh man, that breaks my heart. I can just imagine how you must feel. I almost had the same thing happen to me. Several weeks ago, a stray dog dug it's way under my fence and went after my girls. I purposely built my coop so that its about 3-1/2 feet above the ground, and the only entrance is 1 foot wide. I'd be surprised if a dog could get them at night? But my attack happened at about 6:30 in the am. I free range them in my yard and the go in and out of the coop all on their own so they were already out and pecking away My wife woke me up because she could hear the chickens freaking out in the back yard. I JUMPED out of bed and ran to the back door to find a large pit bull looking breed dog in my yard. Baruch HaShem, my bird's predator evasion instincts kicked in and they scattered in all directions and hid in some tall grass areas and other places in my yard before the dog could get any of them. Luckily I spooked him and he ran back to try and escape from whence he came in, but I grabbed my 22 rifle and gave him a nice little lead souvenir. He came in for a meal, but left with a bullet. If he survived, I'm confident he won't return to try his luck again. All in all my yard is fairly secure, but our neighborhood is rampant with wild dogs.

It was a very close call and I am now taking measures to prevent such intrusion again. I would have been devastated if I had lost even just a few. I feel for you all and very sorry for your loss.

 

[RonP]

Oh, I'm so sorry for your little boy. I'm blown away by a 9 year old taking on the responsibility of caring for chickens to begin with! What a remarkable kid! I know your family is devastated - that's a horrible thing to happen and so unfair. Let him help rebuild the fencing (maybe even help design a stronger system?) and help him start over with new chicks. Don't let him give up!

I'm so very sorry. Your post felt like a punch in the stomach. So heartbreaking!

I agree, let him be involved with the new structure, one he will be proud of.

Make him try to get into the coop.
If he can't, hopefully neither will a dog.

 

[JJSS89]

Sad business.

When you start to rebuild...don't cut any corners and use sturdy materials.

Rhode Island Reds, Orpingtons, Delawares, Barred Rocks, Partridge Rocks, Black Australorps, are all good choices for your next flock. I hope little man is not going to give up.

I had a wandering dog attempt to break into my pen on my new property twice. He failed but received some lead poisoning for his efforts.

 

[JuneM]

What a sad thing. I'm a new chicken-herder this year, and have lost 3 of my silkies to snakes. Never dreamed this would be a problem. They have ambushed them, killed them, and then found them too big to swallow. (These are 3 month old chickens). I thought snakes would go for chicks or eggs, but not something that large. Each time it has been a blacksnake. So I'm continuing to add reinforcement to my coop and run to head off snakes. Don't give up!! Just keep learning to be one step ahead of all these predators.