Flock massacred

[darin367]

Didn't hear rudy this morning giving his daylight crow... Went out to the coop and all 15 are dead... I've been fighting off the coons for months, my fence is dug down into the dirt almost a foot. But they dug under it.... My wife is devastated.... Gonna spend the next few days pooring a concrete foot around the bottom of the coop.......... And then try and build a new flock.....

 

[boogiedog]

I am so sorry for your loss. I can't even imagine. Hang in there...

 

[zazouse]

So sorry for your loss

This sounds more like a dog killing ,coons could just climb over the fence ,no need to dig their paws aint real good for digging better for pulling stuff apart.

 

[trailchick]

My condolances, darin367.. So sorry to hear bout that... 15 is a lot to lose in one whack.

You see a whole lot of people mentioning the old digging under the fence by predators.
Please, also consider doing some hunting or trapping, or they may find another way in.
Good luck - & dont get discouraged

 

[happycountryhens]

We lost all of our flock but one bird due to an ermine. It was heartbreaking. Most of us have been through this. We do understand. I applaud you improving and planning for your next flock. Can't believe the thing dug one foot down!

It would have a hard time with our fence digging down through all those rocks and boulders we lined the hole with before we buried it again. However, this is the land of rock quarries and fields that grow truckloads of rocks on a yearly basis.

Good luck with your new flock. The concrete should do it.

 

[chickmama1662]

So sorry to hear about your tragedy.

 

[cybercat 2]

I am so very sorry. What a shocking event...

 

[Imp]

I'm so sorry.

Imp

 

[Chic-n-farmer]

I'm so sorry.

I've been there, but it was dogs that killed mine. It just makes you sick.

 

[cafarmgirl]

You might consider running a perimeter hot wire around the coop/run to keep dogs, racoons and other nasty things away completely. I have one attached to the run fence, sticks out 6 or 8 inches from the fence and about the same in height from the ground, mine is mostly to discourage dogs that come sniffing around. If you have a severe predator problem and want to keep critter's completely away from the coop/run you can put in a few metal T stakes and run a few strands of hot wire low to the ground. This is not terribly expensive and will prevent reaching through or getting close enough to dig under, just make the strands close enough so they can't just step through it.