Okay...read up and maybe it was a snake! The head and neck seemed to be chewed on and wet, the body dry and unharmed. Maybe a large snake killed and tried to swallow, but couldn't get it down and regurgitated it? No blood, so something that constructs or poisons makes sense.
this is wonderful!! So happy for your son
(is he thinking about allowing himself to be poached? Or is he just enjoying the attention at the moment?)
Yes, that could be a possibility - and she suffocated. Poor thing!
I am so very sorry this happened. I would be inclined to lean towards a snake as well. From the pictures it would lead one to believe that a snake attempted to swallow and then realized that Dos was too bit and spit her out. A large enough black or rat snake would be my guess. Sadly at night your momma would not have even seen the snake coming to raise a fuss and black and rat snakes are constrictors so the poor chick would not have been able to raise a alarm either.Sad news this morning. We lost Dos during the night.
We have no idea how. There was no blood. She was fine all day, running with the other two. But she's never been quite as robust. Always at the edge of the group. When the others fought for meal worms she hung at the back.
My husband found her, at the edge of the nest/sleeping area, not quite where she'd have been snuggling the others and mom, but not where she'd be out in the open. It was in the upper 60s last night.
She appears to have been, not eaten, but chewed? Her neck mostly. Her body seemed mostly untouched. We do still have mice. Would they do this post-mortum?
Poor baby. I really wanted to watch this new little red hen grow up.
But regardless, it's so sad. I don't want to lose another chick.
There are two roosts. The adults go up to the top one usually.Yes, that could be a possibility - and she suffocated. Poor thing!
Either rat or snake - they will be safer on roosts if you can get them to roost. They are fully feathered, so shouldn't need to be 'under' mom, but they can still tuck under her some on the roosts - one under each wing.
Is there a roost lower than the ones your others typically end up on during the night after they break up their cuddle puddle? If so, maybe you can put the two chicks and mom on that roost after dark - it will buy you time to figure out the what the how something got into the coop and try to fix that.
I am lucky here being surrounded by trees (except great for mosquitoes ha!), it sure makes a difference when it's hot. It's amazing how a simple tree can make the air under it so much cooler!
The new coop will be so much better for my chickens! Its shaded virtually all day. But it isn't even started yet.
Chinaberry trees might not be the best option - do you have another berry or fruit bearing tree that wouldn't be toxic to the dogs but would still provide both shade/shelter AND food for the chooks?
I snake that tried to swallow but couldn't may do this, I would think something like a rat would actually eat/remove parts of the bird - I don't see where there are bite marks or blood.
