What an afternoon! My husband came in to tell me a couple of our pullets were acting strangely. One seemed to be trying to lay an egg in the wildflower border (which is protected with wire) and another was nearby squawking up a storm. When I went out, he picked up a broken egg from the cement. Odd indeed, seeing as our five Welsummer pullets have a veritable palace with four nest boxes in it not 50 feet away. I went to see if all was well in the coop, and much to my surprise a huge black snake was slithering about in our nest boxes!
Before I could get up the nerve to grab him behind his head, he disappeared behind the boxes. I ran in and got my husband, thinking he had got between the siding and the wall board where we have insulation. When he came back with a screwdriver and removed our nest boxes, the snake was revealed behind th boxes, and crawled up into a spot under the eaves, where he curled up. While Cliff was in the house getting some equipment, our pullet Rose came in squawking --obviously looking for a nest box, so I grabbed one and turned it away from the open door for privacy, and she climbed in.
Cliff returned with a pillowcase and one of those jar-reacher things you use to get stuff off high shelves, and while Cliff got hold of his body and held him, I finally got ahold of him behind his head, and together we put him in a pillowcase. We celebrated with a high-five, laughing at our rubber legs and shaking hands.
I peeked into the nest box and Rose has left us a beautiful dark brown speckled egg.
The snake was relocated several miles away into a nice woods.
Now I wonder if he was the reason we sometimes had only one or no eggs, when I figured my pullets were just getting their laying habits established!
Can anyone tell me if, when a snake eats an egg, it leaves any evidence?
Cliff returned with a pillowcase and one of those jar-reacher things you use to get stuff off high shelves, and while Cliff got hold of his body and held him, I finally got ahold of him behind his head, and together we put him in a pillowcase. We celebrated with a high-five, laughing at our rubber legs and shaking hands.
I peeked into the nest box and Rose has left us a beautiful dark brown speckled egg.
Now I wonder if he was the reason we sometimes had only one or no eggs, when I figured my pullets were just getting their laying habits established!
Can anyone tell me if, when a snake eats an egg, it leaves any evidence?
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