HELP!!!! Missing Eggs!!!

[MissPrissy]

Possums and raccoons will forage during the day. As will skunks, snakes weasels, ect. Even dogs will eat eggs. Ever heard old farmers talk about "egg sucking dogs"?

 

[buck-wild-chick]

I heard moth balls, will keep snakes away from the coop.. But if i was you i would put them under a flowerpot near the chicken coop.

 

[karanleaf]

Chicky_mama
I missed that you are new here and just thought you needed welcomed. All the people here are good folks and will be willing to help with advise and support. And most everything that is posted is meant to be helpful. So I hope you take all that is posted as the advise it is meant to be.
Just reading through this thread again, and I believe some of the posters have missed the fact that you let your chickens run free range at all times... I again am sorry for the loses you have had just recently. But that is a slot game for not having your birds contained in safe housing and or pens. I hope for the sake of interest of your birds you do get them in a secure run or movable yard tractor. Please let us know how things come out for the rest of your flock.

 

[dixygirl]

Whatever took the eggs will also take the new born chicks as soon as they are born. So either they take them now or they take them later if you just leave them loose under the house with no protection from intruders.

If you want her to be under the house you could enclose it under there so nothing can get in or out. That way it could be a safe coop space for her. I don't think it will be practical though because it would be hard for you to get under the house to keep it clean and change her food and water on a daily basis. Is there no place where you could put her in a nest box to be safe? You can always bring her in the forage you wish her to have. But please try to protect her now because if you don't, any chicks that are born will probably be grabbed immediately and the mother may also not make it in their current living situation.

Good luck. It really hurts me and tears me apart to hear that some birds and their babies are left to fend for themselves completely like this.

 

[ivan3]

Ever heard old farmers talk about "egg sucking dogs"?

Only when my mother was particularly incensed with my brothers and I.


You could try fake eggs - clog the snake up (folks use different types and I'm sure they'll suggest their favorite make and model).

Alas, IMHO, free range is a KFC where one hands one's chooks out the drive-up window, alive and screaming, to whatever pred wanders by.

Take care, now​

 

[chickie_mama]

Thank you everyone for all the advice. I really appreciate it. We will check out some plans to build something more protective for the chickie chicks. When I was growing up we had yard birds all the time and didn't have to worry about anything getting them. Of course now I live "out in the woods" so I know if I don't keep them put up they are vulnable to all kinds of evil critters. I will let you all know how this saga turns out.

PS: Thanks for the kind welcome. I can already tell I am going to enjoy being a part of the BYC family.

 

[dixygirl]

So when you were growing up your family didn't have anyplace for them to go in at night at all either?

None got killed? I see the foxes around here running in my yard with other critters in their mouths. And I have walked out my backdoor at night and seen racoons and opossums that I couldn't even scare off. They were withing 5 feet of me and didn't even care i was there. With all that going on here I wouldn't dream of it. I hope you can find a used dog house you can put a door and latch on or something for her. Good luck

 

[chickie_mama]

Quote:
None ever got killed. The only thing we had for them was a roost on the back side of my dad's workshop. They always had all of the backyard to play in. The only barrier we had to the "outside world" was a chain link fence around the back yard which is really no barrier at all.

 

[dixygirl]

You all were really lucky. Maybe it will work for you too.
Good luck

 

[wyndski]

I do not pen mine up, though I only have two. They roost in the tree over the barn at night and so far I haven't had a problem. I did let them build a nest in my empty stall in the barn so that is where she lays her eggs. I collect them everyday. I have had eggs go missing and finally saw a crow stealing one.

smart boogers too. I did end up putting a few gulf balls in the nest and after he took one of them by mistake he stopped.

The neighbor found the gulf ball a few days later.