Hen killed roosters? What to do with hen.

[cravenchx]

It's truly a mystery!

 

[chickengeorgeto]

A flock of 4 year old hens are well and firmly entrenched in their respective places in the pecking order, the two Young Male Chicks are newcomers and they are viewed by your 4 year old hens as interlopers.

A 3 months old Male Chick is hardly a rooster, not even a cockerel really, but it is entirely possible for Young Male Chicks of that age to refuse to acknowledge defeat, resulting in your two Young Male Chicks meeting their deaths at the hands of your older hens. The fact that BOTH of your Young Male Chicks were found belly down is evidence that both of your Young Male Chicks were cowering from your hard bitten hens when they met their deaths and that they were NOT killed by a predator.

 

[centrarchid]

I would have a hard time even with my game hens to replicate what OP reports. Would be doable with one hen in a very small area but having multiple hens regardless of age really puts a damper on such behavior.

Lets see a picture of the setup.

 

[enola]

When hens kill a younger chicken they usually peck them on the head or neck until they die.

At any rate, next time you introduce new chickens to these hens, the new chickens should be nearer their size to prevent this type of tragedy reoccurring.

 

[cravenchx]

It's truly a mystery!

I thought the mystery had been solved. We did find a small hole in the run cover after losing a hen. So last night we secured the birds in the coop, closed the door and set a noose trap at hole. I went out at 10:00 last night, and sure enough the trap had been carefully moved, but the birds were secure, and I didn't see anything in the run. Husband let the birds out at 7:00 this morning. I went out to feed and water............three dead in coop! What in the world? I knew I should have camped out there last night!

 

[keesmom]

I would guess weasel. I would also fix the hole instead of trying to trap it.

 

[cravenchx]

I would guess weasel. I would also fix the hole instead of trying to trap it.

We will fix the hole. But we thought we would give trapping a chance since we thought the chickens were secure. Must have been hiding in the coop, even though I checked and counted the birds. Weasel is what DH suspects. I don't think a coon would be able to escape without more damage done to the run.:/

 

[centrarchid]

Show image of dead birds.

 

[cravenchx]

Raccoon! The sucker found a weak spot on the roof. We fixed that, secured the birds last night. Coon again moved the trap and proceed to bust out of hardware wire. Many repairs to get done. Need to get to work. Can't take pictures of the gruesome sight. But, mystery solved! Oh, all chickens survived the night!

 

[Mrs. K]

I had a raccoon once leave a note: "Please leave BBQ sauce, I am tired of them plain" Hubby had a trapper come in, said it was the biggest coon he had ever trapped in 40 years of trapping...... ugh!