Heritage Large Fowl - Phase II

[brahmabreeder]

I kind of started questioning that my self. I did a quick check up on what their pattern is and it said they usually kill a bunch in one night. I've only been losing one a night and the rest are usually fine. Now out of the four I only have one left. Maybe tomorrow I can go out there and follow the feather trail and see what is left if I find the carcass. Maybe that will help in identifying it.

 

[subhanalah]

Does anyone have any idea on what could kill Brahma hens and some decent sized turkeys( these turkeys are at least 20 pounds )? What ever it is attacks them in the coop and then drags them off into the weeds/trees that are near by. I just lost my third female today. Could it be a big coon? Just thought I would mention that yesterday something was above the nesting boxes in my light Brahma coop. It was probably the size of a small cat and was able to get up and down from about three and a half to four feet and squeeze through a two or maybe three inch gap. That problem was solved today though since I bought wire mesh that is the quarter inch size and put that all around the gap that's in the back to keep it out. Maybe I have two different predators ? Maybe next week I should work on that automatic door opener. Problem is that some nights, like tonight, I work until eleven so I don't always get the birds locked up right at dark. I think I figured it would cost me about $60 to build the automatic door.

is the turkey that was dragged off in a completely locked in space? Is it a covered run or the coop they were gotten from?
What time of day were the attacks? What kind of damage was done to the body, did you do an autopsy exam to try to determine teeth marks or anything like that? Any prints?

Is it possible you have a large cat? (This is the "multiple predator" theory)

 

[Zanna]

Quote:
Is the kill happening in the day or night? Night I would vote for Racoon, day Coyote. Have had my share of predators this year.............

 

[gjensen]

It takes more vinegar to have a disinfecting effect (added to water) than people tend to think. It is one of those, "it seamed like a good idea".

Concerning clean water. My birds will have clean water. They get fresh clean cool water every day, and I would make no apologies for it. It takes little time to exchange the water. We clean the waterers as needed. It is certainly nothing that I would get worked up over.

 

[ronott1]

Could it be a Mink?

They are making a big comeback on the East Coast. They can get into very tight places but I do not know about dragging the big poultry around.

I kind of started questioning that my self. I did a quick check up on what their pattern is and it said they usually kill a bunch in one night. I've only been losing one a night and the rest are usually fine. Now out of the four I only have one left. Maybe tomorrow I can go out there and follow the feather trail and see what is left if I find the carcass. Maybe that will help in identifying it.

Here in Northern California, the kind of kill, where a big bird is killed and the dragged off would be a Bob cat or a Mt. Lion. Bob Cats are not very big. Coons, minks, weasels and skunks kill and leave them in the coop. They kill all of them and often only eat a bit of the organs.

Another possibility would be a fox. The Cats and Foxes can climb fences too. Skunks usually do not climb. Coons can climb and open latches with their fingers but usually do not carry off their prey.

About 10 years ago a jogger was stalked, killed, dragged off of the trail and buried in leaf mold for eating later and or to share. This was up out of Auburn.

 

[gjensen]

Thanks for the information. This has been a great discussion about water. I know someone that is famous on BYC is very much into clean water every day.

First, Nipple water systems will have "stale" water in it and it is an awful lot of plastic leaching into the water. I do notice that the metal water fountain does not go moldy like the plastic ones and there is no plastic leaching in metal.

second, green is good, pink is bad. If the stuff growing on the water fountain is green it is safe. I like the suggestion to rinse and add fresh water daily and then scrub weekly. I wait until I can't stand the green any more.

I wonder though, if fermenting is good why is a bit of the same type of thing in the water bad?

By the time enough vinegar was added to the water to have any real effect, the water would no longer be palatable. It would not be as much about whether or not it was good or bad, but whether or not the bird would drink it. Exchanging the water regularly would be effective enough, and as you mentioned, cleaning the waterer periodically makes more sense.

Cleaning the waterer every day is excessive, or obsessive.

 

[subhanalah]

Here in Northern California, the kind of kill, where a big bird is killed and the dragged off would be a Bob cat or a Mt. Lion. Bob Cats are not very  big. Coons, minks, weasels and skunks kill and leave them in the coop. They kill all of them and often only eat a bit of the organs.

Another possibility would be a fox. The Cats and Foxes can climb fences too. Skunks usually do not climb. Coons can climb and open latches with their fingers but usually do not carry off their prey.

About 10 years ago a jogger was stalked, killed, dragged off of the trail and buried in leaf mold for eating later and or to share. This was up out of Auburn.

mountain lion/cougar/puma or do you mean that was a Bob cat?

 

[ronott1]

It takes more vinegar to have a disinfecting effect (added to water) than people tend to think. It is one of those, "it seamed like a good idea".

Concerning clean water. My birds will have clean water. They get fresh clean cool water every day, and I would make no apologies for it. It takes little time to exchange the water. We clean the waterers as needed. It is certainly nothing that I would get worked up over.

I wondered if I had made sense. I too give them clean water every day but do not clean the fountains every day. I do rinse out the fountains and then add fresh water. I clean the fountains as needed, usually on the weekends. Bleach gives me hives so I am very careful with using it, meaning that I almost never use it. I did wash out a fountain with bleach a couple of weeks ago though.

I do have to consider how much water I use though. California has it's first water waster law now because of three years of Drought--the worst in our history. It is a State Wide $500.00 fine for irrigation water going into the street or gutter and for running a hose without an end. Nipple water systems save water right?

 

[subhanalah]

I wondered if I had made sense. I too give them clean water every day but do not clean the fountains every day. I do rinse out the fountains and then add fresh water. I clean the fountains as needed, usually on the weekends. Bleach gives me hives so I am very careful with using it, meaning that I almost never use it. I did wash out a fountain with bleach a couple of weeks ago though.

I do have to consider how much water I use though. California has it's first water waster law now because of three years of Drought--the worst in our history. It is a State Wide $500.00 fine for irrigation water going into the street or gutter and for running a hose without an end. Nipple water systems save water right?

absolutely they do, especially if you use plain white vinegar to clean it that once a week. Then just a small amount of water will do the rinsing necessary.

 

[Lacy Blues]

Cleaning the waterer every day is excessive, or obsessive.

I don't clean my open container waterers every day... just my chick waterers... you know the little red pan on the bottom of the plastic quart container? It gets too slimy and absolutely gross. There is no way I would just dump and refill. NASTY!

I DO clean my own waterer every day though. You know, the one that I drink out of. I wonder... is that excessive or obsessive? hmmm