How do I make my chickens feel safe again after a Predator???

[gauthierpeeps]

Last Friday then again on Monday something dug under the wood barrier surrounding the chicken pen and coop and tore up a Bantam and a good size chicken. We are going to do repairs,set a trap and use our game camera to get the culprit. My question is: How do you make the chickens feel safe to go back into their coop? After the both killings I cleaned from top to bottom but my girls won't go in at night. What can I do? Thanks

 

[boskelli1571]

Hi there, if something dug through twice, you need to make the coop more secure, otherwise you will lose more hens. You don't say whether the ground under the wood barrier is dirt or not, but if it's dirt, I would dig down about 6 inches and lay doubled chicken wire, hardware wire from top to bottom curving out towards the outside of the coop. Make sure it's secured to the barrier and weighted with gravel/rock or pinned into the deeper earth. Is the coop itself secure at night? Is there any chance the predator is still in the coop area (think weasel/rat) You may have to put the girls into the coop by hand until they feel secure. Good luck with this and sorry for the loss of your girls

 

[gauthierpeeps]

We dug down about a foot and put 2x4's and then attached the wire to the wood. Yes, it is dirt and something dug down under the wood and got in. We know whatever it is has gone in every night but hasn't gotten another hen, thankfully. We are setting a wire trap tonight and going to fix the areas that have been breached. the run is 16x8x8 and then the coop is inside that area which is inside a chain link fence which is quite large. We have had chickens for 8 years and this is the first break in and kill. So we are determined not to lose any more of my girls. No, what ever is getting in doesn't stay and my girls have the run of the dog area all day until about an hour before dark then I put them up. I hope when this is all done that they go back in their house at night. Thanks for the response and information!

 

[boskelli1571]

Good luck with it, sounds like you have a very determined (or hungry) predator. If you get pix, would love to see them.

 

[gauthierpeeps]

Well, we got some hair last night and it is white with grey. For some reason our game camera didn't catch it but my husband got a critter cage today and we will put it out tonight. We are going to set the camera up again and the cage so I hope we catch the culprit!

 

[jetdog]

Opossum guarantee it.

 

[gauthierpeeps]

Yep, that is what my DH thinks. He is repairing the wood along the bottom this morning and bunkering down the pen again. He has also promised a new coop, Yipppppppppppppppeee

1 DH, 2 Doxies, 1 Choc Lab, Pepper my 7 yr RIR, Frick and Frack my Japanese Bantam Buffs, Lady Grey my Blue Andalusian, Polly Polka Dot my Silver Speckled Hamburg, Dottie my Silver Laced Wyandotte, and 1 Old English Bantam Roo and his name is unmentionable

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[gauthierpeeps]

After repairs to the coop and the trap set with cat food last night. The Opossum was trapped and will never go in any Hen house again. I don't know if there will be others but the traps awaits!

 

[boskelli1571]

Good job!!

 

[gauthierpeeps]

Thanks,