OK, I've got hawks, coons, possum, and cats. Nothing has bothered my birds -- even the bantams. In summer we did have a coon rip a head off through the cage of one of my meaties, but no problem since. we did trap 4 coons. Don't be hard on me, my preference is not to have my bantams loose but at the moment I have a family emergency which has stopped my building plans for the birds for awhile. Last night took the cake. I went to the barn and there sitting up and eating chicken feed WITH the chickens AND the cats was a good size possum. It turned around and looked at me as if to say "hi" but it was not scared. Have I just been lucky? I'm sure that's the case but it is giving me a false sense of security. I will continue with predator-proofing as I build, but I find this all peculiar. Any thoughts?
When they are hungry enough, they will try testing your chickens. When they discover chickens taste good and don't fight all that well, its all over. Keep building.
Sometimes we are lucky....4 years with chickens up north and in the second year here. Haven't lost anything to predators yet but the day is coming. I had a possum living beneath a barn until storm destroyed it (dropped two trees into it). Never had a problem with him.
Yes, you have been lucky. I have lost chickens/guineas/ducks to raccoons (during the day), hawks (1 chicken when I first got them), and to foxes (guineas that do not come in at night). I also recently had the neighbors pit bull climb on top (4ft) my night duck pen and get through 1/2 hardware cloth to kill my entire (save 1) flock of ducks (9 were killed). My sister insisted she had no predators when she got 6 ducks, simply because she had not seen any. Of course, they eventually found her birds, and killed two. She now locks them up securely every night, and the free-range during the day. Unless birds are locked up 24/7 in VERY secure pens, they are suseptible to predators.
Quote:With easy food the possum won't eat a chicken, when the food runs out there will be a problem. Possums are lazy and if there is food they'll eat it, when they get hungry and a chicken is available - they'll eat that.
I haven't had anything attack my girls yet but I have an electric fence charger that I am gonna install anyhow. I'm gonna crank it up full power with hopes of frying anything that goes near my girls. I have opossums and coons but so far they havn't been a problem.
Yep, I would have lost to the raccoons for sure if the electric fence had not been up and running. They tried and got fried! Twice that I know of. I figure my girls will get hit someday while they are free ranging.
I'd say you are lucky. I've had possums sneak in the coop to eat the eggs but they never bothered any of my chickens. That being said I probably wouldn't trust a possum living with my chickens - chickens do little to protect themselves especially at night and might just seem like a warm chunk of meat to a possum. Your bigger worry is that if a possum can get to them so can other predators.
