If you knew there was a young black snake...

[gritsar]

maybe 20 inches to 2 ft. long around your coop, would you be worried about your chickens and have them locked up in the coop or would you be worried that there won't be enough pieces of the snake to go around?
I saw one this morning, but he went into hiding before my SO got out there with the .22.
I'm checking for eggs frequently (but very carefully

) because this is the time of day when most of my girls seem to lay. I just don't want to lock the chooks up this early if there's no reason to worry about him harming them. They are LF brahmas, 6 months old today.

 

[redoak]

One of my roosters killed a snake about that size a few weeks ago. Of course we don't really have any poisonous snakes around here. I'd try to identify it, if it's not poisonous I wouldn't worry about it.

 

[bayouchica]

Hi gritsar, I wouldn't worry about the snake.More than likely looking for eggs. Unless you're afraid of them, I understand if you don't want it around.

Was the snake solid black or did it look like this?
That is a rat snake ( non poisonous) I moved from the coop a few weeks ago,he was about 4ft long. I moved him because the chickens were roosting & saw it & freaked out.

They will eat poisonous snakes & mice & rats.
Are your chickens standards? I don't anything about brahmas.
I've only seen my chickens eat small snakes,but who knows what they eat out on the range,lol.

 

[gritsar]

I'm 99% certain it was a juvenile black snake. Non-venomous looking head (maybe you understand what I mean

). Black upper and white belly.
Not afraid of them. Have plans to add egg gourds to the nest boxes as soon as I have some grown and dried. That's what my SO's mom and grandma did for egg eating snakes.
My brahmas are standards. The one roo I have weighed is tipping the scales at 8 lbs. (again, 6 months old).
Mr. Snake didn't put in another appearance today. I'm hoping he'll find there's too much activity in the area between me and the chooks to risk another visit.

 

[joebryant]

If I knew that there was a young black snake around my coop, I would have my wife try to find him and move him to the barn. I would not want the chickens to kill him.
I'd do it myself if... ...reluctantly.

 

[redoak]

That's a really cool picture bayouchica

 

[bayouchica]

Wow brahmas are big chickens.

I think Mr. Snake should be afraid of them,lol. Most snakes tend to be shy,from what I have experienced living out here.He'll probably go on about his business elsewhere.
Egg gourds are a great idea, I haven't ever tired to grow them here. Hummm... maybe we could swap some seeds ??

Thanks, Redoak, glad you like it.

 

[kinnip]

I have a few of those gourds, they're pretty. I hope to crack them open and plant the seeds next year.
We generally relocate any nonvenomous snakes to another spot on our property. If they have to travel an eighth of a mile to get chicken eggs, they'll change their diet. If a snake did get into my run, it wouldn't be long for this world. 27 chickens=1 dead snake