Just when you think you’re safe...

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Monkeysmom5018

Songster
8 Years
Mar 25, 2014
308
268
211
Upstate NY
You’re not. We’ve had chickens for almost 3 years and have lost a couple to hawks here And there unfortunately. We thought our coop and run were like Fort Knox until early this Morning when i got a text from my daughter (Waiting for the bus at 6:50am) that the chickens were freaking out. It wasn’t quite light out. I ran outside and they were all terrified and one of my original girls, an Easter egger was dead, half eaten and pulled partially through the fence. She was our biggest chicken and best layer. Prints in the Snow appear to be raccoon prints and I’m now on guard for sure. I always look to the skies but now enemies are everywhere. We are too close to other houses to shoot, but am getting trail cams tomorrow and if I see anything, hubby will get his .22 out regardless. We have a Great Dane and a Saint Bernard who share the same hard so I really thought their smell would deter any predators
 
You’re not. We’ve had chickens for almost 3 years and have lost a couple to hawks here And there unfortunately. We thought our coop and run were like Fort Knox until early this Morning when i got a text from my daughter (Waiting for the bus at 6:50am) that the chickens were freaking out. It wasn’t quite light out. I ran outside and they were all terrified and one of my original girls, an Easter egger was dead, half eaten and pulled partially through the fence. She was our biggest chicken and best layer. Prints in the Snow appear to be raccoon prints and I’m now on guard for sure. I always look to the skies but now enemies are everywhere. We are too close to other houses to shoot, but am getting trail cams tomorrow and if I see anything, hubby will get his .22 out regardless. We have a Great Dane and a Saint Bernard who share the same hard so I really thought their smell would deter any predators
just when you think it's safe.. bought new locks, lighting and some new chicks. then rats made holes at the bottom wood plank. Victims?? 3 new chicks. (since they are quite small) surprise!! surprise!! :(:(:(:(
 
I am so sorry for your loss!!! :hugs It is so discouraging when we think we've done all we can to protect our pet chickens and then some clever predator finds it's way in. Raccoons are notorious for getting their hands through fences and grabbing whatever they can on a chicken and pulling it off. Usually that's the head. You can avoid this in the future by fortifying your run with 1/4 or 1/2 inch hardware cloth. Electric fencing is another way, but not as fool proof as the hardware cloth.

Since you are in city limits, I think you should pick up a Havahart trap at Home Depot and trap the raccoon and then call the authorities to pick it up.
 
just when you think it's safe.. bought new locks, lighting and some new chicks. then rats made holes at the bottom wood plank. Victims?? 3 new chicks. (since they are quite small) surprise!! surprise!! :(:(:(:(
Ugh so sorry for your babies! We have something digging tunnels into the run but I’m thinking rabbits since nothings been missing.
 
I am so sorry for your loss!!! :hugs It is so discouraging when we think we've done all we can to protect our pet chickens and then some clever predator finds it's way in. Raccoons are notorious for getting their hands through fences and grabbing whatever they can on a chicken and pulling it off. Usually that's the head. You can avoid this in the future by fortifying your run with 1/4 or 1/2 inch hardware cloth. Electric fencing is another way, but not as fool proof as the hardware cloth.

Since you are in city limits, I think you should pick up a Havahart trap at Home Depot and trap the raccoon and then call the authorities to pick it up.
Thank you. It was pretty
Horrific. I’ve read about what raccoons can do to chickens but it was pretty hard to see if happen to one of my first flock members. We are pretty rural, but just on the zoning line of not being able to have chickens (our street is the zoning map line) so we can’t really do anything with town officials unfortunately.
 
Our run is made of welded wire with chicken wire over it, with a chain link gate. Stupid raccoon must have taken Tiger by surprise to be able to grab her. We have 24 chickens in there (mostly seramas, Silkies, and Cochin bantams) and since it wasn’t even daylight yet i hadn’t let them out to free range. I feel so bad. It’s almost 1am here and i keep going out to check for prints in the snow.
 
Thank you. It was pretty
Horrific. I’ve read about what raccoons can do to chickens but it was pretty hard to see if happen to one of my first flock members. We are pretty rural, but just on the zoning line of not being able to have chickens (our street is the zoning map line) so we can’t really do anything with town officials unfortunately.
Well, then trap it and take it someplace where it is legal to shoot it.
 
Our run is made of welded wire with chicken wire over it, with a chain link gate. Stupid raccoon must have taken Tiger by surprise to be able to grab her. We have 24 chickens in there (mostly seramas, Silkies, and Cochin bantams) and since it wasn’t even daylight yet i hadn’t let them out to free range. I feel so bad. It’s almost 1am here and i keep going out to check for prints in the snow.
Raccoons get through chicken wire all the time. You need 1/4 or 1/2 inch hardware cloth.
 

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