Killer bear!!! Advice needed

[Pamelajfilby]

I live in the lakes region in NH. We have a small flock of chicken (had 8)
Their coop is in a totally secured yard but we let the out during the day to free range.
Tuesday night we had a bear break in to their yard when we had no motion lights working due to the storm. It pulled fencing down to get The yard. Then it ripped chicken wire off the smaller yard around the coop. It smashed in the glass window and ripped the doors right off the hinges. Ripped shingles off the roof!! It was the most violent predator attack I've personally seen.
We have no evidence that one was killed but we have one chicken missing. I've searched everywhere and can find no remains. We know for sure it was a bear because of the paw prints and claw marks everywhere and a giant mound of poops in the yard filled with chicken feed.
I never imagined a bear would kill a chicken or be this violent.
Has anyone ever experienced this? I'm devastated.
Also I have one little girl who's been hiding in a hen box since. I picked her up today and noticed her chest is bare of feathers. She seems ok other than that as she makes sweet noises when I pet her. She's alert and oriented. Just lost a ton of feathers. I'm so worried about her. Any advice or thoughts would be appreciated.

 

[21hens-incharge]

Hot wire! Electric fence charger and wire up the coop and run.
They make ones of different strength. I use a hot wire with a charger designed to zap a dog to keep my bird dogs away from my chickens. Very effective tool.

Oh and I do wish the circumstances were better.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

People don't see bears too often but when they do it's pretty much as you described. They are destructive and strong, and always hungry. I would imagine a bear would eat the whole chicken.

Definitely electric fencing is the only way to stop a bear.

 

[Zoomie]

Welcome to BYC, although I am sure sorry about the circumstances.

Yes, bears will do this. The exact same thing happened to a neighbor who lives about a mile away across the valley. In their case, after the bear smashed the coop and killed the chickens, it tried to get in their house! It was pressing its paws against the windows. They tried everything to get it to go away; it just would not. They called Game and Fish, who instructed them to shoot the bear. They did so, then Game and Fish came out to claim the body.

I would call your local wildlife officials and show them the damage. I don't know if they set traps in your state but they will in mine, if the circumstance is right. This bear clearly understands how chicken coops work and I am guessing you will not be the only one to suffer a loss. Hopefully they will trap it and remove it.

As far as future deterrents, yes, electric fences are the way to go. Best of luck... I do hope the missing bird shows up.

 

[staceyj]

Oh my gosh! That's the scariest story I've ever heard! I am really sorry for what your whole family experienced and hope you get everything reinforced fast and twice as strong.
I don't have any usable bear experience to share. Unfortunately.

I can't imagine that your little hen who's been hiding in the hen house the past few days would have been snatched by a bear and lost so many feathers but escaped without so much as a scratch... bear claws are huge and it sounds as if this one was in a frenzy.
It almost sounds like an uncanny coincidence of the beginning of broody behavior. Or maybe the trauma triggered a hormonal shift.

They will sometimes pull out their breast feathers all the way down to their tummy, and clear up to their armpits, perhaps leaving just a strip right along the middle. You might find that she's stashed them in the nesting box.

I hope the missing one is not lost but just hiding somewhere too and comes home soon.
Best wishes to you, your family and your flock for a safe and restful night.

 

[microchick]

Yes, plus many times conservation/wildlife agents will either dispatch the predator themselves or give you permission to dispatch it. Like said, the only thing that will stop a bear is an electric fence.... or a 30-06 bullet.

We had a predatory fox devastate flocks around us this past spring. Our flock is penned in a chain link fenced run that is hot wired so we were very lucky and didn't loose a bird. We found fox prints all around our run but no break ins. A few calls to the conservation department rewarded us with permission to shoot the animal if seen because it had proven itself to be threat to domestic farm animals. We got the word out. No more losses. Don't know if the fox moved on or one of our neighbors took it out. But what I'm saying is that somebody some time some where is going to have to use extreme prejudice against this animal. It's crossed the line in the sand and is going to continue to be a menace.

PLEASE be safe and Welcome to the Back Yard Chickens flock!

 

[CapricornFarm]

The bears here have been good so far, but i plan to put up hot wire soon. I never use chicken wire except as a coop divider or in conjunction with welded wire to keep coons from reaching in.
Sorry you had this problem, hope your hen is just hiding because she is scared! Thank goodness no people were harmed!

 

[BYC910]

Sorry your going through this. The bear will return prepare quickly .Stock fence charger that will power at least 25 miles of wire . t post six feet long gets you about five above ground .Wire at the top middle and bottom high enough so it won't short out on grass or weeds . I can't stress how quickly you need to do this or take out the bear .It (they ) are foraging for hibernation and have a various apatite this time of year . Good luck

 

[microchick]

Amen to that, Cap. The only place where I use chicken wire is in the coop or as run dividers inside the main chain link run.

I try to stand back and think like a predator. Then I go to work with what I perceive as being weak spots in my line of defense.

 

[junebuggena]

Just the past couple weeks I've been having bear troubles myself. The first rule of thumb is no food left outside overnight. Any treats leftover need to come inside, as do the feeders. And by inside, I mean inside the house, not in the coop. Bears love chicken feed, and can smell it from a long way off. Removing that temptation can go a long way towards keeping them from seeing the coop, and your chickens, as a food source.
Also consider installing hotwire, but be aware that it won't stop all bears. Some, like the ones in my neighborhood, have learned how to take out the chargers first.