LGD to the rescue

[dragonlair]

My son just called me all excited. He was home alone (I am at work) when the chickens started making a racket and fluttering around, followed by my Great Pyrenees Sophie and Nessa going crazy in the house. He let them out and the girls took off after something that had gotten into the yard, near the area outside the chicken and goat pens.

He said he heard a lot of thrashing around with growls and barks and then something racing into and through the woods.

The girls stayed within the fence, which is what I want them to do, but whatever it was (fox most likely, probably newly weaned and on it's own) is history!

Gotta love those Livestock Guardian dogs! Because of them my chickens are safe.

 

[speckledhen]

 

[centrarchid]

Do a head count on chickens and look for feather piles. Predator may have been attempting or succeeded in conducting a snatch-and-grab. If succeeded, then predator will include your place in hunting route and stop in if it thinks it can beat your dogs and sometimes they can.

 

[dragonlair]

The hens are contained in a chain link dog kennel with a net over the top, so the fox, or whatever, would have had a hard time getting in there in the short time it was there. The hens alarm, followed by the dogs actions kept the attack short. My son reported no blood, excess feathers or bodies.

 

[centrarchid]

The hens are contained in a chain link dog kennel with a net over the top, so the fox, or whatever, would have had a hard time getting in there in the short time it was there. The hens alarm, followed by the dogs actions kept the attack short. My son reported no blood, excess feathers or bodies.

That is the way it is supposed to go. In future, watch for predator getting trapped in coop / run with chickens by dogs. You will want to intervene then otherwise dogs can damage themselves or containment while trying to get at predator. Such is reminiscent of round we had with raccoon in mobile henhouse with electrified fence.

 

[Contrary]

The girls stayed within the fence, which is what I want them to do, but whatever it was (fox most likely, probably newly weaned and on it's own) is history!

Your fox will probably be back because it knows that your dogs are typically locked inside the house, and that it can evade (outrun) a pyr.