Hello friends.... I am just beside myself. Last Monday my husband went out to give our 16 (all girls) chickens fresh food and water and found 12 chickens dead. He said it was just terrible, never seen anything like it before. He had a really hard time calling me to even tell me. I was a mess. So he cleaned that all up and that left me with 4. My girls were not even 1 year old yet. Those 4 we locked in the coop. They had no business out anyway because it has been -15 degrees and ice/snow everywhere. In their coop they have several places to roost, a huge feeder, a huge fountain waterer on a heater, 2 heat lamps and a chicken block to snack on. I shut their little door that leads out side down a ramp so that nothing could get in their and get them. So yesterday my husband let those 4 out since the weather was a little better, oh how they loved coming out. They cracked me up, they just rolled around on the ground cause they were so happy to come out. We put them back in the coop last night, except one girl was perched on the roof in a tire of the building that sits next to the coop outside of the fence. I couldn't reach her so my husband went out about 10pm last night got her down and secured her in the coop. The forecast for today was higher temps then we have had in a long time and I went out to let my 4 girls out and all four of them was dead! 3 inside the coop and the 4th looks like whatever has attacked them tried to pull it out a little rotted spot by the door. My guess that is the entry point and exit point for our mystery Predator. I will tell you that several that my husband found last Monday had their heads missing, the others had their necks tore up. The one in the little rotted spot today that was being pulled out of this tiny hole had no head. I believe the other 3 did. I couldn't bare to examine the scene that close. I am so upset that all my girls are dead. I have had only a problem with 1 hawk that got one of my Light Brahma's late fall 2013. I also have 3 rabbits in hutches in that same are where the chickens coop and run is. I am wondering if whatever came for my girls are gonna get my rabbit's next. If anyone has some suggestions any help would be appreciated. I bought 19 pullets last April and raised these girls from the time they were 2 days old. They were the best layers around. I loved them girls so much, they were so friendly, they were my new hobby since I quit smoking and now I have none. I do have 40 birds ordered and 1 turkey but this means I have to start all over. Thank you in advance for any help.
I'm guessing it was a weasel- they seem to kill just for the fun of it) Don't give up- patch up the holes and try again. Weasels can fit through very small cracks, we bury fine gauge chicken wire several feet under the ground around the coop/run to deter these nasty things.
