Not an Emergency...Marek's in the Flock

[mightymax]

Heard a small cry coming from the coop last night around 1:00am. Sounded all most like a human baby with a slight case of hiccups. Listened at the back door for a minute or two until I heard it again to be sure it really was the chickens. The next time was much louder and I bolted through the screen door, my wife surprisingly right on my heals. When we got to the coop and shined the light in we were greeted by two of the most beady, yellow eyes I have ever seen. A possum. A little one, but with teeth as sharp and large as daggers. I grabbed the closest thing around...a flat tipped (?) shovel and literally beat the living tar out of it. I didn't know I had it in me, but with all the C**P I've been going through here lately, I guess I found out I did !!! Anyway, we were too late. One of my 5 week old broody hatched chicks was dead. Miserable night.

-kim-

 

[seminolewind]

Heard a small cry coming from the coop last night around 1:00am. Sounded all most like a human baby with a slight case of hiccups. Listened at the back door for a minute or two until I heard it again to be sure it really was the chickens. The next time was much louder and I bolted through the screen door, my wife surprisingly right on my heals. When we got to the coop and shined the light in we were greeted by two of the most beady, yellow eyes I have ever seen. A possum. A little one, but with teeth as sharp and large as daggers. I grabbed the closest thing around...a flat tipped (?) shovel and literally beat the living tar out of it. I didn't know I had it in me, but with all the C**P I've been going through here lately, I guess I found out I did !!! Anyway, we were too late. One of my 5 week old broody hatched chicks was dead. Miserable night.

-kim-

I'm so sorry Kim!

Possums sure are ugly with those teeth.

 

[alibabba]

I am so sorry for your loss.

How did it get in?

I won't win any popularity contests with this, but I have possums, easiest predator to deter. I have electric poly wire on pens and coop closed at night. They don't dig or rip like raccoons and foxes and dogs.

I have one particular one... she has been coming since last summer. No problem, cept I heard her get zapped one night, she didn't come for a couple days. She avoids the pens (tracks in the snow). I figured it was her who ripped into my trash...Nope, it's the neighbor cats (tracks in the snow)

Me hand feeding her (I couldn't resist)

I had a fox take out 17 beautiful pullets...MY FAULT, not the foxes fault, I would not kill or trap it. A. It belongs as part of nature. B. I hope that fox stays, now it's trained and knows that those chickens bite!

 

[alibabba]

Congrats on the babies! To be!. I think you should vaccinate when you feel comfortable and have time. Take 2 at a time to vaccinate.

Okay, get it, it won't upset mama too much! Thanks!

 

[saltandpepper2]

I am so sorry for your loss.


How did it get in?

I won't win any popularity contests with this, but I have possums, easiest predator to deter.     I have electric poly wire on pens and coop closed at night.  They don't dig or rip like raccoons and foxes and dogs.

I have one particular one... she has been coming since last summer.  No problem, cept I heard her get zapped one night, she didn't come for a couple days. She avoids the pens (tracks in the snow).  I figured it was her who ripped into my trash...Nope, it's the neighbor cats (tracks in the snow)

Me hand feeding her (I couldn't resist)

I had a fox take out 17 beautiful pullets...MY FAULT, not the foxes fault, I would not kill or trap it.    A.  It belongs as part of nature.  B. I hope that fox stays, now it's trained and knows that those chickens bite!  

I have a mama possum around my house. My coop is NOT predator proof, but all it does is walk around to see if there's a door open, then leaves. It's gotta be the least persistent predator I've seen. No drive to break in if its going to take work! Lol

 

[alibabba]

I have a mama possum around my house. My coop is NOT predator proof, but all it does is walk around to see if there's a door open, then leaves. It's gotta be the least persistent predator I've seen. No drive to break in if its going to take work! Lol

Yep, they have little human skin like soft hands. Would you use your hands to rip into a coop or pen? Ouch, no way! Now that I did research, I don't worry about her. She also had a little baby in her pouch, sooo cute. I think everything is cute.

 

[ochochicas]

Sorry you lost a baby Mightmax. I'm glad you got out there and solved the problem before you lost more.

My coop is predator proof, complete with concrete floor and vinyl roofing. However, the door is open during the day so one day an opossum got in and was sleeping in the dog house that is inside the coop. I didn't find it until the next morning when I noticed strange droppings all over the ground. It was a young opossum and not very big. I eventually was able to get him out of the coop and he went back into the bushes.

If it had killed one of my chickens the outcome probably would have been different. I don't mind the wildlife living "wild", but once they start living on my property and killing my property they are no longer welcomed.

 

[ochochicas]

Im not sure about handling the logistics of vaccinating these babies? Do I do in the day? at night? Take em from momma and do in the house? or set up in the pen?

What works best for people? Because of the time factor, I have never handled a needle in my life, watched plenty with horses....

I guess it can't take 30 minutes to wrestle 6 babies...

Thank you in advance for the input!

ETA: I expect to stab myself a ton!!!

Like Seminole said, it doesn't matter when you do it. You should take 2 or 3 chicks at a time and take them away from the brooder where they can't hear the hen and she can't hear them. Everyone will be more calm if they can't hear each other. I put mine in a shoe box and take them in the house.

The vaccine is a bit difficult to give until you figure out a good way to "restrain" the chicks. I am right handed, so I put them on the counter and hold them with my left hand. With my thumb and palm I restrain the chick's body. With two fingers I push the chick's head down so it has a bend in its neck. Then I use some warm water and wet the feather down a little bit and then look for the featherless part of the neck. (You can also use an alcohol wipe.) In my right hand I hold the syringe, poke the chick, and then inject the vaccine.

Some chicks are easy, but other I swear I've had to poke six times. I feel bad for these guys, but I try to rationalize with them...better to get poked now than die in four months from Marek's.

My first vaccinated pullets are 18 weeks old. No signs of illness so far!!!

 

[lalaland]

I have a question and am also having a deja vu moment where I"m not certain I asked the same darn thing previously. If I did, I apologize in advance. Too stressed right now to try to search backwards here, so please forgive me/ignore me if I did ask and am making someone answer again!

Is there a connection between Mareks and soft shelled eggs? I have that one hen that was broody hatched last spring, and she is the one who has been laying softshells, having a water belly.....doing ok right now and the water belly has been shrinking over the past few weeks. But tonight, found a year old hen in a funny position when I was going to do evening chores just before lockup. I noticed there were 4 or 5 hens hanging out with her just watching.

Next thing I knew, she laid a soft shelled egg and the hanger ons made a made rush and devoured that egg in seconds. THe whole scenario looks like this was not the first time for this event!

I have always had oyster shell and egg shell out for them, and about 3 weeks ago switched to a layer feed with calcium. PLus with the foraging of greens they should not be calcium deficient.

Marekes connection?

 

[lalaland]

Kim, sorry for the possum event.

Strangely enough, MN thread just had a very similiar discussion about predators, trying to balance protection of flock, rights of wild animals, your own livlihood/food, etc. It is very hard when a predator gets one of your own.