Not sure if this is the correct thread, but found 2 of my hens dead this morning. *trigger warning, picture*

[eapxo12]

I would suspect weasel or rat.

The other chickens had nothing to do with these deaths. Please, do not take it out on the cockerel, it was not his fault and in the dark he could not have done anything to protect them as chickens are practically blind in the dark.

After reading all of your replies I most definitely do not think our beloved roo, Archie had anything to do with this.
I have our chickens inside their coop for the night and their doors shut, hoping and praying whatever it was doesn't make it's appearance again tonight. We are going to get a trap tomorrow and hopefully able to catch whatever it was.

 

[LaFleche]

After reading all of your replies I most definitely do not think our beloved roo, Archie had anything to do with this.
I have our chickens inside their coop for the night and their doors shut, hoping and praying whatever it was doesn't make it's appearance again tonight. We are going to get a trap tomorrow and hopefully able to catch whatever it was.

It might have gotten in when the door was still open, so I would suggest to direct one camera at the coop entrance.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Their doors for their coop inside their run are changed now, we slide them up instead of over.

Dang, that's an excellent effort at a Fort Knox of coop.. and any of us would lucky to have it! You definitely should not beat yourself up for lack caring or effort.. and even the best of us make mistakes!

Is there ventilation somewhere that I'm not seeing?

Go out in the dark and shine a flash light if needed to look for holes that might be larger than half inch somewhere.. You pictures are pretty good but not enough fine detail.. Are you able to search for a point of entry or exit.. any odd droppings or other things (paw prints, dig or chew marks) that don't belong which might point to the suspect..

 

[eapxo12]

Dang, that's an excellent effort at a Fort Knox of coop.. and any of us would lucky to have it! You definitely should not beat yourself up for lack caring or effort.. and even the best of us make mistakes!

Is there ventilation somewhere that I'm not seeing?

Go out in the dark and shine a flash light if needed to look for holes that might be larger than half inch somewhere.. You pictures are pretty good but not enough fine detail.. Are you able to search for a point of entry or exit.. any odd droppings or other things (paw prints, dig or chew marks) that don't belong which might point to the suspect..
View attachment 2439343View attachment 2439346

We checked, there is no way a predator could’ve physically gotten inside the coop to kill the second hen. I understand outside there is a possibility, but we checked everywhere around the coop also and found nothing.
We are now back to square one, and thinking our rooster may have killed them.
There’s nothing ate off of them, no teeth marks, nothing that shows evidence of a predator attacking. I don’t know if we should cull him tomorrow, or wait to see if it happens again, but we’ve already lost two of our precious hens and unsure if we want to risk it happening again. I know everyone’s saying weasel, or another small predator, but we really don’t think it is.

we have a trap set up outside the coop / run, hopefully something turns up tomorrow so we can finally get to the bottom of this.

 

[MysteryChicken]

I've had a rooster eaten by hens years ago, & chickens will eat from the vent area to eat the innards. He was picked clean of his internal organs.

Do you have skunks in Canada? I learned they can borrow into coops with tunnels, & can squeeze through 2-4 inch wide gaps.

My hen that was eaten by a skunk for comparison to your girl.

Her beak is only attached by a piece of skin.

 

[eapxo12]

I've had a rooster eaten by hens years ago, & chickens will eat from the vent area to eat the innards. He was picked clean of his internal organs.

Do you have skunks in Canada? I learned they can borrow into coops with tunnels, & can squeeze through 2-4 inch wide gaps.

My hen that was eaten by a skunk for comparison to your girl.
View attachment 2439519View attachment 2439520Her beak is only attached by a piece of skin.

No we don’t! So sorry about your hen ❤

we honestly think it was our rooster, even though so many are people telling us it was a predator.

 

[MysteryChicken]

No we don’t! So sorry about your hen ❤

we honestly think it was our rooster, even though so many are people telling us it was a predator.

A rooster won't cause that much carnage.

 

[cluckingheck]

why are you so set on blaming your roo and already jumping at culling him? just separate him and if the deaths continue, it’s definitely not him. if they stop, it still probably wasn’t him. put him back in and if the deaths start back up, then it was likely him. the only real way to figure out, though, is to put up some kind of camera. you’d feel worse to know you culled your roo for no reason when the deaths still happen after he’s gone.

im not trying to be mean, but something somewhere can easily be overlooked. weasels and other predators are notorious for finding ways into places that are meant to be impenetrable, especially if they’ve been trying to get in for awhile. also, if these attacks happened at night, chickens are basically blind and will go into an almost paralyzed state where they won’t move unless something directly affects them.

 

[MysteryChicken]

No we don’t! So sorry about your hen ❤

we honestly think it was our rooster, even though so many are people telling us it was a predator.

 

[Fontaine]

So sorry for your terrible loss. This is really reaching but if it wasn’t something that snuck in during the day could it be vandalism? Could you isolate your rooster until you have an answer or it happens when he is gone? How will you feel if you cull him and it happens again? You don’t need any more hurt.