Please HELP-Killing my Girls

[Alleyoops25]

I sayit is a racoon who is the culprit. You seen them and that to me is unusual... like chickbea say they have little hands not only in the front but on thier back legs as well. They are very strong, they have been known to led full grown hound dogs out into the middle of rivers and then climb on top of them and dround them. BAck before trapping became ilegal my brother used to trapp them and adults weighed sometimes over 60 or 70 lbs. Any get live traps set and if you cant find any call animal control, or the Division of Wild life . And they can bring you some. ( Tahts how I got mine) I posted it here some where, I think it was titled :Good info. from the DOW, i think. They have helped me a lot. And have given us premission to kill Foxes , skunks, coons, coyotes, and any other unproctected species that crawls into the trap. I live out side of city limits but i have fairly close nieghbors. So any thing that is here has figured out how easy it is to find food around humans, and is a risk. So anyway good luck, happy hunting, and hope every thing will get better.

 

[Sugar Sand Farm]

We woke up Mother's Day to find something had gotten into our goslings house and killed the littlest and injured the largest. It's terrible when you think you have done everything to protect them and some predator somes and gets in. The first things my DH did was rebuild the goose house. The poor babies did not want to go inside for a few nights but we hope they are secure now. I put a light up for a few days but an old farmer told me I was just lighting the way for the predator so I stopped. First thing is to find out where the critters get in and fix it. Once a predator finds an easy meal they will be back until they have cleaned you out. Our chickens and geese are locked in each night. I have a hard time removing the clasp each day I know a raccoon can't . I'm sorry for your lose Sometimes we just have to start over alittle wiser than before.

 

[Julie R]

Well after walking around pen and checking everything - we found where it got in - it managed to get in between the pole and the wire fencing and from the way itty bitty was laying there looked like it was unable to get her out and gave up and left her there, so after working on it all day I hope it is finally fixed, the attack happened between 8:30 am and 11 am - and the other night the dogs were barking like crazy and we smelled the nasty little chicken killing devil SKUNK since we do not have raccons, or weasles ,but lucky for us the dogs managed to scare it off. The other two remaining chickens are fine they have calmed down and the ducks look like they are alright,the rabbits on the other hand are very spoked and will not let us pick them up but from what we can see they are unharmed.
My husband at first thought I was crazy for getting so upset about losing a chicken, but after I reminded him of how cute and little they were when we first got them home and how we watched them grow from little puff balls into semi-full grown chickens with their feathers -he finally got it and I had a hard time trying to stop him from bring them all back in the house to protect them !!! I plan on getting a few more girls but there will never be another "itty bitty " she will be missed.

Julie

 

[JudyMcKinn]

Wondered what part of the country you live in, that you don't have raccoons?
sorry for your loss. Good Luck.

 

[BabyGirls]

Well to update all my "new friends". Here is what has happened since my original post(and I also hope it answers and helps other too). After the mass killing of my girls, we decided to secure as much of the coop as possible, new boards all around, filled any holes and put tons of extra dirt all the way around and set 3 cage traps. We came home from a friends and found 4 deep areas being dug around the fence of something trying to get in, that upset me even more so we decided to camp out that night and just wait (weapon in hand). We waited in darkness for over an hour and there it came "A FOX". It worked around the coop a bit then came walking right toward us, got only 30 feet away and we took some shots at it (not sure we got it but NO return of that fox yet).

Next day we decided to take extra precautions and set up a motion light (with sensor that goes off with a beep sound inside our house). Well that night it went off and there was a huge raccoon trying to get in (no digging just pacing) We tried to get him but he ran. Back again then at 4:00 am, tried again and here we are in our 4th night tonight and can't get him. Tonight I'm trying sardines and 5 traps!!!

So I know that both, and including a small muskrat are hanging around. The raccoon will NOT take the bait and I am going on 2-3 times getting up in the middle of the night sitting in the dark. HELP

 

[Julie R]

Well after a few restless nights ( for me ) the remaining chickens are dealing with the loss of thier friend better than I am- the ducks dont seem to be to stressed either. I hope I have fixed the part of the fence that the skunk got in at , but I still look out window often ( drives my hubby crazy ). I live in new mexico and where I live there are no racoons ( its mostly desert country here ) and I see dead skunks on side of road often so I know we have the little stinkers around us. This weekend we are redesigning the coops for all animals even my rabbits are getting a makeover, just to be sure we are keeping everyone as safe as we can. Hopefully we dont lose anyone else. At frist I got the chickens just for the eggs but after watching them grow from little puff balls they are more like pets now. I hope to get more this weekend from a local breeder.

Julie R

 

[JudyMcKinn]

Babygirl, I would suggest you set up a target at about the distance away that you would probably be shooting at the predator, and see if your shots are going high or low. Then you can adjust your sights so you will be more likely to hit it. Frustrating to have the fox and coon that close, and not be able to hit them. Good luck.

 

[2mnypets]

Very good idea Judy. I know sometimes it takes forever to set your sights correctly. My hubby and I deer hunt and sometimes it seems I never get my gun fully sighted in. Also the type of ammunition that you use will change the sighting. You need to look on the ammo box that you are using and determine the distance you are shooting at. Then that will help you when you practice to make sure you are on target. Once you find ammo that works for you, don't change. It's actually better to stay with one brand due to the boring action of the gun and the barrel. Also make sure you clean your gun well so that each shot is a good one. Best of luck to you and I hope you nail those nasty predators that took your babies. un

Edited for this side note. Try and get some target pictures of the animal(s) that you are trying to shoot at. If you can't find them then search the web for pictures of the internal structures of the animal(s) you are having problems with. That way you know which area is the "vital area" for a humane kill. I know I'll probably get some slack for that, but that's what makes us different than those predetors that took your babies. I myself won't take a shot unless I can guarantee a humane kill the first time around. Sometimes a wounded animal is more dangerous then before you shot them.

 

[chicknmania]

We had the same problem (see my daytime predator post). During the day...almost a guarantee; skunks, minks, or weasels, whichever's most prevalent where you live. They're all related. One way you can get an idea is by looking at the way the predator kills and eats your birds. Skunks, minks, and weasels, kill by grabbing the bird by the base of the skull, and then they actually wrap their bodies around the bird's neck, which will mess up the spinal cord or break their neck. So the head might be missing as a result, or you could see extensive neck damage. They often eat just the innards, and leave the rest. Raccoons, in our experience, also can rip the head of a bird, but they tend to then make a big mess and tear the bird up, leaving everything everywhere. Possums, in our experience, eat everything right there; they leave very little except like the feet. I'm so sorry; I have gone through this too, recently, and a lot of us have. It is very devastating. Just do your best to barricade everything you can; look for tunnels or small holes in the ground in the floor of your coop or chicken pen, and around the walls, and set live traps, if you want to. Nowdays we visit our barn several times during the morning,trying to deter them, and skunks STILL killed one of our hens right under my stupid nose. A game warden told me minks are very difficult to live trap, and the best way to deter them is to barricade, barricade, barricade. They will eventually be less interested (hopefully) in eating your birds, as we are heading into summer and their babies are pretty much grown.

PS: I hope I wasn't too graphic in my descriptions, because I know it's painful; but it is helpful to know what to look for so you can get a better idea who the enemy is.

 

[bantymum]

Wow, you go girls, get those little buggers.
I really feel sorry for you having to go through that pain. We dont get those predators here except for the fox and the owls.
I hope you can tell them to stay away and never come back and not to try getting at any one else's chickens either!!!
May the BYC force be with you!