predators

[granny1950]

What would kill chickens and not eat them? Something must have climbed in a missing window pane and is killing my small flock. Almost looks like they are just biting the head off and leaving the body uneaten.

 

[Conan]

Weasel/Mink. They climb, tunnel and can squeeze through the smallest openings. They are notorious for eating the head and/or neck and leaving the remainder behind.
I HATE them.

Edited to add: That would be my guess, anyhow. Where are you located? Folks may be better able to help with a general idea.

 

[Howard E]

With missing heads and/or bites to the back of the neck and not much other damage and a lot of birds killed........I agree, most likely candidates are weasel/mink or one of the cousins. If so, they will be back to finish the job.

When weasels go on a killing spree, they kill anything that moves, and keep on killing until all movement stops. They generally don't eat what they kill.......they only kill it and do so as efficiently as possible with bites to the back of the head, base of the neck... that severs the spine. Kill that one and move on the the next one and kill it too. A mink may kill a few less and tends to stack the bodies up in a neat little row, as if filling up a shopping cart.

Candidate B, with missing heads and/or neck and perhaps a few more parts eaten and a few to several birds killed are coons. If so, they will also be back to finish the job.

If you value the remaining birds, you need to do the "tighten up". Fix the broken windows and close off any openings larger than an inch. In short, construct a physical barrier to prevent these vicious predators from getting inside the coop. They will wipe you out