Preditor help...

[Jeepgirl2c]

do you live close to a river or stream ?
it sounds like someone from the weasel family, more like a mink to me.
don't underestimate a rat, either.
if there is no hole a fox can get through, I doubt any large bird would crawl in.
Wild animals don't kill for fun. to them it is serious business.
a weasel is a hoarder. he will kill more than one bird with the intention of coming back to retrieve all the dead ones at a later time. often you will find a chicken dead with it's head poking through the fence.
that is because the weasel dragged it as far as he could before it got too stuck to move.

We do live by a stream that irrigates the pastures behind our property. After reading up on them I believe it might be something from the weasel family too. Thanks for all your help!

 

[Jeepgirl2c]

Thank you for all your help and comments. As I said we will rebuild and start fresh next spring. The eight baby hens and five turkeys made it through the night. We have a trap set for anything that may come. Nothing caught last night. I know with a little research and careful planning the rebuild will be successful and we can start fresh next spring.

 

[jvls1942]

There is a pine tree....it is going down! I think we are going to rethink the whole set up and start from scratch.

 

[Dan Goddard]

Open soffit where roof hits the upper wall plate, doors that flex at top or bottom even when locked or latched, if raised off the ground holes in flooring, holes in walls, holes in roof, poorly latched chicken door, and predators in the coop when you closed it. Predators in the coop happens more often than one might imagine

Any opening or opportunity to open large or small can be the entry or exit even through an open soffit space between roof and upper wall plate.

I have seen raccoons climb through an un-screened ventilation fan housing 6 feet up the wall and 3 feet from the roof in a commercial chicken house by jumping. Kind of like a squirrel on a bird feeder. One never knows.

Fox, coyotes, mink, weasel, and even raccoons can all get into a killing frenzy. But mink and weasel are usually the worst in multiple kills in my experience.

Hawks, owls, and birds of prey generally only kill to eat one at a time. I have hunted with birds of prey as a falconer and rarely ever see multiple kills as part of their M.O. but in predation almost anything is possible

Sorry to hear about your loss

 

[TominWa]

Also look at trees... I had a tree outside my pasture that had a limb over the fence. Coons wold climb the tree and jump into the pasture. Removing the limb, removed the coons.

Yes! Looked up recently and there was mom and two little ones playing Tarzan up there. I mean they were as good at it as monkeys.

 

[abraga]

Once a predator discivers easy pickins...they will continue to come. 1st priority is to completely predator proof ur coop and put ur chickens into lockdown at night. A weasal can squeeze into a 1" square hole.weasals usually kill and drink the blood. SET A TRAP. Also..check around ur coop for foot prints to identify predator. U can sprinkle flour around and identify the prints to. A young coon/fox family would kill a whole coop of birds. Possums will kill chickens to. I once had a big male killing/beheading two hens at a time...however it always took the carcasses. If u have c hicken wire around ur coop...weasals, coons and fox can chew right through it.

 

[17 chickens]

It sounds like a coon is getting in. Have your husband pee around the outside of the coop close to the fencing. Always be sure to lock your chickens up at night no matter what! If you have a latch on the coop and doors put a lock or a piece of metal wire and twist it so it can't be opened easy. Coons have great hands and are smart so go the extra mile and you should be ok! But peeing around the coop marks it as your space and smell!