PTSD chickens? Fox?

[Katybird80]

So a couple of weeks ago I had some sort of predator (likely a fox) enter both my chicken yard and duck yard and completely devastate everything. I lost 3 chickens, 2 ducks, had a duck with a severely broken leg and another with a huge wound on its back between the wings and another that was limping but with no visible signs of injury. All but 2 of the surviving chickens were in a neighboring property and the other 2 were hiding under the house. All of this took place during a particularly severe rain and wind storm which is atypical for the area. I was able to gather all of the ducks, which were in shock and freezing despite having a heat lamp, as well as, the 2 chickens under the house. I brought them inside and got them all heated and dry and gave them food and water while I evaluated any/all injuries. Eventually the remaining chickens came back to the coop and I also brought them in the house. Long story short, my concern is now with the chickens. They will only come out of the coop in the morning when I first open it, they stay out for no more than 10 minutes and then go back into the coop where they remain until I go out to lock it up in the evening.
The weather has been sunny and clear. I think they are traumatized from this experience and are too scared to be out of the safety of the coop. It breaks my heart because they used to enjoy roaming the yard and being regular chickens. I am not sure what to do. It doesn’t seem healthy for them to stay roosted all day and night. They have also stopped laying, which doesn’t surprise me. Any thoughts or suggestions??

 

[Katybird80]

On a side note, both the coop and run are predator proof but when this happened I was away overnight and the person who was supposed to be caretaking left not only the run door open but the coop door as well. This is not an event that will happen again unless something is able to rip through a very secure run/coop.

 

[Happy Helper]

Could it be a dog attack? I have lost more chickens from dogs than any wild critters. I have had hawks get a chicken, and weasels or something that cuts off the heads. I have seen a fox enter the henhouse when the door has accidently opened and only one chicken was missing. Racoons have been maybe the worst for me but none of them kill as many chickens in a short time as dogs.
I only let my chicken out to free range if I am around to keep an eye on them. I have learned the hard way. They seem to be quite content to be out a few hours and then back in where it is safe. Mostly it was our own dog, a Basset Hound and the neighbor Labradors when they were puppies. I still don't trust our Basset Hound completely.
Your chickens will start laying again and they will start going out again just as if nothing happened. It could take some time for them to start laying but they'll get over it. That has been my experience. Hope you see them laying soon again.

 

[Katybird80]

Dog was my first instinct. We have a neighbor with whom we share a backyard and they have a husky/wolf mix. They usually supervise any outdoor activity with their dog. I, however, did not witness any of this because I was out of town the day/night it happened. I have had numerous conversations with them and it has been agreed that they will supervise the dog and I will keep all fowl contained. As I said, both the run and the coop were left open so I guess if anyone is to blame it would be me. I had another neighbor caretaking but it may have been a lapse in judgement asking that particular person. Hard lesson learned. Going forward, I guess the best approach is just wait and see. I know the egg production usually slows this time of year as the weather gets cooler but my concern is just getting them comfortable coming out of the coop during the day. I am just going to stick to the routine for now and hopefully they will “come around”.
Thanks for the response. I did ask the neighbor if maybe the dog got into the coop. They of course deny this happening. And frankly at this point what’s done is done. As sad as it is..

 

[Happy Helper]

My neighbor seems to be keeping his dogs out of our yard but I occasionally see them over here. It only takes moments for them to kill 15 or 20 chickens. The neighbor knows we have cameras all around so I think that is making him more careful with his dogs. I still don't trust our Basset Hound, therefore I either have him in the house when the chickens are out or I am out with them. I have never had a predator kill more than one chicken at a time, whereas dogs kill as many as they can catch. As sad as it is, we can always get more chickens, that's what I did.

 

[cmom]

Electric wires around your coop and run will protect your birds. I have electric wires around my coops and pens and nothing has penetrated and once a predator does get zapped they don't try again. I also have good heavy duty netting covering the pens and concrete under the gayes all due to losses from predators in the past. I have several cameras up and see a predator most nights when they roam here on at least one of the cameras. Good luck...

 

[cmom]

My neighbor seems to be keeping his dogs out of our yard but I occasionally see them over here. It only takes moments for them to kill 15 or 20 chickens. The neighbor knows we have cameras all around so I think that is making him more careful with his dogs. I still don't trust our Basset Hound, therefore I either have him in the house when the chickens are out or I am out with them. I have never had a predator kill more than one chicken at a time, whereas dogs kill as many as they can catch. As sad as it is, we can always get more chickens, that's what I did.

A bobcat did kill 14 of my birds one night. It made the mistake of coming back.

 

[cmom]

When I have let my birds out of their pens they are only out for probably less than 10 minutes and then they all go back into their pens where they feel safe. Because of the electric wires around my coops and pens and the heavy duty netting covering the pens and the concrete under the gates, I leave the pop doors open 24/7/365. The birds can go in and out at their will. Again, good luck...