Raccoons?

[Greendecember]

I posted this as a response on the chicken side but I thought maybe I'd see if the Guinea people had any suggestions. I am seeing many more differences in the two types of birds than I originally thought...


I was all fat and sassy thinking I was doing so good with our birds

.... until tonight.

I spoke too soon...

6 Guineas had decided once again not to go to the coop tonight when we went to shut up the coop. My husband came in and said "I think your dog got the birds."

(When ever the Doberman is "bad" she is YOUR dog to whom ever is being addressed at the time LOL) I went out to see what happened after the Doberman came in from her potty break. They usually stay in the oak tree over the coop and so are not an issue with the dog. This has been an on going problem but they have been fine for weeks doing this despite my efforts to get everyone in at night. I can't chase a bird up a tree

This was not the work of the doberman. I've seen what her toys look like. These 2 guineas were mostly undisturbed except they were missing their heads. Add that to the fact that one was in the yard and one in the back of the pick up which I have NEVER seen the doberman show any interest in getting in. 2 down.

The others no where to be found in their usual tree above the coop they share with the rest of the guineas and the chickens. I inspected the rest of the yard and saw no birds either.

So i go to let the goats guardian dog out to scare off what I suspect is a raccoon. She found a live Guinea under my car and dispatched it. 3 down

and not my intent. I never thought about a bird being UNDER my car!

She then ran around to the horse lane and found another already dead one. Same MO 4 down

.

Reinspected the rest of the birds area / our yard and didn't find the other 2. So I head back in the house. About 30 min later I hear a guinea being killed in the east pasture. Not the dog. The bunch of feathers was on the other side of the fence but no bird to be found. Also, there was not a bunch of feathers laying around where the other birds were found dead. So #4 may have been eaten by something else.

So I put the guardian dog back with the goats. I checked the coop several times and the birds in there seemed undisturbed.

The chickens are so good about going to their coop at night. Which is awesome because their job is to eat bugs and stuff around the yard and give us eggs. The Guineas were bought as tick control. Hard to let them roam the property for ticks if they won't come in at night and are dinner for a raccoon.

What really irks me is it is such a waste! ONLY the head! At least eat most of the bird if your going to kill it *sigh*

Payday I am investing in motion lights and tomorrow I plan to have my husband start peeing around the coop and tree. I never in my life thought I would ask my husband to pee anywhere but in the bathroom. He is house trained though so I never have to ask him to do that just to clarify LOL

Any other suggestion are always welcome.

 

[justbugged]

I so sorry about your losses tonight. It sounds as though you have a good plan in place. It surprised me that the LSG dispatched the bird like that. But I do think that from your description that you have several types of predators at work. It sounds like the raccoons got 2 and scattered the other birds, once that happened the Coyotes, and other predators took advantage of the opportunity.

 

[Greendecember]

I think you might be correct. I thought the one in the horse lane was missing it's head but once I was able to get to it this morning I noticed it was it's hind end that was missing.

Also, my husband thought only 6 were out last night. Turns out there were more because when I got up to check on them at day break there were 7 more running around the yard. Looks like all toll we lost 3 to predators and one to the LGD. Could have been worse but I hope to prevent it from happening again.

The LGD is really still a pup. She is almost a year old. Does great with our goats. We got her from a goat farmer. I think she went after it as a toy not meaning to kill it, but we know how that goes.

I just hope the LGD can scare off what ever it is and I don't have to resort to trapping /shooting it. I guess I am kinda a softie. It is just a predator doing what predators do to survive. It doesn't know those are MY birds not a buffet. I need to look into local wild perseveres because trapping it and dumping it "out in the country" is #1 where it is to start with and #2 just making it someone elses problem which is not right either.

Lack of random critters is what I love about the city but presence random critters are what I love about the country. It is a double edge sword

 

[cracking up]

We put up a game cam and found out we had a bobcat coming around every night. Our guineas are usually the first in the coop at night (wish the geese would take a lesson).

 

[bigdawg]

large live trap. leave one end closed and bait it with a dead guinea, or some stinking meat of some kind. i have one baited year round. i catch,coons, one bobcat,one house cat, and lots of possums. good luck catching your predator. i built my live trap and added a live bait box on one end. i mostly use old meat or a fresh kill.

 

[Chicken Casanova]

I heard that if you put a raidio in you coop turn to a talk show type station that preditors wont
come near you coop. thinking that humans are in it. It will certianly frighten the racoons and opossums away.

they
just wont know what to do

 

[deerman]

thats sound like a owl......the one in the pickup..another member had ducks missing finding body part on his truck ,use that as bait caught GH OWL, I did same thing caught this guy, they kill by ripping the head or neck area.

plus coon eat on the spot most times

 

[Greendecember]

Quote:
Yikes! What do you do with him after you caught him? Won't he try to get home?

 

[deerman]

I let him go on the spot , as they also kill predators like coons,fox, and etc....most of my birds are penned.

 

[zazouse]

I agree with deerman sounds like an owl flushed them out of the tree, i had this happen last week spent a good 2 hours trying to herd 21 guines back to the safe zone from 2 till 4 in the morning but i missed 3 and found them dead in 3 different places.

Guineas can't see well at all even in a low lite so unless they are able to hide till morning they are eaten.

I have had my own dogs pounce on a guinea that left the tree at night, not the dogs fault they are trying to catch whatever hit the ground thinking it's a preditors.