Sdwd

[cmom]

Something got into my chick pen last night and killed 14 of my 8 to 10 week old chicks. Don't think that was an owl. When I had Pheasants in that coop a bobcat killed several of my pheasants. We caught the bobcat a couple of nights later in the pen.

 

[finnfur]

Predators are feeding young now so the killing is up . More mouths to feed .

 

[Yard full o' rocks]

Scott - Good Job - Did you need to stay up late. You know what they say in hunting camp " The big Possum walks late" LOL

We carry a .410 around during the day, but I have a "recipe" that I put out at night when need be to handle the nocturnal critters. It's no good for owls, but for coons, opossums, bobcats, etc it is quite deadly

 

[cmom]

I set traps in both pens where I had recent kills and locked all of the birds in their coops so the only birds out are the bait birds. They are young mutt cockerels.

 

[rancher hicks]

I don't understand the rational of leaving the coop open 24/7. The peeping of the young would be a sure draw to anything walking by.

 

[wekiva bird]

Rain most all yesterday afternoon and all night and still raining!!!!!!! ck the water gage it said we got 3 1/2 inches so far.
Tom: I did not need more water, but it happen that way.
I hope everybody will get the critters under control.

 

[rancher hicks]

I saw in Sundays paper an ad for a solar owl thing. I thought perhaps that might help in the vermin department if they saw an owl glowing on top of the coop or in the yard.

However the owl itself is only 51/4 inches high.

I also thought. I wonder if you took one of the those big owls they sell, cut out it's bottom and put a solar light up in there, leaving the "panel" where it could get the sun, and by cutting out the eyes and replacing them with red opaque plastic, if that would work as a deterrent.

Would owls deter other night vermin?

 

[cmom]

I don't understand the rational of leaving the coop open 24/7. The peeping of the young would be a sure draw to anything walking by.

Once they settle in for the night they are quiet. Early in the mornings about 4:30 am the roosters will crow for a little bit. The birds will start coming out of the coop at gray light and that is when the owl has struck. It's light out at 6:00am and the time on the owl video was 5:25 am. Went out a 6:00 am this morning and let everyone out of their coop. Nothing in the traps. Will set them again tonight.

 

[finnfur]

Once they settle in for the night they are quiet. Early in the mornings about 4:30 am the roosters will crow for a little bit. The birds will start coming out of the coop at gray light and that is when the owl has struck. It's light out at 6:00am and the time on the owl video was 5:25 am. Went out a 6:00 am this morning and let everyone out of their coop. Nothing in the traps. Will set them again tonight.

They will be back . When there is free easy food at the food bank they always come.

I don't understand the rational of leaving the coop open 24/7. The peeping of the young would be a sure draw to anything walking by.

When mine go out they are almost adults - the youngest out are now 14 weeks+. A large owl may take them but not the size of owl she is having problems with. They are enclosed in the Enet 24/7 . With Owls even if you waited to dark you would have the problem because low light is usually when they strike. I believe. To be a problem it needs to fly over or jump the electric fence.
If I have a problem I will go to auto close / open doors. This time of year I have had my shower and ready for bed at chicken bedtime.
I guess I'm lazy LOL

 

[cmom]

Quote:
I caught an owl not long ago in a trap. I used the body of it's kill as bait and it came back. It couldn't resist. It was a big owl, bigger than a hen. the first owl went into a coop and attacked 3 of the chickens. They were bloody and there was blood in the coop. One hen and one rooster's combs were torn up but they survived. That pen was a narrower pen and I did put fishing line up crisscrossing the line. The owl then moved to another pen and started killing. The second pen was a very large pen 40' wide x 70' long for my general population birds. The smaller breeding pens are 12' wide x 70' long. For a very long time I have had no problems with predators until this year. Most are diggers and the electric wire around the outside of the fence has kept the predators out. I have had hawks but they have not taken any birds but the hawks are around in the daytime and we are out working during the day and the crows do chase them off if they see them.