Shrew...who knew?

[Mybackyardpeepers]

Too funny!

All summer I had to remove them from the run. One evening they wouldn't go into their coop because one was in the corner next to the ramp!!

 

[jspeese]

Shrews are quite common but you don't often see them because they prefer to remain hidden under leaves, tall grass, etc. They aren't rodents, they belong to the order Insectivora, as do moles and hedgehogs. Voles on the other hand are rodents, along with mice, rats, squirrels, porcupines, beavers, hamsters, groundhogs, etc. They are small (at least the species found in the US are, although there are bigger ones in Africa and other parts of the world) and like most small warm-blooded creatures, they have a very high metabolism, could be described as nervous and hyper, but that's just the way they are (hummingbirds are much the same way), and need to eat on a continuous basis. They literally live life in the fast lane and eat nearly anything they can catch, mostly insects and worms. If nothing else is available they may eat other things but insects and other small creatures are their preferred food. The order name Insectivora translates as insect-eating/eater.

 

[Kluk-Kluk]

When I was in college in Iowa my cat would go at night and bring home about 10-15 and leave them on the back porch. I kept thinking the population in Ames must have dropped to almost nothing.

Wow, that's a lot of "gifts" your cat presented you with!!

 

[Kluk-Kluk]

All summer I had to remove them from the run. One evening they wouldn't go into their coop because one was in the corner next to the ramp!!

Very interesting fear - sounds like one chicken taught all the others about this "danger"!

 

[Rshumpal]

Wow, that's a lot of "gifts" your cat presented you with!!

Yes, for about a year, she either got bored or ran out of shrews. Morning routine was trash bag and broom check. Sweep porch, ick

 

[Kluk-Kluk]

Yes, for about a year, she either got bored or ran out of shrews.

Our cat used to bring a chipmunk per day and it seems that she never ran out. When she got old, she stopped hunting, and we noticed an increase in chipmunks, which are cute but annoying as far as tunneling and getting at chicken feed. Now we have a young cat who hunts; he doesn't bother to bring us his trophies but just eats them, so I don't know how many he gets. Only once in a while do I find a dead but uneaten prize. This new cat was once abandoned and had to fend for himself, so I think he eats his catches out of habit, not necessity.

 

[Bantie Barb]

So, there was a commotion in the chicken run yesterday. At least there is some evidence that something went down. I checked in on the chickens and found them in their coop during the day. That is not really an indicator of much, except that mine usually spend their entire day in the run, with only occasional visits to the coop for laying eggs, or just scratching around in the bedding. The odd part was that a few hours later, they were still in the coop, making lots of noise, and did not seem to want to go out into the run. I went out to check things, and upon entering the run, found what I first thought was a mouse, dead, on the ground near the door. Oddly, this "mouse" had no visible ears, or other telltale mouse features.

I had to look it up on google, and discovered it was a shrew! I didn't even know we had shews in Minnesota, and have never seen one before in my entire life. In any case, I think they found this thing, and attacked it, or something, and that it may have fought back. Two of the hens have slightly bloody scratches on their combs and wattles, but are otherwise doing fine. No wonder they didn't want to go back out into the run. They were probably in the coop...personal interpretation here of chicken behavior...shouting at each other about what in the world just happened!

I did read that chickens won't eat them, due to scent glands or something, which explains why they killed it, and left it there.

Anyone else have experiences with these?

Here it is...
View attachment 1972844

My cats have caught more than I can kerp count of this year. Even the cats won't eat them. They just kill them and leave them on the po=ch or on the feed house floor. Must have been a year of the shrew for the amiunt they have killed.