Snake in nest box

[artsyrobin]

First time in 12 years i lost a hen to a snake, put my hand in the box, she was dead he went out to fast to get, had no eggs i had pulled them trying to break her of being broody, sooo researching, ceramic eggs? We always have snakes, but not one killing a grown hen, i need him gone. I've put bird netting down, any other ideas?

 

[MountainWoman73]

Interesting! What breed of snake? I'd love a picture.

I'm not sure what would deter him. Start by looking for the nooks and crannies he's using to get in and out of the coop and sealing them up. But that's going to be hard to do, especially if he's figured out how to use the chicken door. The solution may be trapping and relocating him miles away or killing him. Maybe others will have ideas.

 

[neo71665]

If it killed a grown chicken I'd be careful it might be venomous.

 

[Laura_BelgianBantams_63]

We once had a snake in the coop...at 3 eggs, no chook though. One of the eggs was fake...never saw that snake again. (Sorry snake).

 

[doublecrossranch]

I caught a large rat snake making its way towards a laying hen. He had passed up boxes full of eggs. My husband got him out but he went right back through the 1”x2” wire fencing. I made my husband kill it. I’m working on putting up 1/2” hardware cloth around the bottom to keep them out this year

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

First time in 12 years i lost a hen to a snake, put my hand in the box, she was dead he went out to fast to get, had no eggs i had pulled them trying to break her of being broody, sooo researching, ceramic eggs? We always have snakes, but not one killing a grown hen, i need him gone. I've put bird netting down, any other ideas?

I’m a reptile enthusiastic and love snakes, only getting into chickens a few years ago. It’s kind of dogma in reptile circles that snakes are pretty good at gauging the size of their prey, and seldom kill prey that is too large to swallow. Unfortunately, I’ve found first hand that’s not truly the case with black rat snakes and poultry. We had guinea fowl laying free range nests last year, and the black rat snakes really honed in on those nests. It got so bad that I was literally fighting the snake for the eggs one evening! The worst though is that they got into our new coop and killed two guinea fowl that were nearly full grown. Too big for him to eat, but still killed them.

I think it’s likely that black rat snakes are just so attracted to birds as prey that they are instinctively drawn to them, and the species is evidently poor at gauging what size it can actually eat. These snakes are overall beneficial, eating rodents and maybe even copperheads, which we also have in abundance. I started capturing black rat snakes that showed a preference for poultry and eggs, placed in a pillow case, then drove to the property of farmers who we know who don’t keep chickens, as they are beneficial if you aren’t trying to keep chickens. Here’s a pic of a black rat snake trying really hard to find a way into the coop. I needed to put jambs on the doors so there was no gap bigger than the 1/2” hardware cloth itself. I’m very sorry about your hen. I was so angry with the snake that killed our guineas, though I still released him.

 

[imnukensc]

Just relocated this one unharmed the other day.

 

[artsyrobin]

I’m a reptile enthusiastic and love snakes, only getting into chickens a few years ago. It’s kind of dogma in reptile circles that snakes are pretty good at gauging the size of their prey, and seldom kill prey that is too large to swallow. Unfortunately, I’ve found first hand that’s not truly the case with black rat snakes and poultry. We had guinea fowl laying free range nests last year, and the black rat snakes really honed in on those nests. It got so bad that I was literally fighting the snake for the eggs one evening! The worst though is that they got into our new coop and killed two guinea fowl that were nearly full grown. Too big for him to eat, but still killed them.

I think it’s likely that black rat snakes are just so attracted to birds as prey that they are instinctively drawn to them, and the species is evidently poor at gauging what size it can actually eat. These snakes are overall beneficial, eating rodents and maybe even copperheads, which we also have in abundance. I started capturing black rat snakes that showed a preference for poultry and eggs, placed in a pillow case, then drove to the property of farmers who we know who don’t keep chickens, as they are beneficial if you aren’t trying to keep chickens. Here’s a pic of a black rat snake trying really hard to find a way into the coop. I needed to put jambs on the doors so there was no gap bigger than the 1/2” hardware cloth itself. I’m very sorry about your hen. I was so angry with the snake that killed our guineas, though I still released him.

I am so sorry about your guineas! What is incredibly frustrating, i am usually tolerant of them, always felt relocation was the first possibility, but this has gutted me- so i am trying spraying the coop with clove, not sure if that will even phase them, the coop door is open during the day to allow the hens to lay- i can't figure out how to set it up the way you mention, the coop is built 4 feet up, and attached to our porch, what are your thoughts on repellent products?

 

[cmom]

This snake was after my chicks. Missing it's head.

 

[RaineyTN]

Never lost a chicken to one but have lost plenty of eggs.