Snakes in coop

[Vampire Gardener]

I know the snake isn't poisonous which is why I haven't killed it yet. I just got my second egg today and when I came out 2 hours later I found this guy hanging around in the coop. I don't have food in the coop, it is all outside. I only have the automatic chicken door and a door for me that I keep closed. Doesn't look like he got an egg so maybe he won't build a nest (or whatever they call it) in the coop.

My coop is mobile and I started to build a predator proof run but my girls love to forage so I got a mobile electric fence and didn't finish the run. It is covered cow panels with a tarp and I have 1/2" welded wire covering them.

My biggest issue right now is that I have places the snake can nest in the wall of my coop. I created space for storage of food and nesting boxes and a separate segregation area so I could keep them separate. Though I did make all the openings on the outside of the coop small, I wasn't as concerned with the openings inside.

I guess it is possible that the snake has been there for longer than today but not sure. My girls are 22 weeks old today. The snake is at least 4' long but maybe bigger. And I got my first egg on Sunday and my second one today.

I'm debating removing the walls, but then that will give the girls more places to roost that are higher up. Will they use lower roosts when the weather gets too cold? I don't want them to get frost bite from the draft/ventilation at the top of the lean to.

 

[BlueBaby]

Do you have any mice or other rodents around? They attract snakes.

 

[Vampire Gardener]

We have mice out in the shed and moles and voles in the garden. I'm hoping to catch him and put him in a raised bed to kill the voles. But they may be too big for the snake.

 

[BlueBaby]

We have mice out in the shed and moles and voles in the garden. I'm hoping to catch him and put him in a raised bed to kill the voles. But they may be too big for the snake.

Put him in where the mice are at then and let him take care of those for you then.

 

[Chicalina]

what sort of snake is it?

 

[Qwerty3159]

That is a black rat snake. Thanks for not killing it. They will take eggs and chicks but they’re amazing rodent predators and harmless to humans.

 

[Vampire Gardener]

That is a black rat snake. Thanks for not killing it. They will take eggs and chicks but they’re amazing rodent predators and harmless to humans.

I don't like hurting creatures in general. Are the rat snakes able to kill my birds if cornered in the coop? A couple of my girls were curious when the snake left the coop and some got in the snakes way. I think I am more scared of the battle they will have then either of the animals are.

 

[Qwerty3159]

I doubt it, it’s certainly possible but I’d put the likelihood of that in the freak accident category.

Generally unless the snake is truly cornered and being attacked by the chickens it will try to escape. 9/10 times I would say they’re more interested in the eggs rather than taking down live birds. I would be worried about small bantams being taken, but not much bigger than that.

I’m having a little trouble understanding what you mean by the spaces in the walls but I don’t think you need to worry about the snake living inside the coop. Any structural changes you decided to make to keep the snake out can be reversed in the winter anyways, since the snakes will be inactive.

I would be more concerned about having spaces rodents could possibly inhabit. Aside from that I’m curious if you have any trees or non-electrified fencing that the snake could’ve passed over to get into the coop. Typically snakes handle it very badly and sometimes will even be injured getting stuck in the fence and shocked, so I am surprised this one made it through.