Snakes?

[jenniferf82]

The last couple days, I've had 2 chicks just disappear from my coops.. The coops have no damage, have not been dug under. They are 1" X 2" mesh and the chicks were too big to squeeze through it..
I used to have a problem with rats getting my eggs. But, I haven't had eggs eaten in awhile.. Which I thought was quite strange as I didn't poison or anything. It's like the rats just disappeared.
Do I potentially have snakes? I know I have snakes in my yard but they've never really caused issue with my chickens. This is the first year I've let the hens raise their own young. Those were my only small chicks.
Will the snake just move on or is it going to try to find others to eat? Are they an issue with adult birds?

 

[Rebel Rooster]

I think that a snake is a good bet (especially if you've seen some around) Probably a big rat snake...
Being in a warmer climate here in the south, he may hang around for a while unless you find him and remove him (one way or another)

 

[panner123]

If it is a snake, he is in your coop. You stated the chicks are to big to fit though the wire. If a snake had a chick in it's mouth, it wouldn't fir though the holes either. The snake may have his own way of getting in the coop. You need to check for that.

I have seen a hen eat her young. You might consider that too.

 

[rstampa]

Quote:
I agree 100%. I would suggest using a smaller dimension wire. I use 1/2"x1/2" hardware cloth. I don't have any problems with rats or snakes getting in the coop or the run.

 

[RAREROO]

Rats could be the problem too.

I haven't yet had any problem with snakes, but I have caught a couple of them in a 1x1 inch plastinc mesh, on was a big Indigo snake that got cought in the mesh around my garden, and the other, I had a new 14x 100 ft, with 1x1 inch roll of mesh that was still folded up, new out of the package and I had it sitting on top of one of my little chicken shelters and an oak snake got caught up in it. Because, it's plastic the snakes try to go through it, get about half way through and start trying to go back through another hole in the mesh and keep weaving themselves untill the plastic mesh gets cought in their scales and traps them. So you may want to consider getting some to go around your coop. You can get it at Lowes or Walmart during the spring.

 

[rainbowgardens]

I keep my chicks in their tractor in the garage until it's warm enough outside. They get little trips outside of the cage to run around in the garage and on the driveway while I'm out there. This spring one went missing even though I was right there with them. Never could figure out what happened to it.

Just this morning I was cleaning out a corner in the garage and I found a snake skin. It was at least 3 feet long. Mystery solved.

 

[Mojo Chick'n]

I had a snake get into the quail cage - it also had 1x2 wire - he got in, ate three young quail, and got stuck cause he couldn't get back out - so yeah, you need to look for another exit/entrance.

This was a 5 foot rat snake, pretty thing, very sweet natured and calm. I had had problems with him twice before - this was his third strike... he didn't get to come up to bat again. (I know it was the same snake, cause I painted the end of his tail Ford Blue).

meri

 

[RAREROO]

Mojo Chick'n :

I had a snake get into the quail cage - it also had 1x2 wire - he got in, ate three young quail, and got stuck cause he couldn't get back out - so yeah, you need to look for another exit/entrance.

This was a 5 foot rat snake, pretty thing, very sweet natured and calm. I had had problems with him twice before - this was his third strike... he didn't get to come up to bat again. (I know it was the same snake, cause I painted the end of his tail Ford Blue).

meri

I have caught the same rat snake in my barn several times before too. I don't like to kill them because they are supposed to eat rattlesnakes, so we just took him across the river and he just kept coming back, I'm pretty sure he is the oen that got caught in the mesh that I mentioned earlier.​

 

[StupidBird]

I'm still trying to wrap my brain around painting snake tails blue.

I've rehomed black snake to a local gal's horse barn, they're her pets! And have requests for more from others. In GA at least Indigo snakes are protected, its a shame it got itself killed that way. I stopped using plastic netting over the blueberries because birds and snakes were always dying in it.

ford Blue, really?

 

[M To The Maxx]

Quote:
I agree 100%. I would suggest using a smaller dimension wire. I use 1/2"x1/2" hardware cloth. I don't have any problems with rats or snakes getting in the coop or the run.

I agree with both posts.