something killed all my chickens

[jakec]

i had 3 roosters and one hen get killed mon night. i went and got 10 more chickens ( mostly full grown bantams) and they all got killed last night. the coop is a foot off the ground and has 2 in mesh chicken wire on it. there is two holes about 6 in high by 10 in long on each side of the coop. i have a domestic cat and a chihuahua that have been around the chickens and never tried to get them. what do yall think it could be? i checked on them at midnight and they were fine but when i got up at 5 they were all dead or missing.

 

[Sjisty]

Raccoon, possum, skunk, weasel - anything could have gotten in with such large holes in the sides of the coop.

Sorry for your loss, but before you get any more chickens, maybe you should revise your coop to make it safer.

 

[Mattemma]

Chicken wire will do your chickens in every time.Like someone says it is good to keep the chickens in,but not the predators out.Coons are VERY strong. Sorry for your loss.I would redo the coop with metal wired fencing with VERY small gaps.A coon will put a head or leg out of the fencing gaps and eat it.

Sorry for your loss!

 

[GA_in_GA]

1/2" hardware cloth, while a bit pricey, will keep out most predators. There are quite a few threads on building safer coops and runs.

 

[jakec]

the holes in the coop are from whatever got them it was new chicken wire. i got a roll of welded wire fence that looks a whole lot tougher so maybe that will do it. im gonna sit out tonight with a rifle and get whatever comes back for my chickens. i think it might be a coon ive been told they will pull the chickens head out the wire and kill them and 3 of them were like that. it just sucks those were some cool ckickens.`

 

[ReikiStar]

Quote:
Sorry to hear about all those chickens. How large are the holes in your welded fire fencing? Anything larger than a 1/2" and a raccoon can and WILL pull pieces of your chicken through it -- as you've already seen. They will eat whatever they can grab and they are very strong and dexterous. If your welded wire isn't small enough...spend the bucks and get hardware cloth. If it were your life on the line, wouldn't you want someone to do all they could to protect it?

 

[Carrie Lynn]

Wire no larger than 1/2 inch, and well-secured, is the way to go.
You might kill a predator tonight but until your coop is really secure, it will be an ongoing problem.
Good luck fortifying your coop.

 

[ChickenSnake]

Quote:
Sorry to hear about all those chickens. How large are the holes in your welded fire fencing? Anything larger than a 1/2" and a raccoon can and WILL pull pieces of your chicken through it -- as you've already seen. They will eat whatever they can grab and they are very strong and dexterous. If your welded wire isn't small enough...spend the bucks and get hardware cloth. If it were your life on the line, wouldn't you want someone to do all they could to protect it?

-nods enthusiastically-

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

there is two holes about 6 in high by 10 in long on each side of the coop.

I've seen my 100 lb Maremma squeeze through holes not much bigger than that.
Most likely your problem is a coon​

 

[jakec]

thanks for all the help. im raising it off the ground a few more feet and putting 1/2 in hardware cloth on the whole thing like yall said. then ill be looking for more chickens.