Something killed my entire flock of silkies

[Alex#242]

I work night shift, I let my birds out at 7am when I woke up at 3pm and went outside all my silkies, 12 in total, were all dead. The coop door was standing wide open. All the birds were still in the run unmutilated just chewed on. There were dog tracks all over the place. Im almost positive the neighbors dog got in through the open door and went out the hole in the front. I dont want to cause problems with my neighbors but this was a big loss financially any suggestions?

 

[Brahma Chicken5000]

Wow that is absolutely horrible! I’m so sorry for your losses. Definitely talk to your neighbors about having them pay for your chickens that their dog killed.

 

[atalantis]

yeah umm, I had 2 silkies too, and they got eten by some animal. they had gone missing and then my beloved call duck went missin 2

 

[GracieJ]

I wouldn’t think twice about talking to the neighbours. Their negligence has caused such an unnecessary lost of life. Sorry for your loss. How did the dog get into your garden? Try and secure it to stop it coming in if their owners are not going to be responsible for them x

 

[Folly's place]

So sorry for your loss! Can you track the dog back to the neighbor's? Do take pictures of the mess, and tracks in the pen, before cleaning it up. Have Animal Control out to document the destruction if possible.
Can you talk to the neighbors about it? Carefully? It will be hard to prove that it's a particular dog without visual proof of some sort, or if the neighbor is willing to agree that his dog was out and involved.
Set up a game camera, because the culprit is likely to return. Then get him!
Electric fencing is very good at keeping ground predators out, and will be worth adding in the future.
Mary

 

[Hyroler]

That sucks! If your not sure it was your neighbors dog sometimes it not worth it to make the accusation.People get pretty defensive when you accuse there pet of doing something as terrible as this without any proof.Im just saying if you find out later it was someone elses dog. You may be stuck living next to someone that hates you for a long time.I would look over fence into there yard maybe there are some feathers or some kind of evidence before approaching neighbor.In my experience whereever dog came from he will be back and probably soon.Have camera ready

 

[Northern.Ontario]

Take pictures and consider filing a police report

 

[Howard E]

So if I understand this correctly, your birds were confined and protected inside a run, but you believe a dog somehow opened(?) the coop door, then went into the coop, through the pop door into the run and killed your birds there? Key questions would be how it managed to gain entry through the coop door? Not saying this is your fault.....not in any way......but more of a learning opportunity as to how this could have happened so you and others like you can avoid whatever it was that resulted in the outcome you had.

Other than that, if you go to the sticky at the top of the predator post, there is a "worst predator" thread with a poll attached to it. Out of the 18 named predators in the poll, raccoons and dogs manage to account for over 40% of the votes. So they are a serious threat, and dogs in particular a troublesome one as it not only involves the predator.....the dog......but by association, the owner as well. Often times the owners are as much of a problem or more than the dog itself, as they will defend it as if it were your fault their dog killed your birds. Some are responsible and will own it, others will not. You never know how they will respond until they are given a chance to.

But putting that aside, with the birds, it is safe to assume the worst is coming....so you plan accordingly. In my experience, the absolute best method of dealing with your neighbor's dog is to greet them with a blistering hot electric fence. One dose per dog is usually all it takes for them to leave....and never to return.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/dogs-and-electric-fences.1210854/

Due to an influx of strange new dogs the past month or so, I recently pinned some bacon strips to the hot wires to help these new dogs along on their journey of discovery. It seems to have worked wonders. Birds are still alive and the visiting dogs have never been back.

I think it is safe to assume that if you have chickens, you will also get visits from dogs. They can't help it. Hard wired into them. And given a chance, they will do a lot of damage. So you don't give them a chance. You bust em on their very first visit and do so harshly.

 

[Boonie Stomper]

Last year there was a mystery night attacker that used a doggie door into the coop (had been letting flock use to go in and out at will). The predator also took hens out through it.

For the next few nights I had a big rat snap trap placed before that entrance so whatever it was got its paw or nose snapped the next attempted entry. It probably was the rather large stray cat that had been prowling that has now stopped hanging around my yard.

I don't leave that door unsecured any more now, either!

Anyhow... other evidence can be gleaned by powdering the area near the entrance to capture tracks.

 

[Acre4Me]

Sorry for your loss! If you are not sure about neighbor's dog, I wouldn't accuse without proof or some decent evidence. Being in a negative relationship with a neighbor can really be impactful, so I wouldn't go there unless you were sure and had some kind of evidence. I agree with all previous posters about cameras, police report etc. Also, sounds like the predator entered the coop through the "door" - I'm guessing human sized door or similar that you would use to clean out coop? If so, then you might need to beef up your lock and/or closure system so that it is fool-proof and reliable and cannot be pried open by a determined snout or paw. You speculate that the predator left via a hole in the front - is this hole supposed to be there (as in the chicken door for the chickens to come and go) or is it a spot that needs repair?