Somethings killing my baby chicks

[farmhouse21]

I need a bit of help figuring out what is killing my baby chicks. I have found one baby chick dead each morning I go to the barn. We have a wooden pallet with a large box set on top that is placed inside their permanent coup where in the day the month old chicks can venture out through a door cut into the side of the box. At night they go back into the box where the heat lamp is on. We do this so the transition to where they will live and lay is familiar. The door to the outside fenced in area is not open yet. We are waiting for warmer weather and for them to grow bigger. We thought we might have a swamp rat because our property backs up to a swamp. We put down traps with peanut butter, tuna, chicken feed, you name it we tried it. Yet whatever it is never touches the food, it just digs a hole from the outside of our barn and burrows a tunnel to the chicks coup. It navigated through our goat pens (plenty of food and water there). We have tried traps with bait, new fencing, bricks around any cracks etc. Nothing is working. The hole that is dug is no bigger than 3 to 4 inches wide, and it only kills one chick which we find under the pallet.
Please help!

 

[sumi]

Welcome to BYC

Glad you joined us! Sorry to hear about your losses. I think you might have a mink visiting. They are excellent diggers, prey on chickens and instead of eating the carcass, they prefer to drink it's blood. They can also get through gaps as small as 1 inch in diameter. Here's an article on them as chicken predators and how to prevent losses:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/mink-chicken-predators-how-to-protect-your-chickens-from-mink

Set the traps with something bloody, a fresh piece of meat, a dead mouse even, will do and see if you get some hardware to cover the gaps where it gets in. Good luck!

 

[TwoCrows]

Welcome to BYC!

I am so sorry about your baby chicks! These predators are very sneaky and tricky. They will avoid traps if they know where a good easy meal is. You need to go over your coop with a fine tooth comb and block all holes, spaces, any areas things can get into. Like Sumi says, some of these critters are diggers and can fit thru some very small spaces.

Sumi has left you with a great link to read thru. You can also post questions in our Predators and Pests forums for more help as well....

https://www.backyardchickens.com/f/13/predators-and-pests

Good luck and I hope you can get this figured out soon!

 

[gander007]

Do you see the cage wire these chicks are in I would suggest
you get a roll of this wire and build a safe haven ........

 

[drumstick diva]

Please post on the predators section - they may have more suggestions for you. I would relocate the chicks to basement or garage ??? somewhere else till you deal with this predator for good.

 

[Kelsie2290]

Hello and Welcome To BYC! You've gotten some good advice above, hope you are able to keep your chicks safe and figure out and deal with the predator. If you have a game camera or video out can set out there, that might be something to try.

 

[farmhouse21]

Thanks so much for all the great advice. We are getting a trap from a friend that said the same thing about it being a mink. We will try it tonight. Fingers crossed.

 

[gander007]

Don't forget the bait .....