The majority of my flock killed in one night

[gwells1980]

I had 1 adult speckled Sussex rooster, 1 adult speckled Sussex hen, 1 adult sapphire gem hen, 1 adult buff orpington, 1 adult sapphire gem / speckled Sussex cross, 1 adult orpington / Sussex cross, and 6 nearly fully grown wyadottes bullets. They free ranged in my yard and get put up at night. I have the flu and didn't put them up last night. I just let them roost on a little structure I built for them to keep them out of the weater.

I woke up this morning to find all 6 of my waydottes missing and my orpington, Sussex, and sapphire gem / Sussex cross all missing thier heads. They were just laying out in the yard missing their heads. They weren't near any fencing that a racoon could have pulled thier heads through, and there is no way an owl could have eaten 6 wyandottes plus the heads of 3 hen. Anyone have any idea what could have killed the majority of my flock last night? Has anyone ever heard of a massacre on this level?

 

[mxp]

Do you share the same area with coyote's ,Mink or weasel? Raccoons?

 

[lagrange chicks]

Sorry this happened, could the 6 pullets be hiding somewhere or did you find remains from them? I don't no of any predator to be able to eat that much. A coon, mink, weasel and dog will kill for fun.

 

[gwells1980]

Do you share the same area with coyote's ,Mink or weasel? Raccoons?

Yes, but just two of the wyandotte pullets would have easily been enough food for a coyote plus a coyote would have carried off the adult bodies

 

[gwells1980]

Sorry this happened, could the 6 pullets be hiding somewhere or did you find remains from them? I don't no of any predator to be able to eat that much. A coon, mink, weasel and dog will kill for fun.

No I looked everywhere and can't find any sign of them. It has me thinking this was a flying predator. That and the fact that my 3 largest hens were left headless, as if they were too heavy to carry off. But of course, I can't think of any predator that could eat that much. And as far as I know, owls don't hunt in packs.

 

[Krugerrand]

Apparently owls go for the heads. Not sure if that would have been a single owl taking them out or a group of owls, if there are such a thing.

For the missing ones, there's a good chance they got spooked and took off. They could return in time.

Or, there's a a chance something else got those.

https://www.thehappychickencoop.com/which-animal-bites-the-heads-off-chickens/
If an owl is interrupted while feasting, it may leave the rest of the body hoping it can return later.

This is why owls often leave beheaded chickens behind. They may also realize the chicken is too heavy to carry away and decide to abandon the kill and try for something else. It’s risky for an owl to sit on the ground, where they are vulnerable to other predators.

https://poultry.extension.org/artic...gement-for-small-and-backyard-poultry-flocks/

• If birds are dead and not eaten but are missing their heads, the predator may be a raccoon, a hawk, or an owl. Raccoons sometimes pull a bird’s head through the wires of an enclosure and then can eat only the head, leaving the majority of the body behind. Also, raccoons may work together, with one scaring the chickens to the far end of a pen and the other picking off the birds’ heads.

 

[mxp]

Yes, but just two of the wyandotte pullets would have easily been enough food for a coyote plus a coyote would have carried off the adult bodies

 

[mxp]

Sounds like a raccoon or raccoons got to your birds.I lost five one night and they were done just like your.I set three dog proof traps and caught 16 raccoons around my lot during a 2 month period.Then I declaired war on raccoons.

 

[gwells1980]

My last 2 laying hens were killed last night. Same as the others....

 

[lagrange chicks]

My last 2 laying hens were killed last night. Same as the others..

My last 2 laying hens were killed last night. Same as the others....

Sorry. Were they killed in the coop?