This Is WAR.

[ReiMiraa]

i have been at WSU studying. mom and my bf (they been taking care of chickens for me) have reported that in the last 2 days i have lost 2 chickens. the MO sounds like that of a raccoon. which is funny cos here i was worried about a big bear in the area. the head and the wings are torn off. i have gone from 79 to 77 chickens now. i tell them get a trap and the gun. would chicken breast meat be good bait? any other suggestions?

i am at war. it has been 2 years with out any problems and now it happens, and they were happy free range chicken. oh how does one train them to go in a coop i finally got another but they been sleeping way up in the trees. clip their wings? i told john, secure the coop, raise the fence, clip a wing. and add lead.

 

[farmgirl1995]

Awhhh....I'm sorry. I had a similar problem this summer. No losses until I went for a week long vacation in Florida and my parents watched my chickens. While I was gone several disappeared. No feathers, blood, body parts, etc. So as soon as I got home it stopped for about a week. And now my flock of 55 has gone down to 20!!! I think that during the day it was a hawk. And at night someone was getting in there. But I started nailing boards over the pop hole and door with a lock and key. Problem solved

 

[ReiMiraa]

boyfriend called and told me this time it was my americauna rooster. i am sad he was pretty. though that is why i do have roosters... they are the scape goats... but i only have like 7 more left. and i dont want to lose those, they are even prettier and bigger

 

[farmgirl1995]

Roosters are the best. I'm so sorry Have someone do a little investigating and sit out there for a while hidden in a bush or a tree or something and see what happens

 

[roosters4sale]

Coons and bears like fish also.

 

[ReiMiraa]

you think this could be a bear kill? they have been desperate in my area this year due to lack of berries in the mountian.

the way this roo was killed: headless/

 

[noodleroo]

Sardines are a great bait for racoons...

 

[ReiMiraa]

boyfriend is getting 2 traps and will try both baits. he promised me if it isnt trapped by the weekend he will make sure its dead by the end of the weekend. while that is comforting i am still worried about the possibility of losing a chicken every day. mom thinks there are more than 1, but if only one is killed each day, then its only one doing this right?

 

[Lbrad7]

Sorry for your loss. I know it can be very aggravating especially since you are away at school and feel helpless to stop the attacks. I have had a great deal of success by using the remains of the kills as bait.

Hope you get the attacks stopped before you lose anymore birds.

 

[jgconnor]

As for 'coons, I've been trapping them for decades. Nothing, and I do mean NOTHING, beats cheap canned cat food to draw a 'coon in a live trap.
If you need help on 'dispatching' it, email me. That's not a subject, in my opinion, to discuss on the board here. You can find my email addy on my site.