Unknown Predator

[BookThief]

Sorry it's long. If you don't want to read, here's the very short version: 1 chicken dead with no known cause, 1 missing. Some of the live chickens and ducks have saliva on them but no injuries or broken bones. What happened?

The full version:

Last night, my fiance woke me up at 4:30am and told me, something was wrong with the chickens, and something made off with one of our ducks. Of course I jumped out of bed, grabbed our flash light and one of our dogs (for our protection).

1 chicken was laying weird, but she's alive, so we moved her an area that's more protected. She's got saliva on her, but no external injuries, no broken bones. 1 bird was dead, again, some saliva on her, but no external injuries, no broken bones. We went around the yard and found all but 1 chicken and 1 duck. There were feathers around the yard, some even from chickens that we found alive. We moved them to a more protected area, and went back inside.

About 10 minutes later we heard the tiny quacks of our missing duck. We go back out, and pick her up, again, some saliva on her neck, but no injuries, no broken bones. Leaving only 1 chicken still missing, and 1 dead.

While outside the first time, our next door neighbor has 4 german shepherds, and it sounded like they were attacking a canine (not sure if it was a dog or coyote). When we went out the second time, we could hear a very injured canine in an unoccupied yard. About a week ago, 2 dogs were attacking cows in a field right behind my yard, and they returned today. But my fiance scared them off. But I feel like that was all just a coincidence. But I'm not sure. Not of the birds, not even the dead one, had any injuries or broken bones. There wasn't blood anywhere to be found. Only some feathers in the yard and some saliva on the necks of a few of them.

Has anyone had anything similar happen?

 

[IvysAnimals]

That would most likely be a predator. If there was saliva on some of them but no injuries, it was probably the dogs. The birds you own probably died from shock or being "played" with too much. You should legally be allowed to have to dogs off of your property and sue the owner. Or, have the owner get you new poultry and ban them and their pets from getting on the property.

 

[BookThief]

That would most likely be a predator. If there was saliva on some of them but no injuries, it was probably the dogs. The birds you own probably died from shock or being "played" with too much. You should legally be allowed to have to dogs off of your property and sue the owner. Or, have the owner get you new poultry and ban them and their pets from getting on the property.

Unfortunately, the stray dog population is bad here. Probably dogs with no owners. And if they have an owner, there's no way to tell who they belong to. Most dogs have no collar and are not chipped.

 

[Folly's place]

Stray dogs are no joke, and problems where ever they are.
Poultry needs to be safely cooped at night, at least, because predators abound, and those birds are totally vulnerable, especially at night.
Mary

 

[Sara S]

Dog. My chicken got in my neighbors yard, they have 2 golden retrievers. (My girl is fine by the way, no injures happened jsut some shock) and she was all wet from saliva. im sorry that is happening. I almost had learned the hard way they must be in the safest environment possible to sleep. I am also sorry for those dogs havign to do that if it was a survival thing, but mostly to you. do you have an LGD, or big bright motion lights outside?

 

[McChooky]

Multiple birds injured and/or dead with slobber all over their feathers is a canine attack.