Very good unknown preadator

[blinkk]

Lost all of our baby chicks this month. That made us all very sad. We caught the possum that was eating them, but another predator was coming around and we lost the last of the chicks last week. This morning, two adults are simply missing. No feathers, no signs of attack. I've looked everywhere for the bodies but can't find them.

I have no idea what's getting at our chickens. I'm so stressed out in trying to figure out what to do. Short of bringing all the birds inside at night, I'm at a loss of how to help them. We're fortifying the coop today, but I'm still worried. Whatever this predator is, it's very good. Left a trap out for a week straight and it never fell for it. I can't tell what this predator is, and that makes it harder to defend against.

 

[seann]

I'm no expert but I see people set up gamecam to see what they are up against.
Sorry for your loss.

 

[blinkk]

I'm no expert but I see people set up gamecam to see what they are up against.
Sorry for your loss.

Do you know roughly how much game cams cost? Those are the ones that only record when they see movement, right?

 

[seann]

Not sure, I'm tempted to get one myself but I'm no expert. I need to do a lot of research on this first.
Quick search found under $100 - http://www.amazon.com/Simmons-White...hunting-fishing&ie=UTF8&qid=1400707134&sr=1-4 while some others (probably better quality with more features) for under $200.

 

[speckledhen]

What is your coop set up? Do you lock the coop pop door at night? Some folks say "coop" when they really mean a lean-to with chicken wire walls. That is a pen, IMO, not a coop, but we'd need to know how you are protecting them at night to help you. Rats eat chicks, weasels kill and can get through tiny spaces. Foxes and bobcats are very fast and can leave no trace.

I live in the woods with every manner of predator you can imagine and they cannot get into our coops, period (except maybe a bear, and a bear can go anywhere a bear wants to go). The pop doors each have multiple locks to frustrate a raccoon, there are no small holes for even a weasel to enter and every window has a hardware cloth screen put in either with hammer-in heavy staples or screws backed by washers.

 

[blinkk]

What is your coop set up? Do you lock the coop pop door at night? Some folks say "coop" when they really mean a lean-to with chicken wire walls. That is a pen, IMO, not a coop, but we'd need to know how you are protecting them at night to help you. Rats eat chicks, weasels kill and can get through tiny spaces. Foxes and bobcats are very fast and can leave no trace.

I live in the woods with every manner of predator you can imagine and they cannot get into our coops, period (except maybe a bear, and a bear can go anywhere a bear wants to go). The pop doors each have multiple locks to frustrate a raccoon, there are no small holes for even a weasel to enter and every window has a hardware cloth screen put in either with hammer-in heavy staples or screws backed by washers.

Yes it's a pen. It's a combination of hogwire and wood and we lock the door at night with multiple carabiners. I'm afraid the hogwire isn't good enough and something is getting through. We just have no idea where the predator is getting in, and it's frustrating. I've checked everywhere and I can't find a point of entry. if It's a rat or a weasle we're in trouble because they'll fit through small holes.

We've been wanting to build a real "coop" for awhile, and tomorrow we're going to the lumberyard and we'll build them a real chicken house with four solid wood walls and an impenetrable roof. Our friend just tore down a building on his business property and we took a solid wood door from him. I just wish we had done this before the chickens died. My fault completely.

Anyway, I hope they can get through one more night. We're building them a more solid place tomorrow.

 

[blinkk]

Not sure, I'm tempted to get one myself but I'm no expert. I need to do a lot of research on this first.
Quick search found under $100 - http://www.amazon.com/Simmons-White...hunting-fishing&ie=UTF8&qid=1400707134&sr=1-4 while some others (probably better quality with more features) for under $200.

Thanks for the info. I'll check into this as well. I don't quite have 100$ to drop at the moment, but it's a good thing to put money aside for.

 

[tntchix]

What is your coop set up? Do you lock the coop pop door at night? Some folks say "coop" when they really mean a lean-to with chicken wire walls. That is a pen, IMO, not a coop, but we'd need to know how you are protecting them at night to help you. Rats eat chicks, weasels kill and can get through tiny spaces. Foxes and bobcats are very fast and can leave no trace.

I live in the woods with every manner of predator you can imagine and they cannot get into our coops, period (except maybe a bear, and a bear can go anywhere a bear wants to go). The pop doors each have multiple locks to frustrate a raccoon, there are no small holes for even a weasel to enter and every window has a hardware cloth screen put in either with hammer-in heavy staples or screws backed by washers.

Daaaang! Nothings getting in there.

 

[tntchix]

Awful sorry about losing your flock. Hope you can remedy it quick. Great suggestions, for sure.

 

[seann]

Heard a weasel/mink can squeeze through a 3/4" inch gap. What the heck.
I watched youtube videos of weasel/mink massacring chickens inside a "coop". It's heartbreaking to watch.