Weasels & free range chickens?

[Howard E]

To the OP:

Do a google search for your state DNR.......and most likely it will very similar to what we have in Missouri:

https://nature.mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/field-guide/long-tailed-weasel

https://mdc.mo.gov/wildlife/nuisance-problem-species/nuisance-native-species/weasel-control

What they claim is that weasels are mostly nocturnal and dine almost exclusively on small rodents and similar small animals and prefer something alive or quivering. MO does not have a trapping season for weasels as we don't have many to begin with and our MDC seems to want more of them for rodent control. They downplay any threat to chickens, although they do make allowances to take them out if they start causing trouble.

What seems to be apparent is that weasels are less likely to be attracted to or chase adult chickens than they are to the concentration of rodents like rats and mice that chickens attract from the easy access to chicken feed......either from stored feed sacks, open feeders or waste feed on the ground.

So your best bet for avoiding any problems with weasels is to take precautions to prevent rats and mice from moving in (use rat proof feeders and store bulk feed in metal containers) and to make your chicken house predator proof with no openings larger than 1 inch. So half inch hardware cloth (or may favorite 1/2" x 1" cage wire".....which is much stronger). Also keep in mind weasels can dig with the best of them and climb like a squirrel, so the entire coop area has to have that level of exclusion. Do all that and you should have no problems with weasels.

 

[Howlingwindfarm]

Thank you for all of your replies!
My husband is building a new coop now, with 1/4" hardware cloth, so they will be safe at night. I trust my dogs fully with the chickens. One is a Pyrenees and she has killed a fox and a opossum, so I know she's looking out for them. One is a goofy lab who at least has a loud bark. The other is a pit bull/bulldog who hunts small animals. She is quick and agile, but one time we saw a weasel run out from the barn and go right between her legs before she could react! That weasel killed 15 chickens in 2 days and I haven't had them since because it was so awful.

I think I will let the chickens into the yard but also build a smaller run out of hardware cloth in case we have a problem.

Would it be better to keep the grass long so the chickens have cover, or mow it so predators don't have cover?

 

[Howard E]

So you already have experience with weasels? Perhaps more than most, including me.

So I'm now curious........in this barn where the weasel came from, did you have large numbers of rats and/or mice? If so, that may confirm what has been said about what attracts weasels in the first place.

BTW, weasels arrive seeking the rats and mice....not chickens.....but will easily transition to the chickens if the opportunity presents itself. And once they start killing, they will keep it up as long as anything is moving. They just go on a killing rampage. They are truly one of nature's most effective killing machines. OK if they are after rats and mice.......not so good if it's your birds.

Second, looks like your dogs are not the solution to the problem. First, they would have to be present 100% of the time and also on guard 100% of the time.....either as a deterrent to scare them off or nab them in the act. So unless those are met, I would not count on too much help from dogs. And as you say, they have already failed.

So on the building, you are already on the right path. You might move up to 1/2" hardware cloth, as it is stronger.......unless mice are a problem. They could get through that. But eliminate access to feed and rats and mice are not likely to come around anyway. And cement floor in coop and run if that is possible. Nothing can dig through that.

On the open pasture setting, my solution has been electric fences (in a pasture setting, those are not likely to work for a daytime weasel....but nothing else is either). But place a variety of high and low cover and grazing opportunities inside a yard area surrounded by a low wire electric fence, mow the ground close on both sides of the fence to establish a barrier zone adjacent to the fence so all on the inside can find it and those on the outside too......and that will solve most daytime predator problems.

BTW, electric fences are not physical barriers. They are psychological barriers. The fence inflicts a violent, painful shock that once experienced, animals are smart enough to know to avoid in the future. With some, you can hardly make them go near it a second time. And on guard 24/7.

 

[centrarchid]

You might be able to keep weasels out by cutting grass short in a larger radius around area where chickens are confined. Weasels I see move through cover provided by grasses taller that typical yard or heavily grazed pastures. They also move along areas that water at least intermittently flows.

 

[bobbi-j]

View attachment 1309270 My understanding is the weasels mostly hunt at night. I don't think they pose a threat to chickens during they day when they can be seen.

My precious cats killed a weasel and left it for me last week. I was shocked at how small it was - very skinny with tiny teeth. It could easily slip through the 1 inch chicken wire if that is what the coop was built with. It was only about 8 inches long (much smaller than a rat). I hope one does not get into my coop. My cat got extra praise that day.

We have had these little guys in the past, and last year their bigger cousin, the mink. My experience with the little weasels is they will bite a chicken in the neck or under the wing, and lap up the blood as they bleed out. Those chickens just little teeth marks that were hard to spot. The mink ate the backs of my chickens' heads.

ETA - my weasel and mink kills were chickens that were confined. I think when they're free ranging, a mink or weasel would have a hard time catching and killing a chicken.

 

[Morrigan]

My weasel attacks have come in broad daylight to chickens who were ranging within the confines of a large fenced yard. The yard has cross beams places where a chicken could fly up to in order to evade a weasel. One one chicken was taken each time (problem has since been solved with an electric fencing system). The chickens killed tended to be larger, slower birds. There are tons of rats, mice and gophers where I live and they are invariably attracted to our nearby garden and compost pile. It's hard to say how many weasels came to eat the vermin and never bothered our chickens.

 

[llombardo]

I just found out that there are weasels in my area. They are the bigger ones that resemble ferrets. They turn white in the winter and back to brown after winter.

I'm telling you, if I knew that chi kens and ducks had so many predators I would not have gotten them. This is stressing me out. I'm slowly introducing my female GSD to the birds. She is a very neutral stable dog. She was curious about them but not over excited. They were in a carrier. They all did well. She won't ever have direct contact with them but she will know they are part of the "family".

I think the only way to protect these guys is having a dog or dogs out there to deter predators.

 

[bobbi-j]

My weasel attacks have come in broad daylight to chickens who were ranging within the confines of a large fenced yard. The yard has cross beams places where a chicken could fly up to in order to evade a weasel. One one chicken was taken each time (problem has since been solved with an electric fencing system). The chickens killed tended to be larger, slower birds. There are tons of rats, mice and gophers where I live and they are invariably attracted to our nearby garden and compost pile. It's hard to say how many weasels came to eat the vermin and never bothered our chickens.

I wonder if our chickens have become so domesticated, that they don't even have the instinct to fly up and out of predators' reach.

 

[Folly's place]

Some hens will fly to safety, and some panic and crouch on the ground. They are often the 'tamer' birds, and of course will be easy for any predator to kill.
Mary

 

[buckabucka]

We just saw a weasel run through the yard early this morning, with a mouse-size creature in it's mouth. The coop is fairly secure, but I think maybe I should avoid letting the chickens roam around today.

Last year we lost 7 hens to a mink, before we were able to trap it. The mink was coming up through a rat hole in the dirt floor. The dirt floor has since been lined with hardware cloth and we had no rat problems last winter.

The nearby compost and garden area is another story, - full of rodent holes. The weasel may have lived here for years and we just didn't know, but seeing it out there makes me nervous.