Well...It happened...I'm sad and furious. UPDATED! CAUGHT 2!

[LindsayB]

I just went outside to give the girls some fresh food and water and found my youngest easter egger gone...they're were feathers everywhere but she was no where to be seen. We have a plum tree in the run and 2 plums were on the ground and still green. So whatever got her must of taken her up the tree and knocked down the fruit. It was probably a raccon or possum. I'm so ticked off though. I wanted to put an automatic door on the coop and my DH thought that was stupid since we lived in a neighborhood....Our house is on the corner and its just woods behind our house...Our GSD has killed many possums and coons in our little yard...Anyways, he didn't want a door on the coop or a cover on the run bc it would look 'tacky'. Ugh, I'm so mad! I called him and told him the news but he was headed to work and didn't really care. Looks like I'm going to have to build a door today and just have HIM deal with it. I can't believe one of my favorite little puffy cheeks are gone... now we only have three...

 

[roverjohn]

Bummer

 

[chickintexas]

for you.

for your DH
After I lost 3 young chickens and a goose, I started setting traps all around my coop. DH rolls his eyes at me every time I set the traps but so far I have caught 6 feral cats, 2 coons, and one possum. My birds are much safer today. You definitely need the top covered. I would think a raccoon got in there and possibly used the tree to get in/out of the coop. Someone I know built their coop around an oak tree and within a couple of days, coons wiped out their entire flock. They had used the tree to get in and out.
Sorry for your loss.

 

[schellie69]

cover the run/coop area it will be better then just locking them up in the coop at night due to other predators climbing in I would cover your run first then add door so sorry for your loss hope things get better was this in the day time because I thought coons were night time animals.

 

[chick4chicks]

Sorry for your loss. Do what you need to do to protect the girls. Good luck.

 

[LindsayB]

I have somewhat of a door I'm going use tonight and I'm going to set 2 live traps in the run. So we will see what we catch. If its a coon or possum it will def be shot. But a cat...I'll probably just let it go the neighborhood over. We do have 2 male cats that hang around 3 houses down, but I only see them early in the morning walking back on our fence. It was probably a coon, we had one mess up our bird feeder a few nights ago. I really hope my husband understand somewhat how I feel and helps me make a door....

 

[mamawolf544]

I would guess an owl. They need a cover to get under.

for your loss.

 

[LindsayB]

they have a coop inside the run, so they have cover. I'm just trying to figure out what animal would crawl into the coop door and take just one...I'm sure it will be back tonight so I will have the door covered and traps set. It happened last night or early this morning.

 

[ChickieBooBoo]

thats very sad, good luck catching the culprit!!

 

[chickintexas]

Be diligent! It may not come back for a week so keep setting the traps every night.
It became sort of a twisted game for me. Every morning I'd jump out of bed and run out to the back deck to see what I caught in my traps that night. No, I have no life.