What beheads a chicken in broad daylight?

[sewchick]

There's a guy my husband knows with chickens and he lost 3 chickens that way from a Coyote. I lost two cats from a coyote. They are not easy to hunt.

 

[jvls1942]

Quote:
that was my thought exactly.. the possum was just taking advantage of a free meal.. You say several be-headed chickens.. that is the MO of a weasel.. weasels are collectors of food.. they kill and eat the ead and sometimes they do not even bother eating.. when they can, they take their kills to a gathering spot and store them on a pile.. that is why they kill so many at a time.. they cannot help themselves.. often, you will find a bird with it's neck through the fence.. that is as far as the weasel could drag it before the body would not fit through the holes in the fence..

 

[Cetawin]

Sounds like a weasel or a hawk...raccoons should not be out during the day hunting.

Good luck catching whatever it is/

 

[jvls1942]

Quote:
cats? or coyotes?? sorry , just having a light headed moment.

 

[citalk2much]

I am going to say something in the weasel family
I really don't think possum they sleep during the day and are lazy they would dine if it was there dead already

 

[silentrunning]

I don't know if we have weasels in southern Florida. I will have to look that up. I have never seen one. I do know we have otters and gators in the stream that runs thru our property. I don't know about an otter, but I know a gator wouldn't eat just the head! Has anyone ever had trouble with otters? I know their main diet is fish, but they might go after fowl during hard times.

 

[jvls1942]

Quote:
a weasel is not an animal you see very often.. I have seen only 2 in 66 years while I was hunting.. the only ones I see around the chickens are the ones we trap..
but I know they are there..

By hard times for an otter, do you mean no fish?? In Florida??

 

[citalk2much]

A really hungry otter might kill and eat a chicken I just don't see them with this MO it sticking to something in the weasel family the bad news is they come back when they find a good food source be careful very careful they will kill just for the joy of it! They live by water and have I believe a mile hunting range they are bad news

 

[mikeksfarmer]

Great Horrned owls are sitting on the nest right now. This inspires the male to hunt big time to provide for upcoming babies. They hunt in the day and night. This owl will often remove the head before it carries away the body.
this was not an owl. for that reason. Here is what i think. A preditor big enough to grab it by the head and shake it got disturbed and left the real prize behind. Fox, coyote, or other. I am way sorry for your loss.

 

[silentrunning]

Quote:
a weasel is not an animal you see very often.. I have seen only 2 in 66 years while I was hunting.. the only ones I see around the chickens are the ones we trap..
but I know they are there..

By hard times for an otter, do you mean no fish?? In Florida??

No fish due to no fresh water. It's been DRY here the last couple of years.