What can take a rooster without leaving any trace?

[cupman]

I saw my rooster around 4:00pm. I fed him and my hens some hot dogs. The weather was intense.. it started hailing like crazy and got very dark outside. I went to check on my chickens at around 6:00pm. Everyone was accounted for except my rooster. He's one year old and pretty tough.. he wouldn't ever let me pick him up without a fight. He never gets far from his hens. I own 2.5 acres and I spent an hour scouring every square inch. There wasn't a single feather or sign of struggle, I even checked my neighbors' yards. I have this sick feeling he's a goner. I've lost hens in the past and that's always sucked but it's ten times worse with my rooster.

There is a chance he will turn up, but I really doubt it. Maybe the weather spooked him? What kinds of predators will kill without leaving a trace? Pretty much my only threat here are raccoons and with them I would expect to see some evidence of a struggle.



goodbye, big guy.

 

[nikka77]

I hope he turns up and is just hiding somewhere.

 

[ivan3]

Sorry, don't know what other `passing through' preds you have out there (no trace, here: 95% Red Fox, 5% Coyote). Hope he's hunkered down under, or in something (ours hate hail). Sure hope you wake up and hear crowing.

Good luck (fingers crossed)!

 

[Sweetlilbaby]

Check in the trees around your property and in any bushes. Chickens (even roosters) will get out of the weather when there is a storm. Also post that ya lost a rooster on craigslist lost and found section. Never know he could have spooked and took off and will turn up with someone elses chickens.

 

[cupman]

Well, everyone, thanks for your well-wishes. He never showed up this morning. I set my alarm to 4:30 because I needed to study for a math test(barf). Had the windows open all morning and freezing to death and never heard him crow.. wandered around my yard at 4:45am, my neighbors probably think I'm nuts, or on meth. I know I need roosters to look over my flock but what a bummer. I hatched out 22 chicks that he fathered so I think I will raise one of those roosters up in his place, keep the family name.

Thanks again and I'll be setting my live traps today, maybe we will find the culprit(if there even is one). Well it's back to studying, so close to graduating but can't do it without passing this dang math class.

 

[lilchick]

Don't give up hope. He could survive on his own for several days if he wandered off.
I lost a pea hen when company was here and frightened her off. She literally ran for the woods and I searched for her for 2 days. I just about given up then heard her calling to my remaining peacocks. Later that afternoon she wandered back into the yard.
I hope he finds his way back home. Any predator, even a fox would leave feathers in the struggle. And during a storm not much would be hunting for a chicken anyway.. right? He is too heavy for an owl to carry off and a coon would leave drag area and feathers trailing behind. Hope he shows up for you! good luck on the math test!

 

[cupman]

That's a good point, lilchick. I'm just a pessimist I guess. I left my windows open all night and I could hear raccoons fighting pretty viciously. When I get home later today I'll go hunting for him.

 

[JackE]

If you didn't find a pile of his feathers anywhere, it doesn't sound like a predator got him. Hopefully he just got spooked by the hailstorm and is just hiding out somewhere, and he'll come back.
Jack

 

[cupman]

Well an unfortunate update. I got home yesterday and I sort of live on this bluff.. so I decided to climb all over it and sure enough I found my rooster's feathers in a trail down the valley. In this type of terrain it is almost certainly the work of raccoons. I kept everyone locked up yesterday so hopefully it was just a passer-by. Going to set all the traps tonight and hopefully we can find the culprit.

 

[zazouse]

Sorry you lost your roo.

I say big cat because of the terrain you described and they could grab and run and not leave a feather behind
being that far away a coon surely would have left a trail of feathers or any smaller predator for that matter, cause that was a big looking roo in that photo