What got Francesca??

[Unruffled]

I went out this morning to let out my free range birds only to find that a predator of some kind had gotten into one of my smaller pens and killed my duck, Francesca. She was missing her head and her neck(I don’t know about her crop) and there were feathers strewn about. Otherwise her body was untouched. Francesca lived in that smaller pen with two other ducks(they were,thankfully, unharmed physically). I’m just trying to figure out what it could have been. I am located in rural central PA. The pen is 5’ fence with electric wire at about 6” from the ground and 4” above the top. I’m thinking a raccoon or an owl. But which one? Please let me know what your opinion is.

 

[Dean126]

id bet money that a coon got her. they will stick their hand through the chickenwire eat the parts they can pull through (head/neck) and leave the body.

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

Raccoon sounds like the culprit to me. Birds of prey will usually eat softer parts but a coon will pull the head through chicken wire. Do you have a picture of the enclosure? Maybe we can spot your weak spot.