What in the world happened to this chicken? *Pictures*

[chrissynemetz]

I have to agree with everyone else, this just has a racoon 'feel' to it. And yes, it will definitely be back for more.

 

[50-45-1]

another possibility would be a weasel. they are known to kill by biting the neck and sometimes not eat any of the bird, reportedly sometimes only to eat the blood. if this is a least weasel he will only be about the size of a chipmunk and can climb and dig easily and fit through a pretty small hole.
please make sure your birds are locked in a secure coop at night as this is when coons and weasels are most actively hunting for food.

 

[Sara Ranch]

Hugs

 

[aart]

Any blood on the chicken wire?
Is that hot wire good and hot?

 

[Howard E]

I bet you had a perpetrator that killed and ate, plus someone else that wanted to steal carcass and could not get in by digging.

X2

Kill looks like a coon.......except for daytime kill.

Scrape looks like a bear trying for the carcass but frustrated by hot fence.

Do you have bears?

 

[msiler]

Thank you all for your thoughtful responses! Since I made this post, no more have been killed, thankfull, but we still have no idea what happened to Dove....

Any blood on the chicken wire?
Is that hot wire good and hot?

There was no blood anywhere on the wire or the ground, only on the bird. The wire is confirmed live I don't remember the voltage but it high!

X2

Kill looks like a coon.......except for daytime kill.

Scrape looks like a bear trying for the carcass but frustrated by hot fence.

Do you have bears?

Yes, we do have bears. 3 years ago in mid November, before the electric fence, we had a bear raid the coop. Since that time there haven't been any around that I have seen.
I do know for a fact that we have several coyotes that live nearby....

 

[msiler]

another possibility would be a weasel. they are known to kill by biting the neck and sometimes not eat any of the bird, reportedly sometimes only to eat the blood. if this is a least weasel he will only be about the size of a chipmunk and can climb and dig easily and fit through a pretty small hole.
please make sure your birds are locked in a secure coop at night as this is when coons and weasels are most actively hunting for food.

I know we have them here! I've seen their little footprints, along with raccoon footprints, in the mud in the past.

 

[ShannonR]

Could be a coon, but I am leaning towards weasel.

 

[centrarchid]

The scratches in soil were made by something making long digging strokes. Not a canid. Raccoons make short strokes. Bear very plausible for critter on outside. Actual killer might have been scared off by critter on outside if present at same time.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I'm in agreement that at least two species of predators were afoot.
That is a raccoon kill, not weasel or mink. They don't do that much damage. Often there will be no sign other than dead birds. Plus they would kill all the birds, not one.
The scraping on the ground could be bear but could also be fox or coyote. Could you identify any clear tracks in the area?
A raccoon can climb virtually anything including sheer walls and descend a tree head first. You said you had trees overhead - that was likely the point of ingress.
Normally if the raccoon were outside the perimeter, parts of the bird would have been pulled through the fence. Whatever it was, was inside the pen.
You didn't say what the possible time frame of the kill was. If it could have been at night, raccoon is the likeliest suspect but owl is also a definite possibility. If it was only daylight possibility, it could have been a hawk.

A game/trail cam will solve all the mystery.

You said you had electrified chicken wire. You don't. You have a chicken wire pen with two single strands of energized wire on the outside of the chicken wire run. Two strands closer together and near the ground would be helpful.