What is stealth killing my chickens?

[str8shootergirl]

A few nights ago, something scaled the 10' high galvanized hardwire/chicken wire on the front of the coop, crawled through a small, say 2-3"h x 6"w opening in the eave, took 2 mid-size and 1 large chicken completely out of the coop and disappeared with them. The only evidence was a very slight amount of feathers found caught in the wire from one of the chickens, and the remains of ONLY chicken feet found out way out back behind the barn (with a pile of poop). There was no carnage or feathers in the coop. No body parts. No damage to the other chickens. Interestingly, it only took light colored chickens and not my black or Rhode Islands.
After the eaves were boarded up, we set a cage trap and caught a possum. But we are not convinced that a possum did the damage due to the fact that the chickens were all taken out of the coop. Everything I read about possums is that they eat the insides and make a mess.

Please advise...is this another critter? Raccoon? Fox?

Thx, Deb

 

[Ducklove334]

sounds like a weasel, I heard they're like foxes, and at night lighter colored chickens are easier to see.

interestingly, foxes are said to NOT attack darker colored chickens, because they can't see them at night because they blend, I think Weasels are the same

 

[TcherDawn]

do you have fisher or fishercats? they are as ferocious a weasel as they come. look them up in your area.

 

[Ducklove334]

2-3"h x 6"w

thats inches, right??

then my bet is deffinatlely is a mink or weasel, they can squeeze through someething the size of their head, fishercats are lots bigger than that.

 

[Faverolle]

What state are you in? Are you sure about the size opening or maybe is there another way for a predator to get in that you may have missed? Weasels and mink will kill chickens but they do not have the strength to move a large bird like that and they are not eating three in a night. A fisher would be able to move a decent size bird but again not three in one shot. I'm thinking more raccoon as a suspect.

 

[pondguy2004]

I'd go with the raccoon, too. My guess is mom with hungry babies, to eat 3 in a night! Tim

 

[str8shootergirl]

The opening is in inches and the chicken wire was bent down about 5 inches up in the eave.
I live in Northern Indiana...my backyard is woodsy and swampy, so I figure it could be anything.
Can the weasel/mink/fishercat scale 10 feet of chicken wire and make off with the chickens? Two of the chickens were about 2mos old...kinda "teenager" size (sorta big)...the other was a small chicken.

Thanks to those who have responded already...I appreciate any further comments or insight. Your help is appreciated.

Tonight I planted the traps again in the barn and put tuna in them...we'll see what happens!

Thx, Deb

 

[Sugar Sand Farm]

sounds like raccoons to me as well. A few years ago we had an attack like that. Took awhile before we caught the predator. Learned the hard way coons and bend tthat chicken wire like its nothing. A friend of ours sat all night out in his truck to catch ours He had night glasses and finally caught it We lost 6 hens as it kept coming back. Injured our rooster as well DH rebuilt the coop and made sure it was welded wire 1 inch by 3 inch so nothing could get in. So far fort knox has worked.

 

[NancyDz]

Raccoons don't eat that much of it though..

 

[Ducklove334]

Mink are stronger than you think, my cousin had one get into her rabbit hutch through a 7 inch "Window" in the sleeping box part, and pull the rabbit clean through it, this was a fair 3,4 pound rabbit too.

I've not had any trouble with weasels or minks, and hope I never do.