What is this animal and is it a threat to my birds?!?!?

[Curlyginger]

Definitely fortify your coop! Hardware cloth covering your run with an apron or dug two feet down around the perimeter of your run. Fishers can be viscous. An acquaintance lost almost her entire flock of chickens (75 chickens spread over 4 coops) in two hours to a fisher. She knows it was a fisher because she had a critter cam. So - fortify!

 

[chickengeorgeto]

Mink

Fisher

Similar in appearance, but different in size.

yea, and the Fisher's belly button is much higher off the ground than a Mink's tummy is.

I'll also say that a fisher is capable of either ripping into or gnawing its way inside your coop or run if it absolutely definitely wants a chicken dinner.

Now for the good news. Fur prices are high. So @ as much as $200 each for Martin and Fisher pelts it shouldn't be difficult now to find a local trapper who will take care of business for you for like free.

 

[Kluk-Kluk]

Did it look like this (image from Wikipedia)? This is a mink, and we have them in my area (upstate NY). Fortunately, they haven't come to my yard.

(Sorry, I had this written up after your original post, but I didn't post it right away; now I saw all the other replies.)

 

[MeghanChickLady]

UPDATE: the coop has been fortified so well that I think even an inch worm would have trouble getting in! The chickens are unhappy with it but are safer. I put their grain in the coop, and ive stopped letting them outside by day. I don't have the time to watch them. Thanks for the help!

 

[luvmychixandducks]

If you see a Fisher Cat do NOT let your guard dog try to defend your girls against a Fisher Cat.
We had a Fisher cat in a neighboring town appear In a backyard and a visitor with his German Shepherd dog decided to sic the dog on the Fisher.
The dog was killed in less than a minute. Throat torn out.
The advice you got about local trappers was good. Avail yourself of any assistance offered.
We had a great Pyrenees cross that my brother allowed to chase a young Fisher and luckily the Fisher just climbed a tree and posed for his photo.
Could as easily dispatched the old boy if he was so inclined.

 

[luvmychixandducks]

3riverschick posts about predators tearing chicken wire... ABSOLUTELY !!!
Chicken wire is to keep chickens in - not predators out.
The most solid run is vulnerable unless it is secured with at least 1x2 welded wire. And I've even lost birds to a weasel that squeezed thru chain link.
If I ever get birds again the chain link will be backed with welded wire 1x1 to keep out the little killers. And discourage raccoons from pulling the birds thru the wire - a nasty coon trick...

 

[CrazyTalk]

We had a Fisher cat in a neighboring town appear In a backyard and a visitor with his German Shepherd dog decided to sic the dog on the Fisher.
The dog was killed in less than a minute. Throat torn out.

If this happened, the dog was really unlucky, or just didn't realize that the fisher wasn't a toy.

Fishers are nasty, and they're really efficient hunters, but the biggest Fisher on record is 20lbs. I wouldn't send a 40lb dog after one, but typical livestock guardian dogs are 100lbs+, and are going to make short work of a Fisher, just as they make short work of typical coyotes.


The reason why dog-wild animal reactions tend to go really badly is usually that the dog is a pet. Properly raised livestock guardians are raised with adult guardian dogs that know what they're doing, and know to treat any animal in their pasture as dangerous (which is why livestock dogs often kill strays, etc). Pet dogs tend to not realize they're in a fight until a lot of damage has been done.