What predator would pile up dead chickens?

Neither one of them was during the time they have young so that wasn't it. I had seen that particular racoon around before. Yes, our coop is well protected. They were free ranging and I forgot to close the run door two nights in a row. I've got an automatic coop door now so no issues.
"I have had multiple mass slaughters of my flock due to racoons"

Raccoons care for their young a year after they're born.If you have one you have more.They like to bring the whole family for dinner
 
Animals absolutely do have "fun" with hunting and their prey. It doesn't require an understanding of "taking
And they do not kill for sport. Or fun. Or trophies. They stockpile for food. When it comes to kill or be killed, only humans can risk killing for sport. Those animals that are lucky enough to expend energy on activities not critical to survival get to enjoy some fun.

Don't know if it strikes anyone else as interesting that so many humans have no problem assigning the motivation of "sport" or "spite" to non-human animals but the thread on chickens feeling love or affection is chalked up to anthropomorphism.
Affection isn't unique to humans. Grief, joy, compassion , and "fun" are also observed in animals. Whales and primates are the most obvious examples. Heck, even bees will play with balls for no other reason than "fun". Chickens might fee affection, while not understanding it.

Emotions, and on a grander scale, sapience, are extremely complicated, but it's becoming apparent that neither is unique to humans.
 
I did not say that animals do not have emotions or that they do not have fun. I said that the motivation for engaging in killing is not fun, because killing another animal has a high cost. It takes energy and is dangerous. Playing with another animal is fun, but animals do it in a stereotypical way so that they are not injured. Because the benefit of enjoyment is not worth the cost of injury, which can be fatal to wild animal.
 
I have been raising birds for years, so I am familiar with predator issues, but I have a new one. I have a small flock of a dozen 2-month-old Jersey Giants and 4 full-grown ducks. The other morning I went to the barn to find only two chicks in the barn. 4 ducks and 7 small chickens are totally missing. Here is the interesting part. There were three chicken carcasses in a neat little pile in the middle of the horse paddock outside the barn. Two intact and one with a missing head. Missing head makes me think raccoon or owl, but an owl would only kill one or two, and I do not think a raccoon would carry off 4 ducks and 7 chicks. I have never heard of anything piling them up, like they were making a neat little cache and were planning to come back for them. That sounds more like a fox, but I don't see a fox carrying off that many. It could be coyotes, but I don't think they would pile anything up. Happened at night or before 10 AM. Has anyone had a predator make a pile out of their kills?
So sorry you lost a hunch of birds... That is tough to deal with... 😥
 

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