What will decapitate a Roo!!

[SugaryinMD]

Last night I came home from work around 9pm and I never leave my chickens out at night. I found my Roo (who I loved very dearly) dead in my yard. He had no head and his head was completely gone (I couldnt find it) The decapitation seems pretty clear and nothing else was done to his body. My hens were terrified hiding in the bushes.

I need to know what would do this to my Rooster. He was a pretty large Roo. My heart is just broken. What kind of animals do this. I live on a river in the country.

 

[ArizonaNessa]

So sorry for your loss

Cats and raccoons will decapitate.

 

[djmooney]

definitely an owl. this might sound gross but all they eat is the brains and then they leave the whole body. i half seen this 2 or 3 times with turkeys and several times with chickens. the eat the brain because it is good for them and they rarely will touch the body.

 

[SugaryinMD]

Why do they only take the head?

 

[SugaryinMD]

Dammit...I can believe either or...I have large Raccoons and owls. Welp guess I better just start shooting both

 

[SugaryinMD]

oh one more thing. There were feathers all over my yard...so the Roo fought what ever it was and his little legs had blood on them. Does that sound like an owl? or more Raccoon?

 

[guineaman]

coon-sorry

 

[Skamaghetten]

I lost a chicken head the same way. No head or neck and the feathers were all over the yard. Still don't know what happened.

Sorry for your loss

 

[djmooney]

i am still thinking owl. i half caught raccoons coming out of the coop and found dead birds but the would eat the body and the head. we lost two roosters in 1 night from an owl and we now it was an owl because after we found the birds bodies we search for an animal and found an owl picking the roosters head apart on top of our garage

 

[whitecra]

I would say an owl. I know they do it because one got in our silkie pen and was still there in the morning. He couldn't find his way out of the pen.
Chris