What would do this kind of damage? UPDATE POST #65!

[chestypuller]

i say you put odie down with a .22 and you keep your dogs locked up, and see if any chickens die. i bet they wont.

 

[joelman7]

i say you put odie down with a .22 and you keep your dogs locked up, and see if any chickens die. i bet they wont.

guns isnt allways the answer what if it isnt him then you've just killed a inesent dog think before you say

 

[Coop de Grille]

LOL There is no way I'm going to shoot Odie. He is a sweet dog and I don't think he is the culprit. If it's a coon or coyote then I will shoot/trap them without hesitation. But, I'm really starting to suspect my own dog. SHE is who was on the pics last night, sniffing around in the spot that the chicken was taken from. I'm not going to shoot my own dog either. She is a hunting dog and it's in her nature to do so. It's MY responsibility to make sure she can't get to my chickens and that is what I need to do.

Tell me about electric fencing. How much does it cost (per foot? yard?) and how would I keep from electrocuting myself when I have to go inside the coop?

This is my dog sniffing around where the hole was dug:

 

[zazouse]

It is not Odie, you dog would not be intrested in his smell, what ever it is the dogs are on to it.
I have been clearning a parcil of land to dig a new pond , the pile trees i have is bigger than my home and i noticed my dogs have been working that pile all 9 of them for the past 2 weeks, yesteday my critter getter came out with a young possium, but there must be more cause she is back out there working the pile.

 

[fernwoodj9]

I really think u have a coon working you the damage to the fence is tell tale to me coons are strong and very smart also it is taking its catch with them coons like to drag things off to eat in a safe place.live trap is best 4 you because sounds like you would catch odie in any lethal trap set up but coons are smart they sometimes will not go into a live trap.another option is leg trap inside run next time it gets inn leave hole lock up birds and use leg trap inside run put fresh chicken parts from store inside bucket on its side put rocks or wood to keep buchet from rolling put leg trap just outside no need 2 cover at first .leg traps are under 15$ at any sporting goods store. can use same set up outside but get odie penned up 4 a cpl days.as for electric fence u can get set up for about 150$ it pulses electricity it kind of hurts if you touch fence but will not kill you.but your pest will not stop until you get it it has gotten some free meals.good luck

 

[PaulaJoAnne]

It is not Odie, you dog would not be intrested in his smell, what ever it is the dogs are on to it.
I have been clearning a parcil of land to dig a new pond , the pile trees i have is bigger than my home and i noticed my dogs have been working that pile all 9 of them for the past 2 weeks, yesteday my critter getter came out with a young possium, but there must be more cause she is back out there working the pile.

Not interested in another dog's smell? Hello? Have you ever seen dogs greet each other? So far the only animals on camera have been dogs; therefore they are the prime suspects. Snares are very effective for dogs or wild animals. If a dog is caught in one, being leash trained, he will almost always lay down before the snare becomes too tight and kills him. So you won't end up killing your pet or your neighbor's pet. A wild animal, taught to always flee from unknown hazards, will fight the snare until it strangles to death; usually very quickly. When an animal has been successful in digging a hole, placing a snare inside is very simple, and when the animal returns to the scene it will use the same hole that was successful before and get caught.

 

[my sunwolf]

I agree with the Odie-as-predator theory. I had a female dog who was very peaceful with my other dogs and with the free frange chickens when I was around to watch. Everything went fine for a few weeks, and then I came out to find a dead chick, NOT eaten. I thought maybe a hawk had dropped it (dumb, I know). The next day, my female dog comes trotting up to the house with another chick in her mouth, already dead. I knew then that she was a chick killer, and kept her away from all the babies, but still continued to let the hens roam (also dumb).

A few weeks later, I found the female dog with a hen. She had dragged the hen to a corner of the yard and was eating her. I got rid of that dog.

Here's how she was with the hens:


She loved to forage with them, dig out their holes and lie in them, nap with them, etc.

My male dogs went crazy when this female killed chickens. Just keep the dog predator in mind.

 

[CluckyCharms]

I definitely don't agree with "chesty". You don't just go around shooting dogs because they *might* be guilty of killing chickens.

I do think your culprit is a dog, whether that be your dog or your neighbor's I don't know...but since that's all you keep catching on cam I feel one of them is guilty. Or...it could be they're just extremely interested in your coop because your predator is a female canine of some sort (coyote, another dog, etc) in heat and they pick up on that and are thus very curious.

I think the dogs need to be penned up until you can ascertain that it's not them.

 

[Coop de Grille]

I reset the camera and will keep my dog inside tonight. Hopefully I will get to see what is around. We have been outside shoring up any weak spots on the runs, I don't want to lose any more chickens.

I had four of the Red Stars. The sister to the one that is missing died this morning. When I went out to the coop to let them out I found her laying on floor, but still alive. I put her in a dog crate and within an hour she was dead. I was just out there and I noticed one of my little 11 week old roos is having a problem with both his legs. He cannot stand up, but is scooting around. Last night was their first night up on a roost and I thought maybe he fell off, but I put him up there and took them all down this AM. They were all in the same spot where I put them last night, they didn't move. Uggh, if I have to cull him that means I am down three chickens in 2 days.

 

[joelman7]

I definitely don't agree with "chesty". You don't just go around shooting dogs because they *might* be guilty of killing chickens.

I do think your culprit is a dog, whether that be your dog or your neighbor's I don't know...but since that's all you keep catching on cam I feel one of them is guilty. Or...it could be they're just extremely interested in your coop because your predator is a female canine of some sort (coyote, another dog, etc) in heat and they pick up on that and are thus very curious.

I think the dogs need to be penned up until you can ascertain that it's not them.

i know you dont go shooting inesent animals because you have a gun