What's getting my chickens?

[Shadrach]

I forgot to mention it's worth looking around the eating site for strange droppings (shit)
If you find any, there are animal droppings information sites on the web you may be able to compare to.

 

[Soy Milano]

Have you tried using poultryDVM's poultry predator identifier tool? http://www.poultrydvm.com/predator-identifier.php

 

[Chickensoftherainbow]

South Carolina

Knowing
your location would help a lot. Not every predator lives everywhere. But given everything in your post, my first guess would be a hawk.

 

[Chickensoftherainbow]

I

I forgot to mention it's worth looking around the eating site for strange droppings (shit)
If you find any, there are animal droppings information sites on the web you may be able to compare to.

I have looked for dropping, and cant find any, or clear tracks. I was told bob cats tend to pluck chickens. They are being taken at night time, they free range and have a coop, but they dont like to use the coop, they prefer to roost in trees, and this particular rooster roosted on top of the coop.

 

[Chickensoftherainbow]

It could really be a whole bunch of things but it all depends where you are from. Where i live bear, fox, and raccoons are the ground dwelling problem. I would check around the coop, or do you free range them? If they are kept in the coop i wouldn’t doubt it if it was a fox. Those sneaky bastards would be able to slip in and out of the coop with a chicken undetected even if you had trip wire!

I have narrowed it down to fox, bob cat, or coyote. They are very common in my area. I do have goats as well, one baby, and it hasnt messed with them.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Whenever I have birds that prefer to sleep in trees, I make every effort to retrain them. If I'm unsuccessful, they all eventually get taken.
Knowing it was at night and to a chicken sleeping outside helps narrow it down.
If it happened at night, it could have also been an owl.
Hawks definitely pluck their prey.

 

[Chickensoftherainbow]

Whenever I have birds that prefer to sleep in trees, I make every effort to retrain them. If I'm unsuccessful, they all eventually get taken.
Knowing it was at night and to a chicken sleeping outside helps narrow it down.
If it happened at night, it could have also been an owl.
Hawks definitely pluck their prey.

Whatever it was literally at half, bones and all, the first night. The following day i went back to look closer for clues, chicken was moved and everything had been ate except for the legs/feet. And it moved it 3 more times, plucking more and more feathers.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

It could easily have been more than one type of predator. A hawk, owl or anything else could have initially killed it and then a raccoon, fox, coyote etc. could have come upon the kill and finished it off.

 

[coltgrizzz]

I have narrowed it down to fox, bob cat, or coyote. They are very common in my area. I do have goats as well, one baby, and it hasnt messed with them.

Have you ever considered getting a gamecam? I used one last year to see what was digging under my fence and sure as hell there was a raccoon. They can be expensive but you could use them and then return it.

 

[Howard E]

I

I have looked for dropping, and cant find any, or clear tracks. I was told bob cats tend to pluck chickens. They are being taken at night time, they free range and have a coop, but they dont like to use the coop, they prefer to roost in trees, and this particular rooster roosted on top of the coop.

Current loss aside, this is the key to your problem. Housing the birds won't use.....combined with free ranging.......is a recipe for disaster. If not this predator, it will be another, and another and another until the birds are all gone. You can reload with replacements and they will get them too.

I currently have two houses and two age groups of birds and none of them.....not one......have ever failed to go into the house I provided them to roost at night. So at dusk, the go inside to roost, the door gets locked and the birds are safe from all predators we have around here. And because of this, I've never lost a bird to a predator.

And true free ranging is about the same as sending your kids out to play in a minefield. Bad idea if you care about their safety and well being. Just saying.