Why did my rooster kill all my hens??

[Tony K T]

Thanks everyone after really going over the cage we found one small hole. We have secured twists left of our guys in the coop and will be wrapping more wire and putting the skirting out farter

You still need to catch whatever it is and get rid of it.Good luck.
In N.H.,Tony.

 

[TheTwoRoos]

Yes the rooster will protect his hens, not kill them.

Same here. I don't think foxes usually eat chickens.

If they are young they may have just been joking around using them as target prcatice. Foxes will eat and kill a chicken once caught,has happened to me too many time.

But yes,I hope you did not kill the rooster yet for something he has been blamed for even though he did not do it.He was defending them,and/or picking at the blood of the hen (S).

 

[sdc302]

The rooster is safe and locked in the coop with the hens until I catch who ever is to blame. Just bought some traps going to set them up to catch the little $&@?

 

[dekel18042]

Thanks everyone after really going over the cage we found one small hole. We have secured twists left of our guys in the coop and will be wrapping more wire and putting the skirting out farter

One small hole is all it takes to let a predator in. Was just wondering what your vent area is like if you have one. That could also be an access.
Some predators are easy to trap and some next to impossible. It helps if you can identify the predator so you know what kinds of traps to set and what to use as bait.

 

[Cluckcluck1215]

 
I hope you haven't cooked that Rooster yet? He's not the problem......a predator is.

I lost many hens to foxes. Their heads were removed and bodies scattered but not taken, it seemed as if they were killed for sport targets.

The Rooster, and others, will pick at a dead "whatever" if they see blood.

Yes the rooster will protect his hens, not kill them.

Same here. I don't think foxes usually eat chickens.

Foxes DO eat chickens.I know for a fact cause I have had two taken by a fox.or so I think

 

[dekel18042]

Foxes DO eat chickens.I know for a fact cause I have had two taken by a fox.or so I think

Yes, foxes definitely eat chickens and they will also carry them away so the body is never found. In this area, foxes are our worst predator and the hardest to stay ahead of.

 

[chicken4prez]

Foxes DO eat chickens.I know for a fact cause I have had two taken by a fox.or so I think

Yes, foxes definitely eat chickens and they will also carry them away so the body is never found. In this area, foxes are our worst predator and the hardest to stay ahead of.

Oh really? We had a fox come and he just killed our chicken and didn't eat it.

 

[Howard E]

To the OP, almost certainly a weasel or one of the cousins. One of the worst is the tiny little Least Weasel. They can climb or dig and can go through holes the size of chicken wire.

This from Illinois, but the same applies anywhere they are found:

https://www.dnr.illinois.gov/conservation/wildlife/Pages/LeastWeasel.aspx

When they go at a victim, they get on their back and bite at the back of the head and neck, so it looks like heads ripped off. They also go into a frenzy and attack what moves, which is why they often kill several at a time, if not all of them. If they don't get them all at once, they work a territory, so may be back. Apparently yours has already come back twice.

Trapping them takes a bit of skill. You can use a wooden rat trap by itself, but it will work better in a weasel box trap. Google those or look at Youtube.

Do you also have any kind of an issue with rats or mice hanging around?

 

[Cluckcluck1215]

I had a problem with a Ermine.Twice.One time, it was under the coop and ran into a tree caus ethe dog held it in there and dad grabbed the shot gun and shot it oh well, anything for my chickens.And the second, it was running around the yard and we let the oh out.It went under the deck.It was chasing a mole and it went under my uncles car and into the weel(the mole was dead)And my Uncle started the car and the Ermine came out.It went back under the deck and then ran under our car and dad caught it on the run with the shot gun.Good Catch dad

 

[Little Fuzzy]

I'm having a rat problem. I've tried all humane ways to catch them but they are too smart, So, we are now baiting the front gate to run and my nephew is shooting them with a pellet gun. Hope my neighbors understand. The pellet gun's not too noisy.