Will a copperhead kill a hen?

[Mellifera]

I'm baffled; a week ago we lost a hen, less than 1 yo. when we got home from work, she was in the pen. it appeared she just sat down in the straw, put her head down & died. My husband examined her and said there wasn't a mark on her but she was "a little bit prolapsed". Tonight, i came home, let the girls out and noticed immediately one of the girls was missing. Found her just inside the pop door, face down. She was almost 4yo and there was no sign of trauma. we have seen an unusual number of copperheads this year. just cannot imagine what's going on.

 

[shmccarthy]

I would thoroughly inspect the body for any bite wounds to start

 

[Triple Willow]

I'm baffled; a week ago we lost a hen, less than 1 yo.  when we got home from work, she was in the pen.  it appeared she just sat down in the straw, put her head down & died.  My husband examined her and said there wasn't a mark on her but she was "a little bit prolapsed".  Tonight, i came home, let the girls out and noticed immediately one of the girls was missing.  Found her just inside the pop door, face down.  She was almost 4yo and there was no sign of trauma.  we have seen an unusual number of copperheads this year.  just cannot imagine what's going on. 

Yes a copperhead (even a baby one) can kill a chicken if they make contact with the bite. It could be very hard to find the bite mark unlesss you remove the feathers to search for it. It will be two puncture wounds, unless the snake only made contact with one fang. There would probably be tissue damage at the bite area. The best advise I would have would be to find some kingsnakes that are local to your area and release them at your place. They will kill and eat other snakes, including copperheads. Also, unless it is necessary, don't kill the other snakes. It will take time but when they out number the copperheads the copperheads will have to leave to find something to eat. Hope you don't lose any more of your flock.

 

[shmccarthy]

Yes a copperhead (even a baby one) can kill a chicken if they make contact with the bite. It could be very hard to find the bite mark unlesss you remove the feathers to search for it. It will be two puncture wounds, unless the snake only made contact with one fang. There would probably be tissue damage at the bite area. The best advise I would have would be to find some kingsnakes that are local to your area and release them at your place. They will kill and eat other snakes, including copperheads. Also, unless it is necessary, don't kill the other snakes. It will take time but when they out number the copperheads the copperheads will have to leave to find something to eat. Hope you don't lose any more of your flock.

Good idea on the king snakes. I heard that sometimes even a scratch from a fang of a poisonous snake can be potentially fatal, when venom is released. Baby snakes are usually most deadly, well rattlers anyways, because they don't control the amount of venom they release. My uncle lives in the desert of Arizona and adopted a beautiful king snake to live on his property. It doesn't bother his dogs and eats the poisonous snakes in the area. He has really benefited from it.

 

[Triple Willow]

Good idea on the king snakes. I heard that sometimes even a scratch from a fang of a poisonous snake can be potentially fatal, when venom is released. Baby snakes are usually most deadly, well rattlers anyways, because they don't control the amount of venom they release. My uncle lives in the desert of Arizona and adopted a beautiful king snake to live on his property. It doesn't bother his dogs and eats the poisonous snakes in the area. He has really benefited from it.

I don't doubt that a scratch from a fang could be fatal. Especially to a small animal or an elderly person or child. Yes kingsnakes are pretty cool snakes. I had one pet knigsnake and he was very tame from the day I got him. But they will kill other snakes, even other kingsnakes a lot of times. If I have a proble with snakes in the coop I am thinking I will find a knigsnake to keep in there. I'd get one that is too small to eat chickens or eggs but it still ought to take care of other snakes. Shoot, I wouldn't mind if it ate a few eggs if it would just keep the other snakes away and the mice and rats under control. Some of them are so colorful that they would be easy to see in the coop. A California King would be nice but the Speckled King has the reputation as the one most likely to eat other snakes. I have heard that the Speckled are harder to tame though.

California Kingsnake killing a Rattle Snake:
http://picfun.us/index.php/2010/11/california-kingsnake-vs-a-rattlesnake-7-pics/

Speckled Kingsnake killing a Copperhead:
https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/945457_10201084911794176_1169444635_n.jpg

 

[shmccarthy]

I don't doubt that a scratch from a fang could be fatal. Especially to a small animal or an elderly person or child. Yes kingsnakes are pretty cool snakes. I had one pet knigsnake and he was very tame from the day I got him. But they will kill other snakes, even other kingsnakes a lot of times. If I have a proble with snakes in the coop I am thinking I will find a knigsnake to keep in there. I'd get one that is too small to eat chickens or eggs but it still ought to take care of other snakes. Shoot, I wouldn't mind if it ate a few eggs if it would just keep the other snakes away and the mice and rats under control. Some of them are so colorful that they would be easy to see in the coop. A California King would be nice but the Speckled King has the reputation as the one most likely to eat other snakes. I have heard that the Speckled are harder to tame though.

California Kingsnake killing a Rattle Snake:
http://picfun.us/index.php/2010/11/california-kingsnake-vs-a-rattlesnake-7-pics/

Speckled Kingsnake killing a Copperhead:
https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/945457_10201084911794176_1169444635_n.jpg

Beautiful snakes. My uncles is 6 foot and sits under his bridge most of the day. He absolutely loves the "little" guy. I definitely wouldn't mind a king snake eating an egg here or there, especially if it meant keeping the more dangerous snakes away. I would keep one, but my mom is absolutely terrified of snakes and that wouldn't work at all! Lol
I've also heard their temperments are generally docile. I saw someone's king snake once, and it was the only mean one I've ever seen. It wasn't the snakes fault either. The owner didn't feed it much and it was albino and couldn't see well. He would throw a mouse in its enclosure and it would strike at everything until it found the mouse. I felt bad for the guy. :/ snakes get such a bad rep but they're so important and can be very useful if you work with them.

 

[tenmob]

A copperhead bite wouldn't have caused her to die like that. Generally when a venomous snake nails a small animal it more or less immediately starts running around like its drunk, and then collapses. They wouldn't go back to the nest and settle down and then die.

 

[celticwolf]

I know I am late to this thread, but what you describe isn't a snake. Snakes don't usually venture far from what ever they have struck, even if the strike was in self-defense. Unless a copperhead (or any pit viper) is really hungry they don't venture out in the open except to sun and they really prefer to avoid humans or critters they can't consume. While they will eat eggs they still won't venture very far away once they consume the egg and still prefer that egg not be associated with human scents. Before any of you tell me about Black Snakes and such they are not pit vipers and unlike their poisonous cousins have to take when the taking is good. I'd rather lose an occasional egg to a snake if it keeps the mice, rats, voles and moles at bay. There is a 6' black snake that free ranges the wall and floor spaces of my home and I haven't seen a mouse in two years. Now if you really want to rid yourself of snakes you don't need to be St. Patrick or have a mongoose. Any member of the Goose family (yep the bird) will keep your coops safe from snakes. Geese will attack a snake, in a heartbeat, including pit vipers. Remember those cats you keep running off. They are snake killers too. Watching a cat take out a pit viper is rather entertaining, unless you are said pit viper
.
From the symptom you described I be looking for Fiddler Spiders (Brown Recluse, Wood), or Sac Spiders. The venom of these spiders are hemotoxins and cause blood vessels to constrict, which in turn causes large scale necrosis. Bites on mammals and avians are self-defense bites, but still bad. Humans have been known to lose limbs or die from a Fiddler bite if not treated properly. Any bite to critter the size of a chicken could easily kill and it would appear to be instantaneous even though the bite occurred 48-72 hours prior. I have seen similar reactions of dogs I have breed.

I know chickens will eat things that crawl, but they aren't immune to the spiders bite. Other than keeping these spiders away from the coop there's not much you can do if a bird is bitten and you will definitely not see where it was bitten.

Sorry for the diatribe

 

[Triple Willow]

Beautiful snakes. My uncles is 6 foot and sits under his bridge most of the day. He absolutely loves the "little" guy. I definitely wouldn't mind a king snake eating an egg here or there, especially if it meant keeping the more dangerous snakes away. I would keep one, but my mom is absolutely terrified of snakes and that wouldn't work at all! Lol
I've also heard their temperments are generally docile. I saw someone's king snake once, and it was the only mean one I've ever seen. It wasn't the snakes fault either. The owner didn't feed it much and it was albino and couldn't see well. He would throw a mouse in its enclosure and it would strike at everything until it found the mouse. I felt bad for the guy. :/ snakes get such a bad rep but they're so important and can be very useful if you work with them.

Your uncle is a wise man. You are right, snakes can be very useful. I bet that albino snake was pretty pitiful. We seem to mess up things quite a bit when we try to interfere with nature (like breeding for albino animals). A few years ago me and a nephew were pretty into snakes. At one time we had about six pet snakes. No doubt kingsnakes are my favorite. One precaution to avoid being bit when keeping kingsnakes is never to try to handle one or put your hand in their cage with the smell of another snake on you. Even a very tame one might bite you if you smell like another snake. They are that serious about it. lol I agree, I could afford to lose a few eggs if a kingsnake would help keep order in the coop. lol

 

[stevodod]

I know I am late to this thread, but what you describe isn't a snake. Snakes don't usually venture far from what ever they have struck, even if the strike was in self-defense. Unless a copperhead (or any pit viper) is really hungry they don't venture out in the open except to sun and they really prefer to avoid humans or critters they can't consume. While they will eat eggs they still won't venture very far away once they consume the egg and still prefer that egg not be associated with human scents. Before any of you tell me about Black Snakes and such they are not pit vipers and unlike their poisonous cousins have to take when the taking is good. I'd rather lose an occasional egg to a snake if it keeps the mice, rats, voles and moles at bay. There is a 6' black snake that free ranges the wall and floor spaces of my home and I haven't seen a mouse in two years. Now if you really want to rid yourself of snakes you don't need to be St. Patrick or have a mongoose. Any member of the Goose family (yep the bird) will keep your coops safe from snakes. Geese will attack a snake, in a heartbeat, including pit vipers. Remember those cats you keep running off. They are snake killers too. Watching a cat take out a pit viper is rather entertaining, unless you are said pit viper
.
From the symptom you described I be looking for Fiddler Spiders (Brown Recluse, Wood), or Sac Spiders. The venom of these spiders are hemotoxins and cause blood vessels to constrict, which in turn causes large scale necrosis. Bites on mammals and avians are self-defense bites, but still bad. Humans have been known to lose limbs or die from a Fiddler bite if not treated properly. Any bite to critter the size of a chicken could easily kill and it would appear to be instantaneous even though the bite occurred 48-72 hours prior. I have seen similar reactions of dogs I have breed.

I know chickens will eat things that crawl, but they aren't immune to the spiders bite. Other than keeping these spiders away from the coop there's not much you can do if a bird is bitten and you will definitely not see where it was bitten.

Sorry for the diatribe

I've read (but not directly experienced) that guinea fowl absolutely tear snakes to bits if they find one.