Will black snakes harm my chickens and chicks?

[Ixyavi]

Not to hijack the thread but how do you keep snakes OUT of your coop/run? I have a BILLION snakes out in the woods and pond out back. (and if you think I'm gonna kill a 6 foot snake of ANY species you're wrong, I'm gonna RUN and let them eat whatever they catch)

I'm with you! I'd just run!

I am so terrified of snakes it's not even funny. If I saw a snake in the coop I'd prolly wet my pants.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

Don't confuse plain black snakes with king snakes. King snakes kill and eat all North American species of poisonous snakes. And yes a king snake will also eat eggs and chicks.




BTW, king snakes make pets at least as good as chickens do.

 

[shmccarthy]

Don't confuse plain black snakes with king snakes. King snakes kill and eat all North American species of poisonous snakes. And yes a king snake will also eat eggs and chicks. BTW, king snakes make pets at least as good as chickens do.

They do make good pets! My uncle adopted one, it lives under his deck and it keeps the small pest problem down and eats all the poisonous snakes where he lives. King snakes are generally not aggressive towards humans, from what I've seen at least. The only snakes I've seen where I live are blue racers, garter snakes and a few massasauga rattlers. I love snakes but the rattlers are the only ones I'm afraid of haha

 

[wildspurs]

I would be very careful about killing snakes depending on what state you live in. Here in Iowa almost every snake species is protected by law, meaning that it is illegal to kill or collect them as pets. Just saying

 

[agunderson]

I live in Iowa, and my local police officer said if any animal attacks your livestock(aka chickens) you can kill them, and I live within city limits and I can still shoot them! I would assume that means snakes too! Does anyone think hardware cloth around the bottom of a chicken run fence would keep snakes out? my run is totally fenced and the fencing is buried 4 inches underground to keep predators out). I am terrified of snakes and have heard to many stories of reaching into to get eggs and SURPRISE there is a snake in the nesting box! Yeeek. I don't care if they are poisonous, indangered or eat every rodent on my acreage I would freak! so any advice to keep them out I will take!

 

[tntxdeb]

IMy daughter opened the hen house yesterday and there was a snake. Not sure what kind it was, first I thought a copperhead, but now I'm not sure, howeever oneof my chickens was acting sick last night, hanging its head down with it eyes closed. She went over to drink water and was leaning against the waterer. I'm assumng she must have got bit, but what kind of snake if not a copperhead would bite her and cause her to act that way.

 

[shmccarthy]

IMy daughter opened the hen house yesterday and there was a snake.  Not sure what kind it was, first I thought a copperhead, but now I'm not sure, howeever oneof my chickens was acting sick last night, hanging its head down with it eyes closed.  She went over to drink water and was leaning against the waterer.  I'm assumng she must have got bit, but what kind of snake if not a copperhead would bite her and cause her to act that way.

It depends on where you live and what other kinds of snakes are in your area. Have you examined her at all to look for a bite wound?

 

[chicken124]

They do make good pets! My uncle adopted one, it lives under his deck and it keeps the small pest problem down and eats all the poisonous snakes where he lives. King snakes are generally not aggressive towards humans, from what I've seen at least.
The only snakes I've seen where I live are blue racers, garter snakes and a few massasauga rattlers. I love snakes but the rattlers are the only ones I'm afraid of haha

I DON'T care what type of snake it is but i will scream at the top of my lungs and sprint out of the coop!

 

[tntxdeb]

I live in east Tennessee. We couldn't find any bite marks, but unfortunately she died last night. ): After looking at lots of snake pictures I'm thinking it may have been a king snake, but would a king snake bite kill a chicken?

 

[tntxdeb]

Here is a picture of the snake