would a rabbit kill a chicken?

[vincehick]

i just found my 12 week old hen dead. I could not see a positive cause of death. she had a broken wing and few tiny blood spots on her head and face.
we got a good amount of snow today so i checked for tracks. Only tracks i found around her were our rabbits tracks.
I have noticed the rabbit biting at our chickens feathers before, didn't think much of it just figured the chickens would let the rabbit have it if it bugged them.
Or could it be a hawk or owl and i just couldn't see the tracks. when i found her she was still very warm.
Also we did introduce a new hen with the seven we already had. She is the same age and breed, B.O. and they've been together for a week.
dont know if it was her.
thanks for your help!

 

[theFox]

You might want to take a good look at the bird again, a rabbit wouldn't likely be able to break a birds wing.

Is her neck broken?

Is there something close she could have flown into?

Did you look her over really well? Especially around her vent and her back towards the tail.

 

[Robo]

I don't think a rabbit would do that. Have you had more snow on top of what you had when she died?

 

[vincehick]

my first thought was broken neck but i dont see any obvious signs.
she was about 8 feet from a tree, so maybe your right.
checked her vent and everything again but didn't see anything

 

[vincehick]

No it stopped for now. looked again and still only see rabbit tracks.

 

[nzpouter]

a rabbit kick can easily break a chicken's neck... we have wild ones around us and every now and then you get a teritorial buck... I had orpington roosters neck, wattle and comb rip to shreds by rabbits.

 

[txcarl1258]

It is entirely possible. Are they housed in the same pen? Some of the larger breeds I am sure could kick hard enough to break the wing of a 12 week old bird.

 

[popcornpuppy]

Yes! A rabbit can seriously injure or even kill a chicken. The rabbits can become teritorial and will attack a chicken if they feel threatened. I have seen this firsthand, it's not something I have read or heard. I have seen it with my own eyes. Cute fuzzy bunnies can do major harm.

 

[BeccaB00]

I don't think a rabbit would do that

 

[annie3001]

i dont think a rabbit would do that, however they have tough back hind legs,, that could do some serious damage.

we have a 6 year old house rabbit and if provoked by our 8 month old sheltie,, Oreo makes a grunting noise...oh yeah, even my 2 lil kids stay out of mr. oreo's way.