Everyone was right about the culprits! Myself, and all of you!
The traps each caught something today - a possum in the small one, a raccoon in the big one!
But that wasn't all. The giant pen holding all of the growing chicks, the ducks, the geese, and now the frizzles, had a visitor this morning! I heard a lot of crows going crazy outside making caws left and right, and glanced out to see something large move away from the gate of the pen and run down the side. I didn't have glasses on or contacts in, but when he ran back around to the front, I knew it was NOT one of my cats!
I went racing outside in flip flops and scared off... a red fox! He got two chicks that had wandered out of the pen. The fox can't get IN but right now they are small enough to get OUT - until I put screen on it tonight! Unfortunately, it was a BLRW and the white polish cockerel. Both fairly valuable to me. (Why couldn't he take an EE baby? I'm overrun with those!)
I found the white polish completely gone with a single bloody spot about the size of a dime on his stomach. The BLRW was alive but struggling to hold his head up, and his intestines were pulled out of a small hole in his abdomen. He died within seconds in my hands. As I looked for more, I heard the ruckus of crows move way off into the distance (following him). I went to check for the big EEs that free-range and all three were safe. As I walked back to the pen, I heard the crows returning. I got in front of the pen (he approached from the back of it), crouched down and stayed completely still. I was hoping he'd AT LEAST peek his head around the corner where I had part of a 2x4 waiting. But if not, I also wanted to scare him off really good - from up close. The crows probably got about 10 feet from the pen, and I heard the footsteps of the fox. My cat Max was out there trying to get my attention, but he must have seen the fox because he started to stare and crouch low like he was about to charge or pounce.
Max took off quickly in that direction, and the sound of the crows followed and left the area again. A few minutes later, they stopped with only an occasional caw. I knew with me in flip flops and the low brush in the woods (and thorns everywhere) I wouldn't be able to keep up. I don't know if Max will try to go after him or not. He's a big cat, but lightweight and used to fighting. He's not fixed yet, so he's usually fighting other male cats that wander over here, or get dumped here. Against a fox though? I don't see that being much of a match. But I can't follow them fast enough, so I have to hope for the best. At least the fox had something "follow" him away from the property, so hopefully he'll be scared just enough to stay away until I can get the screen and cover the gate with it today.
