Been loosing chickens to predators

[LizStreithorst]

My hens refuse to roost in their lovely house. My breed, Bielefelder, are said to have been developed as a free range chicken and mine sure are. They roost in a tree. Nothing I can do about it. They like me and I like them but they are not pets. No way I could catch all 14 that are left and lock them up.

I thought that they would be safe up there but they are not. I have lost 3 in the last 4 weeks. Some critter snags them from the branches of the tree in the wee hours of the night since the hens ignore their safe ice enclosed house with an automatic door.

I heard it again last night as their tree (and house) is right outside my bedroom window. There was a huge cackling as something caught one and hauled it off. My worthless yapping dogs all went on a huge bark and barked later even when I could hear nothing until morning.

This morning there were 3 piles of feathers close to the fence which leads through the overgrown pasture and into the woods which leads to the river.

My neighbor thinks that the culprit is either an owl or a possum. I doubt that it was an owl. I didn't think that a possum could climb a tree. Whatever it is there is nothing I can do about it. I can't sleep outside anymore because of my back. Whatever this predator is it knows that the next time it needs a good meal, the table is set for it.

[Second Hand Pat]

That really bites Liz. My bet would be a possum. I do not think an owl would leave piles of feathers. Also I think a chicken would be a bit heavy for an owl to carry off unless it is a large owl.
Pat

[LizStreithorst]

I agree, Pat. I was thinking a Bobcat, but we have way more possums than bobcats. If my back allows it I will get more day old chicks next Spring and do my best to keep them locked up long enough that they consider their nice house to be the place to sleep.

[famtsberg]

We have coyotes that have the cats on lockdown. They wait a couple months, people get new cats, Then they run through the neighborhood for a couple nights and lay waste to them. Got 2 of ours. One I really like then other one was ok. They also keep trying to to dig into my coop. We had a possum come through and try to get our ducks. My wife heard something out by the coop one night and about half way there got nailed by a rattlesnake. 2 days in the hospital, can't walk still 10 days later. On the upside i've sold 250 snail on AB. lol

[LizStreithorst]

And on the upside here I just sold 24 Mystery snails to my LPS today. The Assassins breed very slowly in my water but they do live and do their job for me.

I guess if we choose to live in the country we have to deal with predictors. Ain't nothin' better than a good nutritious chicken dinner. It's worth the cost, though.

[Willie]

And on the upside here I just sold 24 Mystery snails to my LPS today...

I appreciate the irony here. We have an auction every two months, which is just the amount of time for mystery snails to get from 1/2" to 1 1/2". Every auction, people bid up those bags of mystery snails. :confused:

[gunnerschh2]

Racoons climb trees.......

[14Discus]

FYI……through the years, I’ve indeed seen opossums in both deciduous and coniferous trees. I’d still lean towards bobcats as the culprit. Try putting a game camera nearby to see what is going on. And…imho, a large owl could also be the cause. And yes…..raccoons are chicken lovers. Used to see them try for my prize chickens years ago when I showed my Seabright and Black Breasted Old English Game bantams.

[LizStreithorst]

I had a bobcat attack a few years ago when I neglected to close the door to the chicken house for too long back when the hens roosted in the house. It was almost total carnage. We must have coons but I have never seen one here. Who knows it could have been a very large owl but my bet is on a possum. I don't have a wild life camera and if I did it wouldn't do me any good to know what critter it was. I can't sleep outside and I don't own a gun. I'll just hope that whatever it is it will move on to greener pastures.

[famtsberg]

Getting clutches of mystery snails now that are pea size. LFS like them. The bought some the other day. I need to get the other color clutches now that my assasshole snails numbers are going down. they really like the tanks with plecos. Thanks Willie they love that mulm.

[LizStreithorst]

Ive noticed that too, Fritz. Plecos and Mystery Snails both seem seem to grow faster in tanks where they are together. I figure most folks would consider growing out snails and BN to be a terrible waste of tank space. It's not if they give you pleasure, though.

[famtsberg]

Ive noticed that too, Fritz. Plecos and Mystery Snails both seem seem to grow faster in tanks where they are together. I figure most folks would consider growing out snails and BN to be a terrible waste of tank space. It's not if they give you pleasure, though.

That's true but the LFS love them both. Go figure. I've been surprised at how slow BN grow. Prolific once they get breeding age.

[LizStreithorst]

Yes, the BN are problematic that way. Once they get started they don't quit and then you're stuck growing them out for what seems like forever. I solved the constant breeding problem by putting my pairs in with preditory fish. We don't think of Discus as being vicious hunters but once you see them hunt down and eat baby plecos we realize otherwise. I figure that the few that survive have earned the right to live.

[seanyuki]

Liz saw this on YouTube farm pals saved the chicken.



http://youtu.be/bKgpOUgwuFw

[LizStreithorst]

That is so cool, Francis. Those folks have a wonderful encolour for a couple of goats and a few hens. They'd be safe there from most critters but the chickens are sitting ducks for a hawk.

I don't know if you're aware of this but before I started keeping and breeding fish I bred and showed and milked a herd of dairy goats. The breed of goat that saved her chicken friend is Oberhasli. That particular goat is a very good quality one.

[brady]

Liz
I would inclined to think it's a weasel.
Weasels,fox and hawks have been the main suspects here in Ct.
Last year I had a weasel break into my coup at night a slaughtered 9 hens.
Just left them there, never took any for a meal, just killed and maimed so my thought ,weasels.
Jay Walsh




















and hawks have driven me crazy. But, weasels they are bad. One night last year one got into the coup,I have never figured out how,

[LizStreithorst]

How terrible! I've never heard anything about weasels here in Mississippi but I'll ask around to the folks who have lived here right in my own little community for generations.

[LizStreithorst]

You know what it was? It was a d@mn fox. It kept snagging them every day or every other day until the only hen left was Isabel's friend, Olivia. She came running in the house when she saw her best friend Isabel taken. I let her stay inside for 3 weeks, picking up Chicken $hit the entire time. She also decided to mold around that time. Lucky me. During the time Olivia was inside I saw that fox crossing the front yard like it owned the place 3 times.

After 3 weeks I couldn't handle constantly picking up $hit and feathers and I threw her outside. The fox must have moved on to greener pastures because Olivia is still alive and doing well. She goes outside in the morning and comes back in to sleep. The molt is about over so I should be getting an egg a day soon.

This whole experience was very painful for me to go through. I live too far down in the woods to have free range chickens and since I can no longer do the physical labor involved in making a secure run I guess that having chickens is a thing of the past for me. It's a shame but it is what it is...

[RogueDiscus]

My son and his wife (mostly his wife) have lots of animals, and guinea hens are what they raise and let run wild eating bugs including ticks. They actually bond and follow them around, but they roost up in the trees to keep themselves safe. They do also have chickens, ducks, geese, and a turkey, and three emu, (and dogs, cat, goats, rabbit) which all have pens or kennels for the evening.

[famtsberg]

Liz if you look online at hardware stores they have 10ftx10ft dog runs. I bought two extra panels and have a 10x20 chicken run. I secured my hen house to the fence and cut it out. got a great tarp on amazon to keep the flying critters out. total cost was about $300. lasted 2 years so far. Only fatalities are a couple chickens that slept to close to fence and racoons got them.

[famtsberg]

https://tinyurl.com/2sm2rmyz

Here is one. Local hardware stores have them also. I bought extra panels from true value for $75 each. ended up 10x20ft.

Fritz

[LizStreithorst]

Thank you Fritz, but I don't like to keep my animals locked up in a small area. If I ever do something I will buy electric netting and give them a huge run. l would have to come into a windfall in order to do that. I'll make do with my one hen until then.

[brady]

Liz. I looked into electric fences from Premier fence and the prices are not too bad and
they have many sizes and choices for powering them. I am with you on cooping them up.
I have 16 by 24 run which I never use and I haven't had any problems lately because I now have
Bernese[my 4th and a golden my 3rd] and they have adopted the chickens so noting is going to
near them..

Jay

[LizStreithorst]

I've been selling a lot of fish lately but I'll still have to save up. My hot water heater went out last month and my central AC went out before that. I was able to buy used window units from my neighbor who also installed them for me. I was without hot water for 3 weeks before I sucked it up and put one on my credit card. The same neighbor installed it for me. I could have done it myself but those things weigh like 150 lbs.

Since I am no longer able to work I have to make it on SS and fish sales only. I'm not complaining. I love my life, I just want you to understand my situation. More chickens and what is necessary to keep them safe are not at the top of my list.

[Jack L]

can you setup some trail cameras? or wifi cameras with motion alerts?

[LizStreithorst]

I'll ask my neighbor about that. He has cameras everywhere. Around his house for security which I think is silly considering where we all live, and cameras to see where the deer are because he's a hunter.