Chicken eaters

[brockel]

We’ve had chickens for 6 or so years now. This year is the first year we’ve had a fox problem with them. Over the last 6 years we’ve had at least one den of fox sometimes two within 500-800 yards of the chickens and never had issues from reds or swifts. This year is a completely different story. They’ve done some serious work in the wife’s chickens. I’m wondering if it’s the lack of rodents around with the serious drought we’ve had. Grasshoppers just aren’t cutting it anymore. I’ve killed 7-8 of them so far this year and I know of one more for sure that’s still around. I generally leave fox alone even during fur season but when they start killing the wife’s chickens I turn into John Rambo. Tested out the new thermal on this guy. Sat in the hay stack which is 20 yards from the chicken coop and had this guy within 40 yards two minutes into the stand. One more to go

 

[44hunter45]

We never had fox problems with our chickens back in the day. The raccoons cleaned us out though.

 

[okie archer]

I have caught/killed 9 possums and 9 coons if my math is right just in the last roughly 3 months around my turkeys and chickens.
We have red fox and greys real close by but haven't caught one yet. I probably wouldn't kill it unless it was actually fur bearer season though. We just dont have a lot of them. I am definitely not faulting the op for it though.

 

[brockel]

I have caught/killed 9 possums and 9 coons if my math is right just in the last roughly 3 months around my turkeys and chickens.
We have red fox and greys real close by but haven't caught one yet. I probably wouldn't kill it unless it was actually fur bearer season though. We just dont have a lot of them. I am definitely not faulting the op for it though.

I hear you. I normally leave them alone as they are pretty cool to watch and my daughters enjoy watching them. Can see them at the dens playing around and then in winter out mousing in the stubble fields. But I think they’ve snagged 20 chickens and 4 turkeys this year. So it’s time to shoot them

 

[Nick87]

Still like the thermal?

 

[RobertD]

Whatve you got that thermal mounted on?

 

[brockel]

Still like the thermal?

I love the thermal scanner. My AR15 22 nosler barrel just showed up on Friday and I’ve been working so haven’t got a chance to put it together and mount the thermal scope. Just used the scanner and red light on the 17hmr

 

[brockel]

Whatve you got that thermal mounted on?

It’s going to be mounted on a 22 nosler ar15

 

[brockel]

Got #9 tonight. I guess there’s still two
left out there as I seen them run into one of their holes along the highway on my way in. Will be making a stand tomorrow
Morning before work and hopefully get another

 

[Dsnow9]

Skunks were always the biggest culprit on my parents chickens. They would roll through and just pop the heads off a bunch of the chickens.

 

[MarvB]

When I was a high schooler selling eggs and fryers was how I supplemented my mad money. We lived on 120ac quite a ways from town. Had a neighbor move in (a “townie”) to the old place next door to us and within a week I had at least a half-dozen birds missing. I followed a trail of blood and feathers to the neighbors and confronted the lady. She looked at me repulsed and lectured me how her little “yee yee” could never have done such a thing!!(I swear the mutt...some kind of Maltese poodle arrangement, was smirking at me!)

About a week later, disruption in the hen house and I caught the culprit. Yee yee went home with a dead Banty tied around his neck and an ass load of rock salt out of the old single shot. Never darkened our door again and the lady didn’t say boo!

Sorry for the hijack, good luck on your next set

 

[JEL]

We have to put our chickens in at night otherwise we would get cleaned up I am sure. Have only had one come around during the daylight hours.

 

[Nick87]

About a week later, disruption in the hen house and I caught the culprit. Yee yee went home with a dead Banty tied around his neck and an ass load of rock salt out of the old single shot. Never darkened our door again and the lady didn’t say boo!

Priceless.

 

[okie archer]

Priceless.

Yes priceless indeed...

 

[brockel]

We have to put our chickens in at night otherwise we would get cleaned up I am sure. Have only had one come around during the daylight hours.

They’ve been grabbing them in the daylight. Dumb chickens are probably to distracted chasing grasshoppers they run right into the foxes mouth

 

[Shangobango]

We have reds around. I am sure they are responsible for a few of the missing chickens that never came back to the coop for the night over the years.

The raccoons take the most. They cleaned me completely out in one night a few years ago. I haven’t forgotten to lock down the coop since. No telling how may dozens, if not triple digits, raccoons I have caught in Duke dogproofs around the coop over the last 10 years.

 

[bullbugle]

Raccoons are tough on birds. I have a buddy that raises pheasants, quail, chukar and huns in Nebraska. If a raccoon gets into the pen, you get a surplus killing. I think they took out 89 birds in a single night last year. Bit the heads off of nearly all of them.

 

[Potsie]

There's a couple Red Hawks that nest every year in some large pine trees behind our place. Learned my lesson quick, chickens are now in a fully enclosed coop and run, with a roof.

 

[hank4elk]

Lost many to coons & yotes. Sometimes a hawk.
Foxes waited for remnants but avoided the coop.

 

[JEL]

So now something is picking off our chickens during the day. One a week or so. First one I found a small piece of skin and feathers. Second one nothing. Thoughts on the most likely culprit?