# Another chicken fell victim today



## SideWinder (Jan 2, 2009)

Something has been preying on my chickens. Lost another one today, ripped it's head off, didn't touch the body. That's the 3rd one in about a month. No snow here so no tracks. 

Sure would like to see who's doing the damage....

Have seen small foxes and a yote in 07, but nothing since. Wondering if it could be a cat? Wouldn't a larger predator take and eat the kill?


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## Skinner 2 (Mar 19, 2004)

Owls are know to take heads off like that. Perhaps owl.

Skinner


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## SideWinder (Jan 2, 2009)

Don't suppose it's legal to shoot an owl?????


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## SideWinder (Jan 2, 2009)

I know I can protect my property and chickens from 4 legged creatures without a license. Just never considered an attack from the air. Arn't owls a night time predator?


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## Skinner 2 (Mar 19, 2004)

Can we say FEDERAL! Playing with the big boys there.

Nocturnal most of the time but some will come out in daylight. When are the chickens getting hit??? 

Skinner


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## SideWinder (Jan 2, 2009)

Lost this one in the daytime. Prior one is assumed daytime. The one before that no one knows, it could have been dragged out of the coup to where we found it.

To date we have lost 5 total and have found 3 bodies.
Of the 3 found two were missing the heads with no other damage, 1 was half eatten but head was intact.


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## SideWinder (Jan 2, 2009)

As a post note

I would never shoot an owl. While I am new to hunting I will always hunt legally. 

Something about prison just doesn't sound appealing. Besides, who would look after my guns???

(it's called humor)


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## Skinner 2 (Mar 19, 2004)

Are they closed up in the coup at night or can they come out and walk around on their own. If in a penned area I assume no cover? Some chickens will come out before much light is up. Perhaps this is when they get it. May need to add a chicken wire top to the pen.

Don't really know if owl anyway but just a suggestion. 

Skinner


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## gamebird_guy (Feb 8, 2007)

buy a standard wooden rat trap and bait it with chicken liver, that has been known to be very effective.


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## SideWinder (Jan 2, 2009)

Free range chickens make for better tasting eggs! 

They can be confined via gate when needed. With the snow melts we let them run on 1 acre surrounded by open fields but they don't venture far. As of tonight, and until further notice they are on lock down.

To answer your question- They can come and go as they wish- UNTIL NOW.


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## SideWinder (Jan 2, 2009)

gamebird_guy said:


> buy a standard wooden rat trap and bait it with chicken liver, that has been known to be very effective.


May have to resort to traps. We have had a orange cat raiding the garbage in the past but I opted to leave him alone because of the decrease in mice. Also I didn't think a cat could take down a chicken. Either way a trap may well be in order.


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## Michigander1 (Apr 5, 2006)

I would bet its a Mink or Weasel.Friends that had a farm had the same problem.Mich


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## thekoch (Jul 25, 2008)

Does the coup have a cover on it? and since you are new to hunting do you have any trail cams? if so id put them to use here. I raised phesants a couple years ago and had an owl get into the coop and killed everything in it. owls will kill for sport so if it does get into your coup it will kill everything. and owls dont just hunt at night ive had them fly around and land on the coup in the middle of the day trying to kill my phesants. but it does sound like a owl is doing it. If you want to get rid of it call the local DNR about it or get ahold of the Federal Fish and Game Department. The owl that killed all my phesants (50 in a night) also couldnt get out of the coup and we started to go through the channels to get it killed but it got out the next night. so they can be killed but just be carefull.


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## FREEPOP (Apr 11, 2002)

I also vote for owl, weasel or mink.


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## johnd (Mar 31, 2008)

***** will pop the heads off also.


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## FREEPOP (Apr 11, 2002)

I have seen what happens when ***** raid a chicken coop. It's usually a mass murder and happens when the young are big enough to get out of the den. It is possible that isolated cases are done by a **** though.


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## hplayer13 (Nov 3, 2008)

had this same problem with my chickens. hawks tend to do this as well.


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## HunterHawk (Dec 8, 2005)

with snow on the ground i would look at the tracks... take a picture of them with something next to it for a size reference and post it on here and we will help you further... as for now set a few traps for mink and weasels... and have a gun ready for other such critters good luck... i remember when i had chickens and actually pheasants... the animals won.... but there were quiet a few that didnt


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## mattwins1 (Oct 29, 2008)

My friends neighbor had heads missing from his chickens and they found out it was a owl.


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## Gina Fox (Nov 4, 2007)

SideWinder said:


> Something has been preying on my chickens. Lost another one today, ripped it's head off, didn't touch the body. That's the 3rd one in about a month. No snow here so no tracks.
> 
> Sure would like to see who's doing the damage....
> 
> Have seen small foxes and a yote in 07, but nothing since. Wondering if it could be a cat? Wouldn't a larger predator take and eat the kill?


My friend had chickens and ***** did the same thing. Same thing with my Vet who breeds and shows chickens...it is a ****...they kill just to kill sometimes eat the heads...

Trap em or put a hot wire around your chicken coop...that is how she keeps them out now...


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## ol'man (Nov 24, 2005)

Had same problem last fall. If the head only is gone definetly a mink. Found a severed head in one of the nesting boxes and used it for bait. Aweasel will get in there also however they will nip the kneck and bleed em out. Used a mink box in the pen a got rid of the problem.


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## Chuckgrmi (Nov 6, 2007)

I would set up a trail camera


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## Huntinggirl (Aug 3, 2006)

Had the same issue when we were raising pheasants. 

The *****, as stated already would just bite the heads off. We had to finagle an electric fence around the coop.....needless to say we did not have anymore headless pheasants.


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## WMUAngler (Oct 18, 2007)

The cat at my parent's house has been decapitating birds, rabbits, moles, mice, and anything else she can get her paws on for 15 straight years. Never eats any of them, just decapitates them and leaves them for us by the door. Let us know when you catch the culprit; but my vote is for a cat.


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## turkeytamer41 (Mar 13, 2006)

I vote mink.


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## wJAKE19 (Dec 19, 2005)

the cat i had growing up on the farm loved to take the heads off what ever she caught.. although she never messed with the chickens.. usually rabbits mice birds chipmunks ect...


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## wishbone (Aug 9, 2007)

maybe there's a way for it to be trapped and relocated (just a thought)


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## ds619 (Feb 11, 2003)

:lol::lol:


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## Loomis (Jan 2, 2001)

I've raised many birds and would bet it is a mink or weasel. They like to drink the blood and some times part of the head. Usually they won't stop coming back until they're all dead. A real waste for sure. They are hard to trap cause they are smart and can fit through very small holes, many times weasels use mouse holes to get into coups. They also fit right through chicken wire and are super tough for their size. We had to use 1/4inch wire screen over our chicken wire to keep them out. Try rat traps with fresh fish magic threaded to the release lever outside the bird cages, my 2 cents....


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## bradym54 (Oct 8, 2008)

last year we had a problem with our chickens. 2 nights all 40 of them were dead and i walked in there and 2 of our cats where in there and just bit heads, not off but just enough to kill them, and only ate about 1 1/2 so cats will kill for sport. and those were my fair chickens so i was p'd off so i had to borrow a few chickens but got 950 smacaroos for something i didnt do nothing for!! also about 5 years ago a sow **** and her 5 or so babies broke through a 2x6 and ripped through chicken wire and killed our laying chickens even our 1 eyed rooster!!!!! they also just bit heads might have ate a few but i was young so dont remember details. but ***** are easy to take care of just sit out and shoot with 22. i have my mony on a cat becuase they may look inocent at times but they are literaly the deadliest member of cat family well highst success rate at hunting.


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## SideWinder (Jan 2, 2009)

Great replies and information! We are on lockdown now AND it snowed enough to show tracks. Whatever has been lurking around will leave tracks when it returns.

I will update the kill/capture/relocation results when available. I can see a couple of trail cams in my near future!!!

Thanks for all the great info/advice

Mike


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## Fur-minator (Nov 28, 2007)

wishbone said:


> maybe there's a way for it to be trapped and relocated (just a thought)


Yes so it can kill chickens on a different farm.

I would relocate it right into my fur shed.


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## FREEPOP (Apr 11, 2002)

wishbone said:


> maybe there's a way for it to be trapped and relocated (just a thought)


Against the law. Weasels and skunks can be taken year round, ***** can be taken during season or when doing or about to do damage, feral cats well I know what I do with them, raptors such as owls or hawks you will have to provide cover so they can't get em cause that's a federal offense to kill one.


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## Zarathustra (Oct 5, 2005)

My dad had exactly the same situation with his chickens and was able to determine that it was raccoons.


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## Skinner 2 (Mar 19, 2004)

Should have made this question a poll LOL.

Skinner


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## SideWinder (Jan 2, 2009)

Found some small tracks near a brush pile. They are pretty small and in a straight line. Lets see if the picture will post.















I'm thinking kitty cat. Doesn't prove anything.


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## keweenaw Lung-buster (May 4, 2008)

I'd put money on it that this in an owl. We had the same thing happening many years ago on our lil' farm...everyone thought weasel, but sure enough it was an owl.


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## Grouse Hunter (Jan 23, 2000)

Michigander1 said:


> I would bet its a Mink or Weasel.Friends that had a farm had the same problem.Mich



Bingo!


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## boomer_x7 (Dec 19, 2008)

the weasil family has a head fetish. set a rat trap in a box with with a small hole. put the trap right in front of the hole. Weasil have a very light step.


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## anonymous21 (Jul 22, 2005)

what ever it is, it will keep coming back as long as it is getting an easy meal.So for now keeping them locked up and setting some traps is your best shot to keep them alive.

Something you might try in the future is putting some geese in with them,they make good watch dogs,they can get pretty mean,make one heck of a racket so you will know when something is going on.A larger predator will still kill them but they wont go down with out a fight.

Good Luck and keep us posted.


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## 19rabbit52 (Jul 15, 2007)

It may be something else but sounds like a clasic weaseal kill.


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## scottywolverine (Nov 12, 2008)

gamebird_guy said:


> buy a standard wooden rat trap and bait it with chicken liver, that has been known to be very effective.


 
this,...i had this exact same thing happen and after having it happen while they were cooped up at night with no holes bigger than chicken wire I figured it was a weasel set a rat trap as described above and caught the bugger the next night.


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## FREEPOP (Apr 11, 2002)

Need something in the pic for size comparison, dollar bill, boot print, etc.

If you think it could be cat, based on size, then it could be fox also.


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## Skinner 2 (Mar 19, 2004)

No new updates? I'll stick to my original suggestion as owl.

Skinner


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## GIBBY74 (Feb 9, 2004)

I would agree with the mink & weasel, parents neighbor had this happen and ended up catching a nice mink out of it.


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## SideWinder (Jan 2, 2009)

Well all is quiet since lockdown. We have fresh snow and I have seen no new tracks. I did shoot Brady54? an email about trapping if necessary. Turns out he lives in Deerfield also.

I will update as needed.

Mike


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## Gina Fox (Nov 4, 2007)

SideWinder said:


> Well all is quiet since lockdown. We have fresh snow and I have seen no new tracks. I did shoot Brady54? an email about trapping if necessary. Turns out he lives in Deerfield also.
> 
> I will update as needed.
> 
> Mike


 
You closed the buffet line...


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## jondyer82 (Apr 26, 2008)

I have had the same problem on/off for a few years now with chicks and ducks. More duck kills than chickens. I would rule out the cats (my chickens kick my cats butts). I do have an owl in the area, so that is a possibility. I always suspected a mink, weasel, or fisher since the bodies are completely intact and show very little signs of trauma (a yote would eat the body). Some of my ducks were big when they were killed (15 lbs), so it must have been something substantial. All of my live traps end up with barn cats in them by morning...they like to sleep under the heat lamps with the chickens!


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