Something got at my chicks last night. I had 16 White Silkie chicks. They were 7 wks old. Now I only have 3 left in that bunch. There's another 3 that are with the hens in a seperate fenced area that's right beside that other one. All the chickens in that fence are fine.
Only 3 Left
Oh, no! That's awful. Did it just kill and not eat them?
So sorry, Halnik. That's the sort of thing we all dread.
I know the feeling Halnick......I had about 40 hatch two weeks ago.....now I am down to 12. I think part of my problem was raccoons, and I may have solved that one. I also have something small getting in my 'brooder' area, possibly a rat, maybe a weasel. Whatever it is just kills the little ones. It got only one last night.
Doesn't it just make you sooooooooooo mad though?
Keith
How did you 'fix' the coon problem? I'm thinking that's what it might of been. There were some parts eaten.
I know I posted this before but Y'all, it kept everything away from my chicks! I just zipped them in at night and had a light insde to keep them warm! I even put a chicken wire fence around the outside! Snakes couldnt get in either!
Halnik Im am so sorry you lost those babies! Try this small Tent thing! honestly it works!
Keith, I am so sorry to hear about this. I understand your anger and heartbreak. You need a really tight and well built shelter to protect against racoons. They are powerful animals and very intellegent too. They can figure out how to get into places we wouldn't think they can.
I don't think that tent would stop a racoon! Or even a rat. Maybe a weasel or snake(which usually don't hunt at night). The light probably does as much or more good than the tent for most critters.
My answer to racoons is a gun. We keep one loaded at all times. When they are killing our poultry they become 'in season' instantly. We eat what we shoot so it doesn't go to waste. It is very good tasting revenge.
Eufaula:
Cool idea of the tent, looks like you even have a little roost pole in there for them.
Leaflady:
I trapped a few, shot a few, posioned a few. I hung the carcases on the fence and the rest stopped coming around. Closer inspection tonight of the coop makes me think it is a rat killing my chicks, whatever it is can fit through a hole the size of a lemon. I set several traps baited with peanut butter and one in the walkway this varmit has to take to get into the 'brooder room'. We shall see if I have caught anything in the morning.
If I reply to a D-mail does just the person who sent it see it?
Now I'll have to incubate some more eggs, I guess.
Yes, Halnik. It's private.
WOOOHOOOOO!!!!!
Caught two rats in the chicken coop last night and didn't have a single chick killed. Maybe I am finally getting ahead of these varmits.
You never seem to be able to keep ahead of them. Just when you think they are gone - there's no sign of them for a while- and you let your guard down. They come back.
You know you could be right Leaflady! I was losing babies at night, before I bought the tent! After I zipped them in and turned on the light ( tent looked like a big lantern) no more babies gone! But we did kill a King snake ( at night) stealing baby Wrens off my porch!
Rats usually attack at night. They are definately meat eaters and love blood. I use to have big problems with them in the old barn before it burned.
No problems in this building. We did have a lot of mice that lived between the double walls. Then we put up bathroom/shower type paneling and that stopped that. It also stopped snakes going up the walls to get to baby pigeons. We use woodchips for bedding and have only had one snake in 3 years that went inside the bird house. That was just last week. I'm still looking for that snake. The peacock may have had it for lunch!
I'm really sorry to hear that happened!
I think you'll find that your culprit is not raccoons or rats...but probably owls. We have had such an owl problem, literally taking our turkeys and chickens and leaving feathers and other parts. The tent idea is an awesome idea. The owl will not be able to get in there. A raccoon will tear it up, as well as a possum if they want to get in there bad enough...
But I do think you'll find it's an owl! And they will come back until they are all gone!
I had a hawk get one of the other chicks that I had bought, once I started putting them outside. I went out and bought some netting to put over the fence area. There was one corner that a tree is in that wasn't covered so that's were I figure 'it' got in. Most of each carcass was still there, so I figure if it was an owl they would of been more in pieces. Similar to what a hawk or peregrine would do. I've watched some 'web cams' of peregrines' and bald eagles' nests and those kind of 'preying' birds would catch and 'destroy', I would think.
Just thought it sounded just like what we've been going through and we actually saw the owl(s) swooping down and getting them. I hope you get the culprit.
Kathy :)
Hi, if you lost 13 in one night, I would not think it was an owl. I lost about 15 leghorns in about 2-3 weeks to an owl that I finally saw at 3:30 in the morning sitting on the henhouse. It was flying off with the whole bird. While they were disappearing, I suspected an oppossum or raccoon. Originally I only had a 3' fence, then raised to over 5'. When I saw the owl, I moved the three I still had into a 10' by 10' dog run after I put netting over it. I had put a game cam out before I saw the owl and opposum walked by and looked at the flash about every 30 minutes one night. Her and the racoons were really feasting on my caneloupes and corn. You can set out a trap with sardines, catfood, or over-ripe caneloupe for the ground critters, but check the traps first thing in the morning every morning or you might feel guilty as I did having just skipped one day of checking. If you have a weedy area by the chickens, you might try to put it there and make it as inconspicous as possible. Actually in morning if you have hot days or maybe at night if you have coldnights to keep it from suffering. Actually a game cam would be a good idea and they are fairly inexpensive now. I got one with a 6volt rechargeable battery, plug in charger, and solar charger for less that $200.00 including shipping on EBAY. They also have kits on EBAY with an extra SD card. The sheriff and the Texas Parks and Wildlife said I could pay $100.00 for a permit to shoot the owl if I catch him in the act but that they would not trap and move it because they have been known to come back even from other states. I do not need my chickens for my to survive, so I do not want to do that. Whoa, I typed alot, sorry guys, take care, Mike
My operative word was owl(s). We had more than one and saw them with our own eyes. :) Could be anything getting your chickens.