Just got rid of the coon around here. Woke up to the dog making a ruckus outside around the chicken enclosure. So I woke up Hubby and my son(who loves a 'coon hunt'). Sure enough the coon was out there. I won't get into details, but between the dog, my Dear Dear Husband, my Dear son and myself the coon is no more. Hopefully that should take care of it. Coons don't congregate much, do they?
One less chicken killen coon in the world
I hope not,Halnik! Was it a male or female? I hope it wasnt female, that might mean you have a bunch of younger ones looking for a free meal too. Just keep a good look out!
That is great!
I once saw a mama coon and her 3 yunguns, digging up a yellow jacket nest,, man , that was funny! They would take turns digging,,,when one could not take the stinging anymore ,it would come running and rolling out, swatting and rubbing at their ears and face. Then another would take over...this went on for about an hour...they got the nest out of the hole,,but the pests paid for that dinner, dearly.
Not really on topic , but I thought you might enjoy the story.
Well, this coon paid for it's 'free meal' of the previous night. If it's the same one. Our dog wasn't going to let it get away. She loves a 'coon hunt' too. She's just a lab mix. Here's a pic of her.
The chicken world says Thank you. One less to worry about !
You have every right to protect you and yours but what about doing what Glenda_Michigan proposed..................she shared this with me.......
I'd be glad to share Papaw's solution for keeping raccoons from digging under the pen and getting his chickens. I hope it helps...
Mom said that when Papaw would find a hole where an animal was trying to dig its way under the pen or coop frame to get inside, he would fill the entire hole (on the OUTSIDE of the pen or coop) 1/2 way with pieces of broken glass and then filled in the rest of the hole with dirt - which would be deep enough that his chickens couldn't "scratch" down to the glass and possibly ingest it when they were free-ranging. The next time the animal would come back to "its" hole and start digging again, the broken glass would cut its hands/paws and the animal would stop. He felt that bleeding paws were better than him loosing his whole flock. The ONLY food Granny and Papaw had for themselves and their children, back then in Eastern Kentucky, was whatever (they) were able to grow, can, and raise, so that required drastic measures when it came to predators trying to get their animals. They could not afford to NOT protect their flock and farm animals.
Mom said that because Papaw used this method of predator control, he never had any problems with raccoons, etc. getting into his pens or coops.
Makes you wonder if putting a glass barrier all the way around the base is worth doing when you first build a pen or coop. ...You know, the "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" adage.
I had to walk away and come back and edit myself (no the Rough draft never went out), I think you really should properly enclose your coop or you will continue to have problems, or do you plan on just wiping them out indiscriminately? I would even feel better about it, if you planned on eating them but to just killing the coon for trying to live its life is just.........well I thought Canadians where the kinder gentler...........you know American Light.;+} Trying to end on a positive note........Just my 2 cents will not mention or post here on this thread again...........
Good for you Halnik, once those rascals find your coop they will never leave it alone. Nice lookin critters ya got there!
Hey guys I have a question. There is this Rhode Island Red chick that hatch about 4-5 months ago (It's still pretty small). I was born with its left leg somewhat deformed. I mean it still looks like a leg and everything but it doesn't walk on it. So It only has one leg to walk on. I'm not the type of person that kills chickens, I usually sell them. I tried do the same with this one but no one would buy her.
So about 3 weeks I tried to put it in with the others but they just cornered her and started pecking. And I'm pretty scared to put it in there with all the others chickens. Originally it was suppose to be in the coop with the rest of them, about 2 weeks ago. I keep it in the garage in the brooder, and I take to outside (outside of the coop fence) for about a good 6-7 hours, then I put it back in the brooder.
Every time I go inside of the garage to look at it, I feel so sorry for it. Please if you guy can help I would really appreciate it. THANK YOU.
If you have some younger, smaller chicks that are coming up or your getting soon you could put it with those. She'll be bigger then them so she'll have an advantage. Then when they get to be as big as her, she'll be part of them, so they won't pick on her.
Good idea Halnik! I was going to suggest that he just leave her with a couple of the other Hens ,then add another to the group,until they were all together! There is a "Pecking" order and any new hen must go through it to "Join" the group! Of course , I would watch over the initiation closely. usually the newness wears off in a couple of days! But if you are going to have , or do have younger chicks, I really do like Halniks idea!
E.
Eric,
I think Halnik idea is the best chance your little chick has. Hopefully there will be enough new chicks to distract the older chickens so that they don't gang up on your handicapped chick.
Halnik,
It's been a few days... Have you had any more problems with raccoons?
~~ Glenda
Apparently there's another one hanging around our barn. So we're looking into finding some way to remove it, somehow.
The one hen that was on eggs at the time is still sitting on the one egg that was under her in the morning. According to the time that she started sitting 'full time' it would be hatching today or tomorrow. I'm keeping my fingers and toes crossed.
Halnik can you cover her nest with a cage or wire? I personally would take her and her nest and put them in a brooder now!
Thanks guys I'll try that. You Guys helped me a lot. Last question. How do farmers or pros kill handicapped chicks at such a young age?
This message was edited May 23, 2007 2:36 PM
Yes, I've taken her into our 'mud room' and have her in one of those plastic 'dog' cages that's big enough for a lab size dog so she's fine.
Thought you guys would like to see her.
You Know Eric, I bet she learns how to walk on that Stump! I had a little BBRed Rooster that injured his leg and couldnt walk on it for months! He learned how to hop with the one good one ! He developed a little whoppy Jawed but he got around really good! The Hens just ignored Him and the other Roosters gave Him a Wide berth cause they just didnt want to get jumped on if they got in the way! The only thing was that he couldnt do the Roo thing! there just was No way he could figure out how to hold on to a Hen with only one leg!!!! LOL!!!! so Your little Hen just might be okay ,once she gets her own way to walk down pat!
I think that putting some energy into critter-proofing is the way to handle predators. After all, they are just following their instincts and looking for food, it's not like they can have a bowl of cereal or make themselves a piece of toast when they are hungry. We are the ones with the bigger brain,
we need to find a way to keep them out, not make it easy for them to get in and then justify killing them for doing what comes naturally. And killing one chicken killin' coon doesn't solve your problem, even if it does give you something to brag about, because another racoon is bound to come along, and they will keep coming if there is a relatively easy way for them to get food.
I have one that I don't have the heart to kill
she's 2 years old and makes it up and down the stairs of the barn she's in
She's a large fowl but I keep her with the bantams so no one will pick on her
I know many breeders who cull from the incubator use pinking sheers to behead them
yes racoons do congregate,we had a group of six or seven visit last year[they were full grown]they killed at least 30 chicks.we tried to trap them in a live trap,didn`t work,we had dogs on chains near pens,the coons did`nt care.we already had the pens where they could`nt dig in so they pulled chicks thru the wire.we don`t like to kill animals,they left us no choice.i would like to add that there are plenty of woods and streams not to mention other peoples gardens for them to eat in,in this area.i would also like to say that we were not happy about killing them.but we were even less happy about them killing the chickens.