An Owls meal

I lost a whitish guinea (either Opal or Olive) to something yesterday, I heard the alarms and saw the feathers and some blood. It was an attack from the sky. I couldn't find a body.
My dogs have been barking beasts most of the day. So when I let them out this last time I watched them and they scared and "tree'd" this owl. Before I could get out there he was back standing on the guinea.
It appears to be a barred owl. This my first loss to a wild predator. Was it the owl or a hawk that got the guinea and then the owl found a free meal? If it helps her neck and head were picked clean and found about 25ft from where that picture was taken.
Everyone else spent the day in the house to stay safe.

Sorry you lost the guinea, but what a beautiful owl. Im always thrilled when Im able to see them, as infrequent as it is.

Here he is in the tree

Hey Lora. I am sorry about your guinea...Ryan over here wants to know if you heard any 'clicking' noises...or green lazers. What a dork. He thinks it may have been 'Predator' desgised as an owl! Hahaha...

I actually took in a barred owl once that was hit by a car on the high way. He had a broken leg. I had a live trap for mice in my house...yes...I didnt even have the heart to kill mice back in those days! So I finally broke down and fed him the live mice...

Long story short...this guy does have the face of a barred owl..but his body looks a little different. I wonder if there are different kinds. I wish I could find a picture of me holding my buy back when...but not sure where they ran off to. I know his head was as big as mine, and he stood about 2 1/2 feet tall! MONSTER!

Glad everyone else is safe.

No clicking sounds or green lasers but I did find brown poop! I did freak out this summer when my husband would let the guineas out really early and I woke up to them running on the roof! It sounded just like that scene from Signs when they were breaking into the house! Who knew they could reach the second floor!!!

Lora, For the past few years, owls have been killing our chickens. They are mean and they are vicious. They will eat them until they are gone. Watch out for your guineas that you have left. If you could trap that baby and bring it someplace else, that would be good for you. Owls are protected birds.

LoraK--I'd hop on over to the wildlife forum and ask your question there. I believe owls and hawks generally hunt at different times of the day, but not sure, and knowing that would differentiate who killed your guinea. Also, some species will eat others' kills, some will only eat fresh kills. There are some real experts on that forum--I always learn alot. Sorry for your loss...its sad, but hopefully you can prevent another.

We watched an owl (3 nights in a row) take full grown chickens and turkeys about the size of the chickens and carry them off. Usually around dusk, but we have seen them on the wires or fence posts, just waiting during the day.

While 'relocating' the owl may sound like a good idea...I would be VERY careful! It is highly illegal if you are cought with one in your possession. Even if you are only moving it to a new home.

I had applied for a rehabilitators license so I could handle them, but then I moved to another city where I havent been able to find someone to apprentice under yet. Hopefully he will just move on on his own.

During the winter months the number of smaller rodents like mice that are quite abundant in other months reduces significantly as they go underground to keep warm and hibernate. This natural event causes owls and other birds of prey to increase their habitat or add to their list of potential prey. Your guinea was an unfortunate statistic. We too have large owls here hunting in the evenings. They are magnificent to say the least. We have taken a few photographs of the Great Horned Owls in the willow trees less than 100 feet from our front door. Thankfully my small flock of guineas have not suffered. I'd suggest trying to encourage your guineas to go inside their coop sooner in the evenings as a means of getting them out of sight and of the list of potential prey. Catching an owl would likely be very difficult and definitely illegal. As a college kid a roommate found a nestling Great horned Owl. Its mother was dead below the nest and so were 2 of the other baby owls. Someone or something had killed the mother and the 3 babies were starving. He rescued the sole surviving chick. We got to watch the little guy grow up for 4 months till he was turned over to a State Wildlife Officer. We fed him chicken and liver and beef heart (cheap meats). Not many owls got fed so well as him growing up.

This message was edited Jan 5, 2008 5:22 PM

No way I'd try to catch him. Its sad, its also the circle of life. I called the local fish and game officer, he said barred and great grey owls will hunt during the day (cloudy ones mostly) and our record breaking snow fall has forced them to choose other prey. Olive was my smallest guinea, too bad he didn't go for one of my abundant and tasty silkie roos!

Survival of the fittest........the natural way of things. I think all the mice came to my house......and not underground........YUCK! They are a nuisance. Now, I'd like it if that owl got these dang mice..........I'd treat it like a king. :)

LOL! And when he's done Lora, he can swoop himself right by my place and pick up some of my silkie roos!

I think we have recently discovered that our hens are the best treatment for mouse problems. We have a ginormous garage that has a dirt floor. When they come out in the morning they all head there first. Yesterday we pulled three mice away from various hens throughout the day. They LOVE to chase and kill them...last summer our rooster was having fun catching the toads that were hopping around...I attached one of the pics I took back then because I couldnt believe it! If only I could house train my chickies I will bring them in here to control the bug and critter population!

yeah, my barred rock ate a vole whole last summer. We were so taken aback and horrified! ( but was also secretly were very impressed)

I would be careful about the toads, though. My mom had a chicken have a seizure and die after eating a big one. I can't prove it was related, but I we think it was.

I'll give him directions to Antrim after he thins my flock o' roos!! LOL I wonder if the roos will figure out why they are the only ones out??? LOL I was kiddin! My silkies are for pets only. Although if an owl happens to.........

This spring my young Golden Phoenix roo attacked a medium size snake. I happened to be in the pen and heard the chickens going nuts and as I turned around I saw the snake and then my roo go for it! I was horrified trying to stop it but it was too late. He had the snake in his beak and was running around the pen looking for a place to kill and eat it! I was sure it was going to bite my roo, so I ran to my barn to look for a hoe and by the time I got back the snake was gone and the roo was fine. To this day I don't know if he ate it or if it got away, but it was crazy watching him run around the chicken pen with a snake longer than him! He is very protective of his girls!

I saw my guineas and young turkeys fight over a mouse. They ended up eating it. My Mother says chickens will eat anything that moves and most things that don't.

LOL, that is definately true !

I was down in Keene today (1 3/4 hours away) at my avian vets, my umbrella cockatoo Gabriel was viciously attacked by Bradley my other umbrella cockatoo long story, it was DH fault, anyway, my vet had just operated on a barred owl hit by a car and at a friends house waiting for Gabby to come out of surgery, I saw an article and picture of one hanging out on a McDonalds sign and the caption read something like "Owl have a Big Mac" something like that the day was a blurr. They are coming out of the woodwork starving because of our record snowfall. I don't mind having a bird or two taken, I would freak if something like a mink came in and slaughtered them all and didn't eat them. That owl spent two days eating Olive. I wonder even though we had a beautiful snow melting day and atleast one more coming if he will eat more of my birds? I am going to stuff those roos full of snacks to slow them down!!!

I just moved to a rural area of NC mts and my next door neighbor has chickens and guineas. The guineas get "missing" much more often than the chickens. I know we have owls, I see and hear them. My other 81 yo neighbor says that owls will light into a tree with roosting guineas and because it's dark, they can slowly get closer until they can snatch one. The redneck nephew of the owner neighbor says it's not owls, it's foxes or coyotes. He says the guineas sit eggs in the brush and won't leave it's nest. I tend to think it's the owls but I don't discuss it with the redneck because he is gun crazy and I know he would shoot anything.

They both might be right. A setting hen will get taken by fox, coon whatever because she doesn't have any protection. Most guinea people try to find where the girls are laying, they all lay in one big nest and take the eggs. From what I have been told owls and hawks will take guineas. If they roost in trees at night they are sitting ducks for owls, coons whatever else that can get to them. I was told they don't see very well at night.
For the most part all my chickens guineas and turkeys when I have them are in at night. I did have a problem when the guineas when they were scared of the snow and couple of nights early this winter one would spend the night out.