!!!!!!!!!Dead Chickens!!!!!!!!

[an fear fiach 0]

Hello all,

Last week I had me hens eating by foxes managed to get 1 last night though.

Anway besides that Wednesday night 21 of my 5week old chickens where all killed in their house, They where surrounded by inch mesh and rat traps outside, besides that something broke in and eat them all only leaving a trail of blood and guts behind from his slaughter. :sick:

Ive been trapping rats daily but shurley they couldnt be responcable for this bloodshed could they??

And to make matters worse I just went out to check on my 6 7week old chickens and they where all dead eating in the same way.

My dogs have cought 2 stoats in recent months that killed only four of me chickens thats the photo below but what would kill 27 of them??

Thanks for yer help,

All the best

Stephen

(Cant upload the pics of the dead chickens they too big to upload even with imageshack)

Edited July 2, 2010 by an fear fiach

[clint 45]

Any preditator do this, stoat,mink,cat,fox, badger if hungry. see you area, set traps & watch with rifle. live traps good also. Are you near water for mink?

[Tiff 36]

are there feathers about or just blood and guts? Did you find an entrance/exit point? Do you have any left or have all the chicks been done now?

[an fear fiach 0]

Any preditator do this, stoat,mink,cat,fox, badger if hungry. see you area, set traps & watch with rifle. live traps good also. Are you near water for mink?

Yep theres a lake 250yards away from the hen house.

[an fear fiach 0]

are there feathers about or just blood and guts? Did you find an entrance/exit point? Do you have any left or have all the chicks been done now?

Ya loads of feathers. still there frame and heads left but all the rest eating, intestines left behind.

Cant seem to find and exit entry point. They would have to have got through the inch mesh or climbed it and jumped in

What ever it was it was hungry. The hens are about 4 times the size of the ones in the picture above.

Stephen

[matt_hooks 188]

Sounds a lot like mink to me. They will kill everything in sight, whether they can actually eat it or not.

 

Other option would be more charlie attacks, but by the sounds of it the pen was charlie proof?

[an fear fiach 0]

Sounds a lot like mink to me. They will kill everything in sight, whether they can actually eat it or not.

 

Other option would be more charlie attacks, but by the sounds of it the pen was charlie proof?

Oh yes pen is 100% Charlie proof it has to be something tiny, like what you say a mink or stoat. All we have left is 4 big hens so I wont need to worry about them for a while. Thanks,

Steve

[Lab 10,979]

If its rat proof then you can rule out mink because it wont get through. My guess would be a stoat....easily recognised with puncture wounds to the back off the neck.

[Tiff 36]

fox can climb wire though ...

[neil cooney 10,415]

Sad to hear of your losses, just for your own protection- The Irish stoat is fully protected.

Mind you it is very rare to hear of them being a problem.

[Tiff 36]

I mentioned your problem to my husband who was a professional pest controller for a few years in England, he said it could be a family of mink, they will leave frames and are very messy killers. Normally eaten more around the head and neck and chest.

[clint 45]

If its rat proof then you can rule out mink because it wont get through. My guess would be a stoat....easily recognised with puncture wounds to the back off the neck.

 

 

you say puncture to back of neck , maybe stoat. wifey call this clint.

[Lab 10,979]

If its rat proof then you can rule out mink because it wont get through. My guess would be a stoat....easily recognised with puncture wounds to the back off the neck.

 

 

you say puncture to back of neck , maybe stoat. wifey call this clint.

Are you donkey punching the wife clint?

[an fear fiach 0]

Sad to hear of your losses, just for your own protection- The Irish stoat is fully protected.

Mind you it is very rare to hear of them being a problem.

Yep Im up to date with what is legal and illegal to hunt here in Ireland Thanks very much anway, It refreshed me memory Had the chairman of me local gun club out and he said its a mink 100% shure. Its fully fox proof Tiff unless the fox has a key to get in

Anway Thanks a mill for the advice and replies really helped.

Take care all,

Stephen