Time for more chicks! Hatch-a-Long!

[ElfenLied89]

Maybe I just need to come down for a weekend, bring my dog and a silkie boy

Maybe your silkie boy can teach my young roos some manners. Only Hook is when he comes around and it ain't stickin.

 

[ElfenLied89]

I have not been following along with this, but I am so sorry! That is horrible. I would suggest baiting the predator with meat (not live chicks) and having a live trap set.

I would end up catching all the feral cats too. Idk what to do other than the camera and watching to see what it is

Edited bc I type too fast and hit enter before checking my work.

 

[SwampPrincessChick]

I would end up catching all the feral too. Idk what to donother than the camera and watching to see what it is

The feral? Which feral animals are you talking about?

 

[ElfenLied89]

The feral? Which feral animals are you talking about?

We have barn cats. So to speak. No barn but same thing. They won't let you pet em but I don't have rodent issues out here so I am assuming it's thanks to them. I do toss out the occasional scraps too. Randomly. I don't want them to lose their hunting ability, and think I will feed them daily.

 

[SwampPrincessChick]

We have barn cats. So to speak. No barn but same thing. They won't let you pet em but I don't have rodent issues out here so I am assuming it's thanks to them. I do toss out the occasional scraps too. Randomly. I don't want them to lose their hunting ability, and think I will feed them daily.

Feeding them is a good option because cats can be predators to chickens too (especially chicks), and they kill wildlife for sport so much that they have helped humans make species extinct before. Are you sure that a cat did not cause the death of the chicks?

 

[ElfenLied89]

Feeding them is a good option because cats can be predators to chickens too (especially chicks), and they kill wildlife for sport so much that they have helped humans make species extinct before. Are you sure that a cat did not cause the death of the chicks?

Pretty sure. Bodies were just gone. No holes a cat can fit in that was big enough. Hole was about 2 inches big. If even that. Even the cats can't get into the small hole into the brooder and carry off 5 chicks. No blood no nothing.

At least I hope not.

 

[GreenJay]

Pretty sure. Bodies were just gone. No holes a cat can fit in that was big enough. Hole was about 2 inches big. If even that. Even the cats can't get into the small hole into the brooder and carry off 5 chicks. No blood no nothing.

At least I hope not.

What kind of snakes do you have in your area? Rat snakes (and couple of other species) will eat small birds and eggs....

 

[SwampPrincessChick]

What kind of snakes do you have in your area? Rat snakes (and couple of other species) will eat small birds and eggs....

Exactly what I thought when I read @ElfenLied89's reply. It sounds like a snake did that.

 

[ElfenLied89]

What kind of snakes do you have in your area? Rat snakes (and couple of other species) will eat small birds and eggs....

Idk. I can see a snake getting the smaller birds, but a turkey poult? (6 week old chick size give or take). What about the 5 in the tote brooder duplex? Could a snake get in and out of that too? If so I need to double up on security to be extra sure.

 

[GreenJay]

Idk. I can see a snake getting the smaller birds, but a turkey poult? (6 week old chick size give or take). What about the 5 in the tote brooder duplex? Could a snake get in and out of that too? If so I need to double up on security to be extra sure.

Hmmm, eating a bird as big as your poult would probably have a snake too fat to squeeze back through a small hole right away.

Have you considered the possibility of a two-legged varmint during the night?