Fangeddeer

Songster
Apr 23, 2023
317
399
136
I woke up today to find out 3 of my 1 month olds were gone. And there were very small amount of feathers. I did find what looked to b a gut, wing, and some feathers attached to a skin in a circle n some other feathers outside but very little. The hole wasn’t that big, since I have a door covering the outside opening of the coop. My choop is a big shed and I can’t seem to understand what it could be? I have seen a mink last year.

Did a mink do this? I’m so confused how there’s so little feathers and it ate 3 chicks (all but one the size of my full hand, and that one being a wee smaller).
my friend thinks they got away but I don’t know. Anyone who can infer the mystery would be greatly appreciated! I will take a pic of the door n try to circle where the hole was if needed.
 
First of all, I'm sorry about your chicks. My only predator losses have been to minks. They can get through extremely small holes; it's hard to imagine that their bones fit through the openings.

In the two attacks on my birds, the mink simply killed three hens the first night and left them pretty much intact. The second time, it took an entire duck, leaving only a pile of feathers. I know it was a mink because I saw it return.

Afterward, too late of course, I added 1/2 inch hardware cloth EVERYWHERE and restricted the area where the chickens and ducks can be loose during the day (and only when I am home).

I hope you can keep everyone else safe.
 
First of all, I'm sorry about your chicks. My only predator losses have been to minks. They can get through extremely small holes; it's hard to imagine that their bones fit through the openings.

In the two attacks on my birds, the mink simply killed three hens the first night and left them pretty much intact. The second time, it took an entire duck, leaving only a pile of feathers. I know it was a mink because I saw it return.

Afterward, too late of course, I added 1/2 inch hardware cloth EVERYWHERE and restricted the area where the chickens and ducks can be loose during the day (and only when I am home).

I hope you can keep everyone else safe.
Thank you, and I’m sorry about your losses as well. Its crazy to think such a small animal is so deadly! We’re working on fixing it and replacing the hens
 

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