Chickens??

[iluvdutchrabbbits90]

So i have 7 chickens i raised them all from babies. We have a fence around are barn and the chickens loveeeee to jumb in and out the top door to pick around the fence.

Today i looked outside and saw a black think laying in the fence and it was one of my chickens! Something got in their and killed her. Their were feathers everywhere.And she had 2 big holes in her.Not eaten. What could of done this? I know its not a dog because a dog could never get under or over. I love my chickens their like my babies lol

I am going to get a strand of electric to put on the top of the fence to turn on at night.

So none of my other chickens (or baby goats) end up like Mersadies my chicken:tears2:

 

[Myia09]

I have no clue! Maybe a predatory bird?
Here in AZ we have to be really careful because coyotes really can jump amazingly high and will kill chickens. I seen a coyote jump a 5 1/4 foot fence.

I want chickens, but I plan on having an enclosed hutch with play area..then supervised time out. Its too dangerous here.

 

[OhTisLove]

Sorry for your loss.

I'm willing to bet that it was a bird. I lost one of my full grown ducks (about 8lbs) to a hawk this winter. She was just completely gone except for a few feathers, and the only way I knew it was a hawk is because when I walked out to lock up for dinner the hawk was sitting there choosing which duck was next.

It was devastating..I went out the next morning and got netting for the top of their play pen, and I haven't lost another duck since.

 

[countrybuns]

We had a raccoon get in and kill our chickens a few years ago. It actually got in through a small hole in the roof.

 

[iluvdutchrabbbits90]

We are thinking a fox......:censored2:. They better not come back lol.

My barn is sealed tight now tho!

 

[RandomWiktor]

I've seen a lot of chickens killed by predators, and generally you see the following:

Mink: Dead chicken with only the head eaten (minks have a weird head eating thing with chickens, it's creepy)
Rat: Dead chicken with body cavity hollowed out but skin/legs/head/wings left intact (seem to go more for the guts than anything else)
Fox: Missing chickens, additional chickens dead with broken necks or neck wounds (foxes generally leave with prey HOWEVER they sometimes get over-excited and kill more than they can carry)
Bird of Prey: Burst of feathers (from impact), lascerations

I'm guessing bird of prey since it may have taken a bite or two then been spooked off and wouldn't have had the strength to carry off the carcass. It's also the only one on the list that doesn't prefer to hunt by night (well except for owls).

Thankfully birds of prey don't tend to be as determined as mammals. If you hang things that will blow around in the wind (wind socks, chimes, those twirling things, etc.), hang foil pie tins around the perimeter of the fence, play a radio, or simply string lengths of yarn every five inches or so between the top of the fence and top of the barn, you'll probably deter them. They can't fly well in close spaces, are easily put off by movement and noise, and are disturbed by reflective/shiny things.