Coyotes 3: Me 0
Jun 2nd, 2008 by Laura
There are hard lessons to learn in life and sometimes they come and bite you in the ass right when you think things are going along swimmingly. Today we lost 3 of the chicks - Molly the white banty, a light brahma and a golden laced wyandotte.
Event though our nice next door neighbor had warned me about the coyotes I’ve been leaving the gate to the chicken run open during the day. I thought that we were okay during the daylight hours and that Steve would help protect the girls. Obviously I was wrong.
I got lazy and three of my young girls paid the price. Last night they weren’t all in the yard when I went out to close it up. So I left the gate open and meant to go back and close them in later. But then it got late and I decided that they’d be okay for the night. This morning I didn’t go out to check them since I’d checked feed/water last night and knew the gate was open.
Sometime between 7:30 last night and 6:30 tonight we lost them. I kind of suspect that it was during dusk last night. Probably right after I checked them. Maybe dawn this morning. But I’ll never know for sure. The only sign of them is a few scattered feathers from each. No blood, no matted grass, nothing.
As of now the girls are locked in the yard at all times unless we’re right there with them. I may even go so far as closing their little 8″x8″ hen door every night that we’re home. Now that the coyotes know they’re there they will never be 100% safe again.
The idea of free ranging them is nice, but their safety is much more important than that ideal. They’ll have to settle for hanging in their 900 square foot area and eating all the weeds and kitchen scraps we can spare. I’m sure that they’ll be perfectly happy. And safe. And that’s the important part.
Sorry about your girls. How big were they? We also used to have to look out for eagles, owls, hawks, etc especially when the chicks were young.
Hope you have better luck…
Oh, too bad! So sorry to hear about the chicks. I just hope it was quick for them. How are the others, freaked out? We have to keep our girls in a large fenced in yard too, more because of semi-feral cats and loose dogs, although there are coyotes around, I’ve heard them, and seen a fox. We also close the coop door nightly, and thus far haven’t lost any more except to a hawk. Sounds like a tough week for some of us….. Good luck.
Ali in Maine
Sorry Laura!
We have been concerned about a very persistent hawk lately. They (mom and dad) spend a lot of time flying over the yard checking out the robins, cardinals, morning doves, orioles and the other birds.
You can always tell when the hawk is in the area as there are no birds on the feeders. Your mom has positioned them near and under the trees to give them cover, but, the hawks fly through the trees and grab them mid air.
Guess it is the way it goes…The good news is that your coop can be closed at night and the yard fence also.
Are you going to replace them?!! Hope so…
Love
Dad
Aw man! So sorry about your birds! We have to do the same thing here. The birds are always locked in their run when we’re not here and only free range when we’re home. We have all kinds of chicken predators here. I hope this is the end of the losses for you.
I am so sorry Laura. It is a hard lesson, assuredly. We’ve reached the compromise with our own hens that I spring them from their yard for a few hours at dusk. They are always locked up safe in their coop at night though because raccoons and opossums can fit through that 8″ square hole. It’s just what needs to happen because…everyone loves chicken!
Here’s hoping the coyotes don’t have a long memory.
Oh, I’m so sorry! We lost so many chickens last year that I keep looking around nervously and counting the girls each night. We’re here most of the day (and my BIL is banging around with his tools outside) and I’ve been hoping that will keep any coyotes away during the day. And FWIW, last year I saw a coyote in our yard sniffing around the coop in full daylight, and we lost our girls during daylight hours.
I’m so sorry, Laura! I hope it was quick and painless, and that the others are recovering - I’m sure they were quite stressed!
As far as dad’s concerns, while I’ve not had a place to keep chickens yet, I’ve seen bird netting work wonders. Just string it across the open sky from fence post to fence post, and it should keep out the hawks out.
I am really sorry you lost some of your girls. And you are probably right to be extra cautious now that the coyotes know there are chickens hanging out there.
My girls were bummed when I stopped letting them free-range, but I just bought them off with veggie scraps thrown in once a day for them to munch on. Hope your girls adjust quickly as well.
I’m so sorry. I learned the same lesson - only it was a raccoon, and she ended up with one of my hens and three of my pullets. It took me a while to figure out that the old coop was designed to keep the chickens in, but not to keep anything out. So, it had to be discarded and rebuilt. It was a really tough lesson.
Oh, that’s terribly sad news. I hope the other girls (and you guys) are doing OK.
And, wow, 900 square feet is bigger than my house! I have a funny feeling they’ll survive in such a ’small’ space!
I’m so sorry to hear about your chicks! One of my worst childhood memories is hearing one of my chickens get snatched. It was a sound straight out of a horror film.
I’m a new reader and I’ve enjoyed looking at old posts. Great job!
I am so sorry to hear about your loss. I think it is almost an inevitable part of raising poultry. As a kid we lost quite a number of chickens, ducks, and even a turkey as we worked to fox-proof the coops and get better at catching the birds with wanderlust. (I have a sad little photo album with all my 4-H projects and pet poultry that got eaten.)