Weasels And Foxes And Hawks...Oh My!!!

Weasels And Foxes And Hawks...Oh My!!!

July 31, 2022

(The girls chillin' in the coop!)

Not long after you start keeping chickens, every predator in the neighborhood will have your coop on their radar. 

In fact, one of the hardest things about keeping chickens is keeping them safe from predators, but if you can figure out what you're faced with, it can make discouraging, trapping or otherwise dealing with them far easier.

This is clearly not a topic that is pleasant to think - or read - about but as chicken keepers, our responsibility is to keep our chickens safe. No matter what.  They're so vulnerable and everything wants to eat chickens! 

While most predators including raccoon, coyotes, and owls are mostly nocturnal, there are plenty of other predators out during the daylight hours including fox, dogs and hawks, so if your chickens free range, they are potentially at risk.

The first line of defense is knowing what kind of predators you're potentially going to be dealing with.

Chickens That Go Missing Completely-

• Bobcat
• Coyote
• Fox
• Mink

If You're Missing Eggs Or Baby Chicks-

• Crow
• Skunk
• Snake
• Rat

If All You're Left With Is Chicken Parts-

• Dog
• Opossum
• Owl
• Raccoon

Bears

Bears, either black or grizzly, are found in forested areas in almost every US state.

Hunting Style: Alone

Telltale Signs: Feed containers broken into

Trap Bait: N/A

Fun Fact | Bears are not generally meat eaters, although in the spring after awaking from hibernation they sometimes will eat small mammals and birds for protein. But usually bears seem content eating only berries, fruit and fish as long as they are plentiful.

Bobcats/Lynxes/Cougars/Mountain Lions

Bobcat and lynx are largely found in the western states, but also in other remote areas.

Hunting Style: Alone

Telltale Signs: Hens heads bitten off, claw marks on the neck, back, sides and shoulders

Trap Bait: Raw meat, salmon and hang shiny things in the trap

Fun Fact | About twice as large as a house cat, a bobcat won't generally mess with your dog. They're looking for food, not a fight, for the most part.

Cats

Feral cats found throughout the US in rural and suburban areas alike.

Hunting Style: Alone, will return each night

Telltale Signs: Missing bantams or chicks, partially eaten chickens with the wings and feathers left behind

 

Trap Bait: Canned cat food, tuna or sardines

Fun Fact | Feral cats will normally leave full-grown birds alone if there are other food options, and your well-fed house cat won't be a threat to your chickens, although I would keep baby chicks protected. A cat roaming your property isn't a bad thing because it will keep the rodent population under control.

Coyotes

Coyotes are found throughout the US, mostly west of the Mississippi, but increasingly closer to suburban areas, with significant increases in the Southeast.

Hunting Style: Alone, in pairs or as a pack

Telltale Signs: Bite marks on the throat of hens

Trap Bait: Mice, chicken meat, eggs, sardines 

Fun Fact | Coyotes usually hunt just after dusk or just before dawn and will try to gain access to runs and coops by digging or chewing.

Crows/Ravens

Crows, ravens and magpies are found throughout the US.

Hunting Style: In groups during the day

Telltale Signs: Steal eggs or baby chicks

Trap Bait: N/A

Fun Fact | On the plus side, crows will chase hawks away from your run.

Dogs

Dogs, both domestic and stray, are a threat to chickens and can found in abundance throughout the US in all types of settings.

Hunting Style: Alone or in packs during the day

Telltale Signs: Indiscriminate mutilation with entire flocks maimed and killed, killing for sport

Trap Bait: N/A

Fun Fact | Dogs will tear down fencing and doors, chew and dig to get into runs or coops. They are the  #1 killer of backyard chickens.

Fisher Cats

Fisher cats are found throughout much of the US, although mainly on the coasts.

Hunting Style: Alone at night

Telltale Signs: Take several hens at one time and may line up or stack carcasses

Trap Bait: Meat, fish, liver 

Fun Fact | Fishers are the only natural predators in the wild that will take on a porcupine.

Foxes

Foxes are found throughout the US in rural and suburban areas.

Hunting Style: Alone or in pairs from dusk until dawn

Telltale Signs: Kill entire flocks and will typically remove the whole hens one at a time, then keep returning for more that they will bury for future consumption (called 'surplus' or 'cache' killing)

Trap Bait: Canned cat food, canned fish (but foxes are notoriously hard to trap because they are so wary)

Fun Fact | Free-range hens are at more risk. Foxes generally won't enter a coop or other structure, but will climb into an open-top run or pen area.

Hawks/Eagles

Raptors are found throughout the US.

Hunting Style: Alone during the day, or sometimes with juvenile young

Telltale Signs: Feathers, missing hens, puncture wounds on the backs of hens

Trap Bait: N/A

Fun Fact | A hawk usually won't actually carry off a chicken, but will start eating it alive right on the ground. An eagle will carry off a chicken. In this case, both hawks and eagles are protected by federal law and not allowed to be shot, so you'll have to figure something else out to keep your flock safe.

Opossums

Opossums are found throughout the US, with the largest numbers in the Southeast.

Hunting Style: Alone at night

Telltale Signs: Partially eaten eggs, missing chicks or bantams, chickens with bites on the breast or thigh

Trap Bait: Apples, vegetables, sardines, bacon, canned cat food

Fun Fact | Possums really do play dead, but will hiss and bare their teeth when cornered, and can transmit disease to livestock. 

Owls

Owls are found throughout the US.

Hunting Style: Alone at night

Telltale Signs: Feathers, missing or headless hens

Trap Bait: N/A

Fun Fact | Owls will enter barns and coops through windows and openings as small as one square foot. They will land on the ground and walk right into open coops.

Raccoons

Raccoon are found throughout the US in rural and suburban areas.

Hunting Style: Alone or as a family group at night

Telltale Signs: Feathers, missing eggs, eaten chicken chests and/or heads

Trap Bait: Canned tuna, honey-covered veggies, corn, bacon, marshmallows

Fun Fact | Raccoons will return to your chicken coop on a schedule, usually every 5-7 days. And remember, they are smart and can open all sorts of deadbolts and latches with their paws. They also love to try to pull chickens out through the fencing.

Rats

Rats are found in abundance throughout the US.

Hunting Style: Alone or in groups mainly at night

Telltale Signs: Missing chicks or pullets, missing eggs, chickens missing feathers or bite marks on legs, things knocked off shelves or windowsills, tunnels dug around coop, gnaw marks on wooden door frames

Trap Bait: Cheese, cereal or oats, peanut butter, peppermint candy

Fun Fact | Rats sometimes will chew beaks, bite legs or eat feathers of sleeping chickens and will try to pull chicks and smaller bantams down their holes.

Snakes

Snakes can be found throughout the US.

Hunting Style: Alone by day

Telltale Signs: Missing chicks or small pullets, missing eggs

Trap Bait: N/A but sulfur and cayenne pepper sprinkled around the run and coop can help repel snakes. 

Fun Fact | Even nonvenomous snakes are sometimes constrictors that can squeeze small chickens to death.

Skunks

Skunks are found throughout the US.

Hunting Style: Alone or as a family group at night

Telltale Signs: Eaten entrails, skin mostly intact, eaten eggs, including eggs from under a broody hen

Trap Bait: Apples, pears, bananas, bacon

Fun Fact | You may or may not smell the skunk's odor after it has been in the coop.

Weasels/Mink/Martens

Weasels and mink found throughout the US, usually near a water source.

Hunting Style: Usually alone at night, although sometimes families will hunt together

Telltale Signs: Missing intestines or carcasses neatly piled or lined up, killing for sport

Trap Bait: Meat scraps, fish, liver

Fun Fact | Weasels and mink can fit through a hole that is only 1 inch in diameter.

Wolves

Wolves are generally only found in the Great Lakes area and in the West.

Hunting Style: In a pack

Telltale Signs: Missing chickens

Trap Bait: Fresh meat

Fun Fact  | Wolves will kill for sport like dogs and sometimes leave an entire flock dead, however free-range chickens are much more at risk as wolves are hesitant to enter pens or runs.

Daytime Defenses-

• sturdy coop/run
• a rooster
• a dog specifically bred to guard livestock
• electric fencing
• playing a radio set to a talk station
• scattering dog feces around the perimeter of the run 
• human hair or urine placed around the coop and run area
• alpacas (will guard chickens against foxes)
• donkeys (will run coyotes off your property)

Nighttime Defenses-

• sturdy coop/run lock
• setting up trail cams
• looking for paw prints

Note: Before you trap or shoot any animal, be sure and find out what the local laws are, because many predators are protected or there are only certain times of the year when hunting is allowed. 

Some or all of these additional measures will help keep your flock safe. Because after all, a predator can make mistake after mistake and still eventually persevere... but we need only make one mistake to lose a treasured pet or an entire flock.