Hello Everyone,

Well, I was gladly anticipating the posting of my update on Dotty- my broody golden-laced wyandotte:her chickies were due to hatch out any day now.However,this update is certainly not a glad one! While out watering my garden this morning,I noticed a strange movement near the chicken-yard.It was farook,my crabby rooster,pacing miserably around the c-yard and crowing by turn.(Farook is not much for flying being a rather hefty guy and all.)I did not want to deal with him since he is mean and my little children were out in the yard playing, so I called my husband home from helping his Dad out. He arrived and quickly got ole Farook back in with his hens.I asked him to check on Dotty while he was there.He opened the door to find NOTHING!No Dotty,No eggs,No Chickies!!!!!She wasn't under the coop,in the coop,or around the yard!The only trace of her and her soon to hatch babies were a few bits of egg shells,some feathers,and a trail of chicken manure all up the chicken wire fence. It seems whatever it was ate all her eggs and then drug her up and over the 6 foot high chicken wire fence!What would do that?A raccoon? opossum?Only one or more?Isn't that an awful lot for one animal to eat? ( Oh,by the way,I lost my favorite hen a week ago to rather mysterious-at the time-circumstances!) I am very,very frustrated! I've just bought a havahart trap,but having a heart where this creature is concerned is out of the question!(I love animals,but this one has become a real problem. It doesn't seem right to release into someone else's area.Why didn't the thing just dig through my compost pile?) Oh well!Sorry this is so long.I sure do appreciate this forum and those who care enough to help others out with all the good advice they give. Bye for now and May God's blessings be upon you all! [Sin sure did a terrible things to God's lovely world!My daughter (4)asked me if raccoons and opossums would be nice when the Lord Jesus returns.Yes honey,they will be.Certainly if a lion and a lamb can lie down together so also shall raccoons/opossums and chickies.]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Tracy~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

-- Tracy Jo Neff (tntneff@ifriendly.com), June 24, 2000

Answers

We were having a similar problem with our birds being killed while they were roosting. it wasn't until we lost all our ducks and a good portion of our hens, that we found out it was a bobcat. Hubby dispatched him with a twenty-two.

Little Bit Farm

-- Little bit Farm (littlebit@calinet.com), June 24, 2000.

Tracy, I'd guess coon or possum, depends on what you've got in your area. Sorry to hear about your loss. Gerbil

-- Gerbil (ima_gerbil@hotmail.com), June 24, 2000.

Me again!

Our chickens are barricaded in their coop till morn,and the trap is set with eggs and catfood for the bait.I wish I had them locked in every night,but we never had problems till recently. Now I need to get several more hens,for I have too few for my rooster. Has anyone ever bought any from auction?(Forgot to ask that earlier...) ~~~~~~~Tracy

-- Tracy Jo Neff (tntneff@ifriendly.com), June 24, 2000.

The really nice thing about havaheart traps is that they have a heart when they catch animals you want to keep like your own cats. Everything else is fair game when it comes to getting my livestock. I can do in a varmint as quickly as possible and never shed a tear. We found a rat in the bottom of a large metal garbage can. Husband wanted to shoot it while it was still in the can. I got a pitchfork and a shovel. Held rat down with the shovel, impaled it with the pitchfork. When it quit moving, I told husband, he was welcome to shoot it then, just bury it when he got done. My dad nearly died of rat bite fever when he was about 12 at the beginning of WW II. He lived in Boston and with the gearing up for war, they relaxed shipping regulations on the docks and rat populations, according to my grandmother, skyrocketed. Rats were the only animal I was overtly taught to fear. Good luck with your trapping and so sorry about your defenseless little hen.

-- marilyn (rainbow@ktis.net), June 25, 2000.

Tracy, I got some boards and made a wooden box about 3 feet long,a foot wide, and foot tall. I made the front a door. The door is the smallest wire. A snake or nothing can get in there. My hen with her 14 chicks go in there at night and I lock it up. I know they must get hot in there but it seems like the only way to protect them from snakes & possums. I lost 4 babies to a snake one night and 4 to a possum another night. I have killed 2 snakes and 2 possums in just the last couple of months. Seems like when you kill one, another one comes along. Here, where I live, it seems like the only answer is to keep all my birds inside at night. Hope this helps. Like you and daughter, I'm looking forward to the day when Jesus returns. Eagle

-- eagle (eagle@alpha1.net), June 26, 2000.

Hello,It's me AGAIN!

Thanks for the help and sympathy everyone! Still haven't caught a thing.The first night the trap was out, baited with catfood and two eggs,something tripped the trap. Only one egg was eaten and the bandit escaped.So now I assume I also must have a(?)rat(S?)!!!!Oh Yuckkkkk!!!Well,last night I set two traps,the havahart and a rat trap.Upon approaching the chicken yard this morning,I didn't see the rat trap.The thing took it beside the coop(in the c-yard still)and somehow set it off in the process.Now,I,ve rebaited both and await morning! I shall let every one know when I catch them!Just one thing: I've never killed an animal in my life save a few mice.How should I kill this coon/opossum(hopefully not a bobcat!)when once it is caught?If ever I have another broody mama hen,then I'll try something similar to your box eagle. Thanks so much everyone!I thank the Lord for you folks on forum;I wouldn't know who else to ask these things!!! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Tracy~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

-- Tracy Jo Neff (tntneff@ifriendly.com), June 26, 2000.

RAT TRAP OUTSIDE OF CHICKEN YARD ALTOGETHER THIS MORNING.TRIPPED, BAITLESS,AND RATLESS!ALL THE BAIT EATEN OUT OF THE HAVAHART TRAP BUT TRAP NOT TRIPPED.HENS THANKFULLY STILL OKAY.I GUESS THE BARRACADED DOORS ARE WORKING FINE.I FEEL AS THOUGH I MUST DECLARE ALL OUT WAR WITH THIS THING! GOD IS STILL IN CHARGE AND I KNOW THIS WILL WORK OUT FOR GOOD... THANKS EVERYONE,IN HIS LOVE~~TRACY~~

-- Tracy Jo Neff (tntneff@ifriendly.com), June 27, 2000.

HELLO AGAIN EVERYONE! WELL, WE CAUGHT IT!!! I THINK IT'S A RACCOON,BUT IT'S ASLEEP ALL CURLED UP IN A BALL SO...NOW WHAT? I HAVE TO ADMIT I SURE AM GOING TO HATE KILLING IT,YET I KNOW IT MUST BE DONE.BYE EVERYONE(FOR NOW)&GOD BLESS... ~~~~~~~TRACY~~~~~~~~

-- Tracy Jo Neff (tntneff@ifriendly.com), June 28, 2000.

By now you have already dealt with your critter, but what's the harm in taking the livetrap a couple of miles away and releasing the animal. Isn't that what a livetrap is for....to humanely trap and release unharmed?

-- Kate Henderson (sheeplady@catskill.net), June 30, 2000.