baby chicks killed

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I know this is a stupid question and probably not much can be done about it but I need some other ideas. I had a bantam hen set on several eggs, hatch them out, etc.. Because of the stray barn cat that lives in the barn and our own 2, we put her and the eggs in a larger cage for the chicks protection. Well, most of her eggs did not hatch out but the ones that did, died for one reason or another. BUT - we had the cage wrapped in wire so varments couldn't reach the baby chicks and today I noticed that her babies were gone! I know I can't just blame it on the cats but what other way is there to prevent this from happening again? I have another hen setting on eggs now and don't want to repeat the same outcome. I feel sorry for the mama hen, all her weeks of setting and protecting her chicks and this still happened! I have only 1 rooster and he can't be everywhere at once. Last year, I let the rooster be the protector and chicks still disappeared! I need to hear what the rest of you guys do about this. THANKS!!!!!

-- Pat Mikul (pmikul@pcpros.net), May 27, 2000

Answers

Could it have been a snake?

-- Doreen (livinginskin@yahoo.com), May 27, 2000.

I never thought of snakes. YUCK!!!! I live in central Wisconsin and we don't have those big, ugly snakes around here. None that I've ever seen anyway.

-- Pat (pmikul@pcpros.net), May 27, 2000.

Pat, I've never had problems with either my cats or strays. I'd go with snakes or rodents. Garter snakes can take a chick. Also little chicks do wander off and get stuck in some of the darndest places. Sometimes even the best hens won't notice or care, or if they do, there isn't much they can do to help the chick and they wander off to care for the viable chicks. Sometimes the adult chickens will kill a weak chick. Or it might die for some unknown reason. Adult chickens will eat their own kind. Not overly common, but it happens. Gerbil

-- Gerbil (ima_gerbil@hotmail.com), May 27, 2000.

I lived in Wisconsin for way too long, (too terribly cold for too terribly long!) We had rattle snakes and copperheads as well as rat snakes and tons of grass snakes in Adams Co. Those things can gulp a chick in a very short time. Now I am in Texas and of course we have the snakes that are "as big as" here. If there is a chance of it, and you have no danger of poisoning other chickens you might be able to keep a snake away with moth balls. Good luck.

-- Doreen (livinginskin@yahoo.com), May 27, 2000.

I've lost at least eight chicks to rats this year, so far. (and still trapping...)

-- Rachel (rldk@hotmail.com), May 27, 2000.


We have a wooden floor in our barn (where we store the grain, etc.) with about a 10" gap between it and the ground. I always wondered what & if there was anything under there. YIKES! This is giving me the creeps! Snakes and now rats? I've never seen either one but that doesn't mean they aren't there. How do you set a rat trap without catching the cats or chickens?

-- Pat (pmikul@pcpros.net), May 27, 2000.

Pat, for rats put out small containers of carbonated drinks--the rat can not burb & will die! Sonda in Ks.

-- Sonda (sgbruce@birch.net), May 27, 2000.

Pat, about a month ago, I had a little bantam (bantie) hen that didn't hatch any or her eggs and a bought her 6 black austrolop (SP) day old pullets and they matched up very well. I had them in a pen that I thought was really varmit proof. After she had the new chicks only 2 or 3 days, I went down to my pens in the morning and there was a big white possum in the pen. It had killed the chicks and was eatingthe little hen. At first I thought, "well, it's just an animal trying to get food" and thought I'd transport him to another county and let him go. After further deliberation, I shot him with my.410. I had an area on the pen about a yard off the ground where the wire was overlapped about a foot. You'd never have dreamed he could do it but the possom somehow forced himself through there. I could tell because he lost a lot of hair while squeezing through. I guess it'd really hard to build a possom-proof pen. Hope this helps or is, at least, interesting. (How do you spell possom, (possom or Possum?) Oh well. Eagle

-- eagle (eagle@alpha1.net), May 28, 2000.

Pat, sorry to hear about your chicks! Would you consider moving the setting hen & her nest to a wire cage on an enclosed porch? at least until the chicks have a good headstart? Then you'll be able to come up with a good solution for future setting hens. We haven't had this problem, & yeah we do have snakes, rats, cats, mink & many other varmints (even the 2-legged kind). Hope to hear from you on how it's goin'!

-- Phyllis (almostafarm@yahoo.com), May 28, 2000.

I have chickens and rabbits sharing the same outbuilding, and this year (our third) we were overwhelmed with rats. Trapping didn't work-- they reproduced faster than I could trap. Someone suggested putting 1- pound bags of rat poison in the tunnels and covering the outlet with a rock so the rest of my critters couldn't get it. This worked fairly well in decreasing the population, but rats would still take eggs, eat rabbit feed, and also ate two of my new Rouen ducklings. Shortly after, I noticed our resident black snake--up to 4 feet this year-- travelling between our crawl space, the chicken coop and a brush pile. Have not seen a trace of rats in about a month. I know the snake will also take a few eggs and eat any small babies it can get to, but I prefer the snake to rats. I like snakes, anyway.

-- teresa (otgonz@bellsouth.net), May 28, 2000.


I sure do appreciate all the advice!!! It would help alot if I saw the critter that's doing the killing. I noticed there is a large whole from under the outside, into the barn BUT I had the hen in a cage, so who knows what got them! Oh well, at least I have some options to go with! Thanks again!!!

-- Pat (pmikul@pcpros.net), May 28, 2000.

Pat, hi again, I am the one with rats. Not alot, actually, but rats. I set a live trap every night when I lock the barn, it is long and skinny, and the chickens are roosting for the night. If I catch one, I drop the trap into one of the watering troughs.

My month old turkeys are in a rabbit hutch, off the floor, completely closed in with chicken wire, and heavy lids on top. Yesterday morning, there was rat poop in their feeder.

Good luck with this problem. Where there is food, shelter, water, there will be pests.

-- Rachel (rldk@hotmail.com), May 28, 2000.


Pat, rats and snakes can get through incredibly small holes. And unlike Eagle's possum, they don't leave evidence on the fence. The rule of thumb is that an adult mouse can get through a hole not much bigger than the size of a pencil. A rat can go through a hole about the size of a quarter. It of course depends on the individual creature. The young ones can obviously get through even smaller holes and grow once inside. This is what makes rodents so tough to exclude from anywhere they want to be. They can also gnaw their way even through things like pieces of tin used to patch an access hole. Snakes can also go through much tinier holes than you'd expect. So unless your cages are made of window screen, snakes and rats can get through them. (Window screen isn't a good idea, rodents will rip right through it.) I'm thinking rodents if your cage wire has fairly small holes. Takes a snake what? a day? to digest something it ate? Probably wouldn't be able to get right back through the wire. But I don't know much about snakes and don't want to know either.

I guess I'm through with this answer since I can't think of any more to tell you that involves using the word "through". Gerbil

-- Gerbil (ima_gerbil@hotmail.com), May 28, 2000.


Gerbil, thanks for the laugh. Maybe once every few days I hear myself laugh out loud.

-- Rachel (rldk@hotmail.com), May 28, 2000.

Have not found an absolutely sure way to protect chicks (squabs) but do have a novel and effective way of protecting eggs. Get a lage hypodermic syringe with the largest bore needle you can find. Your local equine supply store has these. Poke two holes in a fresh egg. Use the syringe through one hole to stir up the yolk and then suction out the contents of the egg. Fill the syringe with the liquid insecticide of your choice (I have also used battery acid in a pinch). Use small pieces of transparent mending tape to cover the holes and put the egg back into the nest. The snakes swallow the egg whole and digest it later. Your snake buddy will get a really bad case of indigestion and will probably not be back for a second helping. By the way, you are going to be amazed at how small a snake can be and still get down an egg. Good luck, John and Pat

-- john and pat james (jjames@n-jcenter.com), May 28, 2000.


I would be really afraid of the insecticide egg. What if it broke and the chickens ate it?

-- Doreen (livinginskin@yahoo.com), May 28, 2000.

Sonda, is that really true about rats & sodas? I've heard that but never knew if it really worked or not. Eagle

-- eagle (eagle@alpha1.net), May 29, 2000.

Sorry to hear about your loss. :(

I have had major Possum problems in the past. But found the Mole Patrol posion works the best for them bar none!!

But you might also have weasels,,, they can get into things even the Rats can`t get into,, and baby chicks can disppear in a heartbeat!

-- Bergere (autumnhaus@aol.com), May 29, 2000.


Eagle, this is Sonda--ya asked if the soda really worked on rats? Well my Dad always used it--we had a milk barn & he didn't want to put out poison--so we used what ever was the cheapest carbonated drink he could find---ya have to keep changeing it, as when it goes flat it doesn't do any good!(they don't need to burb)ha-- It works on rats & mice! And it won't hurt other animals if they drink it! I need to put some in our garage as that is where I keep my chicken food & ducks & geese food--& saw a mouse yesterday--but hubby had a brick & hit that mouse & got it! Hubby is better than a coke! ha! Sonda in Ks.

-- Sonda (sgbruce@birch.net), May 30, 2000.

I had raccoons pull chicks through chicken wire. There had to be more then one so the chicks would be scared to the one who had his hand through the wire hole and grab. Needless to say, it wasn't a very pleasant sight especially for my friend who was watching my animals while I was away.

-- Dee (gdgtur@goes.com), May 30, 2000.

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