|
|
Author |
|
Message | |
|
Bungo
Joined: 21 Dec 2011 Posts: 354 Location: Wye Valley
|
Posted: Tue Jul 03, 12 6:03 am Post subject: Mysterious Disaster |
|
Woke up at 4am this morning to a strange noise coming from the front garden,I am extra mad with myself as I lay listening to it for about 5 minutes before I went to investigate. I thought it was our cat making weird mewing sounds.In a small pen on the front lawn there were 22 five week old chicks which were only on there 4th nigh outside.Now there are only six
There was a small hole dug into the pen .It is way too small to be the work of a fox.The six remaining chicks were huddled in the corner,with one dead chick at the other end with a leg missing , but the other 15 chicks there was not a trace of ,no feathers or sign of a struggle. A mink or polecat come to mind as a possible culprit .
I have had a bit of a scout round , but can see no evidence like trails of feathers going under fences etc. I was kind of hoping maybe some of the chicks had got out through the hole and run for cover , but no luck on that one.
Its the third batch of chicks this year to go in the pen which I use as a nursery for them for their first couple of weeks outside, and there have never been problems before with predators. There was another pen with nine week old birds a couple of yards away ,and they were ignored.
I have a fox trap , and I will set it by the pen tonight, but I think the culprit is too small to probably set the trap off |
|
|
|
|
Green Rosie
Joined: 13 May 2007 Posts: 10498 Location: Calvados, France
|
|
|
|
|
Bungo
Joined: 21 Dec 2011 Posts: 354 Location: Wye Valley
|
|
|
|
|
Green Rosie
Joined: 13 May 2007 Posts: 10498 Location: Calvados, France
|
|
|
|
|
Bungo
Joined: 21 Dec 2011 Posts: 354 Location: Wye Valley
|
|
|
|
|
Green Rosie
Joined: 13 May 2007 Posts: 10498 Location: Calvados, France
|
|
|
|
|
Woodburner
Joined: 28 Apr 2006 Posts: 2904 Location: Essex
|
|
|
|
|
Barefoot Andrew Downsizer Moderator
Joined: 21 Mar 2007 Posts: 22780 Location: In the 17th century
|
|
|
|
|
Lorrainelovesplants
Joined: 13 Oct 2006 Posts: 6521 Location: Dordogne
|
|
|
|
|
Bungo
Joined: 21 Dec 2011 Posts: 354 Location: Wye Valley
|
|
|
|
|
Ty Gwyn
Joined: 22 Sep 2010 Posts: 4563 Location: Lampeter
|
|
|
|
|
chicken feed
Joined: 27 Aug 2009 Posts: 2677
|
|
|
|
|
T.G
Joined: 13 Sep 2009 Posts: 7280 Location: Somewhere you're not
|
|
|
|
|
Bungo
Joined: 21 Dec 2011 Posts: 354 Location: Wye Valley
|
|
|
|
|
matt_hooks
Joined: 01 Aug 2010 Posts: 312 Location: Lambourn(ish) Berkshire
|
|
|
|
|
|