•1 min read•from Raising Chickens or Other Poultry for Eggs, Meat, or as Pets
What would only kill and eat one chicken?
Our take
Oh no! It sounds like you've had quite the cluck-tastrophe in your coop. Discovering a hen has been taken is never easy, especially when it seems like a mystery predator decided to dine on just one of your feathered friends. From your description, it’s clear that this isn’t the usual fowl play you’ve dealt with before. While raccoons and foxes typically leave more chaos in their wake, the targeted approach hints at a more stealthy predator. A bobcat could indeed be a suspect, as they are known for being both cunning and effective hunters. However, there are other possibilities too, like coyotes or even a determined hawk that might have thought your hen was an easy meal.
The automatic door to my chicken coop didn’t close last night (we were not aware). Today we found a body of one of our hens, something had killed and eaten her. Part of her head and it looks like something took a big chunk out of her body.
Any other time we’ve had a predator get any they’ve killed all or at least a good portion of the girls. Raccoons have gotten in before and killed as many as they can, but they always eat the heads and leave the rest. A fox has gotten some before but they always take them, leaving like no trace behind.
Any ideas? I’m thinking maybe a bobcat or something? I just can’t think of what would kill and actually eat only one chicken.
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#chicken breeds#chicken behavior#chicken myths#chicken anatomy#chicken eggs#chicken#predator#raccoon#fox#bobcat#coop#automatic door#hens#body#killed#eaten#trace#portion#head#chunk