So, we set up a game camera to catch a picture of the coyote that has been hanging around picking off our chickens. When I looked at the pictures I saw a couple of squirrels and this guy... a red fox. Not one picture of the coyote. Now I'm wondering how many chickens the coyote got and how many the fox got. I've lost thirteen since December.
Can't you use an electric fence? I have chain linked fence around my chicken area and have electric fence on it. It works on coyote, fox and bear. Not mink and the like. But I have a hen house and lock them in every night and let them out every morning.
Waretrop, they get put up at night. The chickens free range over a large area, so an electric fence isn't really possible.
Interesting story, Eclec....for a couple of reasons. One, it is a pretty damning evidence that the culprit is the red fox. Not as conclusive as a foto with him trotting off with the chicken slung over his back...but still. Can you take measures to protect your egg-laying ladies? Second--Your posting comes at a time when I am thinking about getting one of those stationary cams that I can tie onto a post or tree to take foto's while I am not in the lottie. I was surprised to see how sharp your foto was taken from the camera. Did the camera take still shots, or single still foto's? Is it motion sensitive? Can it take infra-red foto's at night? What brand is your camera? This is a great thread, thanks for posting it.
Eclectic Like Sjoerd I would love to get a trail cam just to see who passes through our property. When we had chickens we lost some to the Red Tail Hawks we have here. Maybe that is another critter eating your birds.