Keeping chickens safe from predators has to be top on your list of priorities. There are several animals around the World that will prey on chickens and it’s your job to keep them safe and not letting them become part of the local wildlife’s food chain!
Foxes
In the United Kingdom, the number one predator for chickens is of course the fox but did you know that some people also have badgers killing their chickens? Most inexperienced people will think a fox has visited however this isn’t always the case.
A fox is opportunistic, he will visit your garden regularly (a little tip, if it snows, go out and have a look for paw prints to see if foxes are visiting and how close they get to your chickens – you might be surprised!) and the one night you forget to lock up your chickens… he’ll visit.
There is more information about foxes and how to tell if it was a fox that took your chickens on the Foxes page under the Pest and Predators menu.
Badgers
Badgers are incredibly strong and if they are hungry, they have been known to tear off wooden panels of chicken houses that aren’t secure and tear open pop holes to get to chickens. They will usually kill and take one bird but might come back for a second. They usually work alone.
Mink, Stoats and Weasels can all be a problem but are far less common in most parts of the UK.
Domestic Cats
Cats aren’t generally a problem to fully grown chickens and mine have never bothered with young ‘growers’. They seem more interested in chicks though and shouldn’t be trusted. Some people have had problems, usually with a specific cat in the neighbourhood and with smaller bantam chickens. It’s very difficult to keep cats out completely.
Yikes… I won’t be trusting you in a hurry.
Rats and Mice
Pests such as rats and mice can be a problem as they spread diseases, eat valuable feed supplies and (rats) can steal eggs and gnaw at doors, wires and even chickens feet. Usually only one or the other are present and rats can be quite discreet so if there are no mice then be suspicious of rats!
There is more detailed information about Rats and Mice under the Predators menu.
Hi love the website! Have you ever known of problems with cats as predators or sressing the birds? We plan on keeping chickens this year but our cat is horrible!! Thanks in advance.
Generally cats will not bother with chickens but you need to be careful with chicks. The chickens will usually get used to seeing a cat (or dog) around and therefore once they are settled should not cause unessessary stress on the birds.
We had a cat pin down one of our bantams and it had a very lucky escape as we got out there pretty quick, so yes, some cats will go for chickens.
Hi I am thinknig about getting a couple of chickens and just doing some research. I live on an island with no foxes or badgers. I plan to get a coop with a run and let them out for a stretch when I can. Would I need to lock them in the coop every night or could I let them have access to the run too as they would be safe?
Many thanks
Without foxes or badgers, they will be very safe! Just keep an eye open for vermin and make sure there is no access to stray dogs and you should be fine.
My neighbour has had bantams for several years now & doesn’t seem to have any problems with letting them run around the garden all day, and we are thinking about getting some chickens but we are at work most of the day. We do have foxes, rats, Red Kites and a Buzzard in the area – should I be worried letting the chickens out to fend for themselves? My husband could build a run large enough for them and then we could let them run free when we are at home.
Sorry to answer a question with a question… but do you want to take a chance on it? Foxes can come during the daytime, especially when feeding young. It only takes one visit to kill all of your birds.
I would try to build a reasonable size fox proof run and then let them out when you are around… even then, be careful as people have had foxes dash up and take a bird in front of them when they have been short of food.
I am thinking of getting chickens but i am not sure if foxes live nearby is there a way to tell and do yo know if there are chicken runs with floors so foxes cant dig under?
I think it is safe to assume there are foxes, assuming you live on mainland UK. (There are no foxes on the Isle of Man for example!)
Runs don’t normally have floors as you normally want the birds to be able to graze on grass.
I live in Germany and have 9 hens and 1 cock. Last night I noticed there were 8 eggs in the coop but left them to be picked up in the morning with the overnight issue. When I went down this morning there was 1 egg and that was still warm. What could/would have taken the eggs and left the chickens alone?
Regards,
Chris
Rats? I’ve not had them take eggs from me here but I understand they will. They must have been working hard to take 8 eggs!