Scully Posted August 23, 2012 Report Share Posted August 23, 2012 Walking birds in this evening and one of the lads said he'd found two birds outside the pen the other day with no heads.Apart from a little balding on the back(which could have existed when delivered on 12th August)there wasn't a mark on them.What culprit would you point the finger at?I reckon fox has ambushed several birds outside the pen in thick cover and bitten heads off in frenzy as they sometimes do in a chicken coop,but I'm only guessing.Any thoughts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magman Posted August 23, 2012 Report Share Posted August 23, 2012 (edited) Owl i would say or a bop Not a fox mate look elsewhere Edited August 23, 2012 by magman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul223 Posted August 23, 2012 Report Share Posted August 23, 2012 skin them and look for talon marks on the back Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magman Posted August 23, 2012 Report Share Posted August 23, 2012 Hedgehog can also do the damadge you describe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul041075 Posted August 23, 2012 Report Share Posted August 23, 2012 tawny owl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hermin Posted August 23, 2012 Report Share Posted August 23, 2012 Mink possibly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keepersboy Posted August 23, 2012 Report Share Posted August 23, 2012 i would say a tawny owl too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hillmouse Posted August 24, 2012 Report Share Posted August 24, 2012 Further vote for Tawny Owl. Normally the neck is more or less there but no head or just the back of the head off. They don't seem to eat much of the kill and it stops once the poults reach about 10-12 weeks of age. Still damned annoying. Fox kills tend to be crushed across the back, a bit slobbery and more usual to find the neck bitten off right at the body. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mr baddoo Posted August 24, 2012 Report Share Posted August 24, 2012 Two ? Luxury! Two, luxury! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scully Posted August 25, 2012 Author Report Share Posted August 25, 2012 Further vote for Tawny Owl. Normally the neck is more or less there but no head That's just about the best description;the neck protrudes from the body,raw and bloody. Thanks for the input everyone,most helpful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackpowder Posted August 26, 2012 Report Share Posted August 26, 2012 Walking birds in this evening and one of the lads said he'd found two birds outside the pen the other day with no heads.Apart from a little balding on the back(which could have existed when delivered on 12th August)there wasn't a mark on them.What culprit would you point the finger at?I reckon fox has ambushed several birds outside the pen in thick cover and bitten heads off in frenzy as they sometimes do in a chicken coop,but I'm only guessing.Any thoughts? Years ago I was looking after our shoots modest pen of 25 birds, arriving one day everything was ominously quiet. Because the entire stock in the pen were dead and headless, the heads mainly lying outside the pen wire. The culprit was a fox cub dead in one of the snares, I still wonder why so many of the birds pushed their heads through the wire to suffer such a fate. Could there heve been more than one cub with the birds herded to their demise. Blackpowder Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B725 Posted August 26, 2012 Report Share Posted August 26, 2012 Years ago I was looking after our shoots modest pen of 25 birds, arriving one day everything was ominously quiet. Because the entire stock in the pen were dead and headless, the heads mainly lying outside the pen wire. The culprit was a fox cub dead in one of the snares, I still wonder why so many of the birds pushed their heads through the wire to suffer such a fate. Could there heve been more than one cub with the birds herded to their demise. Blackpowder We have had the same this year found 6 with the heads clean off but the bodies and heads where not taken. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
la bala Posted August 29, 2012 Report Share Posted August 29, 2012 Hedgehog can also do the damadge you describe +1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
olivhar01 Posted October 20, 2012 Report Share Posted October 20, 2012 Owl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottCromwell2 Posted October 21, 2012 Report Share Posted October 21, 2012 mink Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pontbeck Posted October 22, 2012 Report Share Posted October 22, 2012 I`m with the tawny owl school. A tawny ruined our season 3 years ago. Killed a dozen out 350 poults but half of the remaining birds left the pen never to be seen again. We had only had them 4 days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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