‘Mink are known to attack and kill poultry,’ government department says

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Julia Kane was inside her Kilbride home at 2 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 26, when her neighbour called to say she could see two of Kane’s four chickens dead in the backyard.

“When I went out to investigate, I found all four dead — partially mangled with their throats torn out,” Kane told SaltWire Network.

“The smallest of the four — my children’s favourite hen, who enjoyed being handled and pet — was mangled so badly its head was barely held on, much like a paddle ball.

“The mink then darted between a small opening in the chicken enclosure, ran past me into the henhouse and disappeared. I grabbed a shovel and went into the henhouse, but by that time it was long gone.

“The smallest of the four ... was mangled so badly its head was barely held on, much like a paddle ball." — Julia Kane

“After that, I threw on some gloves and went about cleaning up the feathers and disposing of the birds. Before I left the yard to go back to my children — who were being watched by another neighbour while I went about the cleanup — the mink came out from under the fence and tried to drag one of the dead hens away.

“At that moment, my neighbour, her two older children and their husky were all at the opposite fence shouting and barking at the mink. It continued undeterred until my neighbour's teenage son came at it with a shovel. It scurried off back under the fence.

“We saw it at least twice afterwards, and baited a live trap to try to catch it, but had no luck.

"It was pretty devastating. We had these hens for over a year.”

Kane said the family regarded their chickens as pets more than livestock.

“More so than the four fresh eggs a day, we’ll miss watching them graze and scurry around the yard. We bought them quite young, and they became very friendly with us very quickly.”

Kane shared her story with SaltWire so other people in the neighbourhood could be aware, especially if they have small pets in their backyard. She believes the mink is in the area looking for food, possibly driven there due to construction as well as low water levels in nearby rivers and streams after such a hot summer.

“The mink’s behaviour was very bold. The largest chicken it took down was over 10 pounds, with very large claws. I imagine a mink could easily do the same to a shitzhu, or cat. We see a number of cats roaming our area on a regular basis, some with collars,” Kane said.

The Department of Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture told SaltWire in an emailed statement that incidents and interactions with mink tend to be most prevalent this time of year, during late August and into September, when young mink are dispersing away from their mothers.

“Mink are known to attack and kill poultry. It is difficult to mink-proof a backyard chicken coop, and removing the mink is often the only means to ensure chickens and other poultry are safe from attacks,” the department stated.

“Once an incident has occurred, it is advisable to keep remaining poultry indoors and ensure mink cannot enter the building. Incidents of mink interactions with smaller pets such as cats or dogs are rare.”

The department said interactions with mink should be reported to the nearest district office of the Department of Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture, and landowners should not attempt to deal with problem wildlife without seeking advice from district staff.

Kane said her hens had a large, open enclosure, and more often than not had access to the full backyard.

“If I could offer anyone advice, I would say to box in the entire enclosure with proper chicken wire. We wrongly assumed this wouldn’t be necessary (due to) living on such a busy street with so much noise from traffic, dogs and close neighbours,” she said.

Kane said she has no intentions of replacing the chickens.

“While I am tempted to find more, I imagine the same thing would happen, and I have no intention of feeding the mink, or encouraging it to visit the same yard my kids play in.”

“While I am tempted to find more, I imagine the same thing would happen, and I have no intention of feeding the mink, or encouraging it to visit the same yard my kids play in.” — Julia Kane

Mink are not native to Newfoundland. The population in the province originated with escapees from mink farms in the 1930s. Since then, they have spread throughout the island, including on many offshore islands, according to the Department of Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture's statement.

The department said there are no population estimates for mink, but the population appears to be stable. The department said about 2,200 trappers harvest an average of 1,800 mink per year in the province.

The department said mink tend to live in areas with ample water supplies, such as near streams, rivers, ponds or the ocean.

They eat a wide variety of foods, including muskrat, rabbits, birds, frogs, fish, coastal shellfish and insects.

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