From time-to-time snakes become an issue in backyard poultry houses. Most of the time its snakes are seeking out and eating the eggs being laid. Snakes will swallow the eggs whole for digestion later. Eggs give them a good food source and they will continue to return for a meal. Sometimes chickens become upset with the snakes in the house and may get off their egg laying routine or make a lot of noise when snakes are present. Other times they adapt to snakes being in the house. Either way, the concern is not only the loss of egg production but the potential for anyone collecting the eggs to be endangered by the snake or snakes present. Listed in this article are some recommendations to try if dealing with snake problems in a chicken house.

Snakes can fit through any hole larger than their head. These can be holes or cracks in the floor, walls or roof of the coop and most can get through the holes that are larger than ½ inch. First, try securing the outside barrier to prevent entry. Use ¼ inch hardware cloth on pens, buried in the ground. Use hardware cloth over openings, spray foam in spots too small for hardware cloth. Good rule- if your pinky finger can get through, so can a snake.

Snakes can be beneficial to a yard or garden by controlling rodent populations. Sometimes the snakes follow rodents into the chicken coop because they are consuming the available chicken feed. Once inside they not only find a meal on rodents but discover eggs as a food source.

A chicken coop attracts snakes for three reasons

(1) Feed on eggs, feed on the rodents that are attracted to the coop to feed on chicken feed, or sometimes they feed on chickens themselves. Finding missing chicks or a grown dead chicken with a wet head is a sign that a snake has tried to eat it.

(2) Snakes need a water source.

(3) Warmth, shade or shelter.Chicken coops tend to be warm, dry and provide shelter, or provide shade in the heat of the day. Snakes don’t eat daily; it may be 4 to 40 days or even longer before they return for a refill.

Good signs you may have a snake in the chicken coop

(1) Missing chicks every few days

(2) Fewer eggs to gather. A snake can eat 2 eggs at a time.

(3) Regurgitated eggshells.They always spit the crushed empty shells back up.

(4) Dead chicken with wet head.A sign the snake attempted but could not swallow the chicken whole.

(5) shed snake skins.

• Minimize the chicken feed wastage and spillage. Store chicken feed in rodent-proof containers and consider a bucket feeder or treadle feeder that the chickens must step on to access feed.
• Regular trapping of rodents attracted to a chicken coop.
• Regular egg collection so there isn’t a food source lying around.
• Control vegetation around the coop.You can see snakes in short vegetation and snakes prefer tall cover to move around in for their protection.
• Guinea fowl and cats can help.Snakes don’t like Guinea Fowl and with proper introduction they should get along with the chicken flock. Cats can help control the rodent problem.
• Elevate coop up on legs and use an inverted funnel form on legs like those used for squirrel control.
• Remove from area any lumber or firewood piles as they attract snakes.

Things You Should Not Do with Snakes

(1) Set traps. These might catch your chickens plus if you catch snakes, you have an annoyed trapped animal to deal with.

(2) Poison. You could kill your chickens.

(3) Kill them. They are useful and eat rats and mice. They can even bite by reflex when thought to be dead.

Will Items That Smell Repel Snakes?

Snakes will get used to them. Snakes really dislike the smell of ammonia and will not come near it, but it must be very strong. Soak rags in ammonia and place them in unsealed plastic bags where you usually see the snakes. Over time as the smell fades, snakes return.

Do not use mothballs. The active ingredient in mothballs is a pesticide for insect control and is regulated by the EPA and using them in this manner is illegal.

Other repellents sometimes mentioned are garlic, salt and onions combination, sprinkling sulfur/cayenne pepper around the coop and runs, spraying garlic juice, cinnamon and or clover oil around coop. Another repellent is planting wormwood or garlic around the coop and area.

Again, information indicates snake repellents do not work or just temporarily at best.

Golf Balls, Ceramic Eggs, Glass, Etc.

Snakes won’t be fooled and even if they eat them, they will regurgitate it quickly just as they do undigested eggs shells.

There is even mention of an old rubber hose, thick rope or lead line around the perimeter to prevent snakes from crossing.

As you can see, there are lots of suggestions being offered for snake control around chicken pens.Some might work temporarily. The best suggestions would be to try and exclude snakes from entering by closing openings, controlling rodent populations and waste in chicken feeding, controlling vegetation, and gathering eggs regularly.