Rat Snakes

In general, the variety of rat snake species is the one that bothers chicken owners the most. Some rat snakes develop a desire for eggs, and strangely, there have been instances where a ravenous snake has killed a chicken in an apparent attempt to consume it. Of course, a mature hen is far too little for even the largest rat snake to devour, so it is a waste, but luckily, such occurrences are quite uncommon. Though it is much more probable that the snake would consume your eggs and leave no sign of their loss, it may also devour young chicks if given the chance.

Because of their name, rat snakes are much more likely to consume rodents than chickens, but if they do start eating your chicks or eggs, you won't be able to identify the predator because they devour their food whole. Rat snakes may swallow many eggs or chicks at once, so if you find that four or five chicks have vanished mysteriously with no indication of struggle, a snake is probably to blame.