Hawk!

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Violetsfeathers

Violetsfeathers

Songster
8 Years
Feb 22, 2015
2,228
339
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Minnesota
My Coop
My Coop
So a few months ago I was sitting in the yard with my bantam chicks (about half grown) and one of the chicks made a warning noise so I looked up and this hawk goes gliding past and into the woods. I was pretty scared so I put them all away after that.
Well today, the bantams are full gown and it attacked them. I saw it reaching to grab them flying close to the ground. They were all freaking out and running and squawking. So I ran over and would have done something but there was a fence so I yelled at it and it flew away into the woods. I checked all the chickens that were there when it happened and none were hurt.
I was looking at pictures and I think it was a Cooper's hawk, it was a little smaller than my standard size hens. I read that they eat birds and that they live in the woods, I Locke my banters up in a pen in the woods and now I'm worried they won't be able to get away if it comes back :(
 
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Hopefully your pen is covered. My experience with Cooper's hawks is that they are very tenacious and will keep coming back as long as birds are there.
 
Aviary netting is NOT expensive...you can find 25'x50' on Amazon for cheap. It's what I use in my 20x40 run and I also hang CD disks from the netting...the sun hits the CDs and the reflection confuses birds as they try to fly down (since it's generally thought they don't "see" the netting since it's black)...this keeps them from getting caught in the netting. It's pretty tough material though. I HIGHLY recommend you cover the run with it. :)
 
You will continue to loose birds unless you confine them for a week or three; until that hawk give up and moves on. Having a safe coop and covered run is essential for times like this to protect your flock. Mary
 
Folly's place said:
You will continue to loose birds unless you confine them for a week or three;  until that hawk give up and moves on.  Having a safe coop and covered run is essential for times like this to protect your flock.  Mary
Click to expand...

I haven't lost any birds yet, and it's been four months scince the first time I saw it, yesterday was the second time.
 
I've lost two bantams this week to a hawk. The first was a four month old cockrel; I locked everyone in the coop and run for three days. Miscommunication occurred; DH let everyone out yesterday, and a nice hen with chicks died, leaving three four week olds bereft. They are doing okay, and the flock WILL be locked if for at least a week this time! At least hawks only take one at a time, very sad but not huge numbers as with a dog or fox. Mary
 
sourland said:
Hopefully your pen is covered. My experience with Cooper's hawks is that they are very tenacious and will keep coming back as long as birds are there.
Click to expand...
Same here. Had one show up last Thursday. No less than 4 times between 4 and 7 pm. As soon as I would shoo it away it would come back. It was outside at sunrise the next day(6 am). And again at 6:30, 7 and 7:30 am. The ones here will test the covering on the runs looking for a way in.
 
keesmom said:
Same here. Had one show up last Thursday. No less than 4 times between 4 and 7 pm. As soon as I would shoo it away it would come back. It was outside at sunrise the next day(6 am). And again at 6:30, 7 and 7:30 am. The ones here will test the covering on the runs looking for a way in.
Click to expand...

Ugh. They are very persistent, chicken dinners are the best, sadly.

I have a back yard flock and only four chickens. I can't afford to 'lose 1-2', even per year, with open free ranging in my back yard.
I lost a week old chick last spring to a Cooper's hawk; it found a tiny hole/defect in my little outside area.
LOTS of larger hawks, bald eagles and Cooper's in our area, and Fall/Winter is approaching. They are our main daytime predators.

I'm setting up a secondary daytime run under a tree and into bushes along the back fence, connected to their coop/run via a chicken tunnel.
Just got my aviary netting today, I will be covering it. They will have lots of space, and I will have some peace of mind.
 

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