Hawks getting my chickens

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Top Rooster

Top Rooster

Crowing
7 Years
Aug 16, 2015
936
1,655
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North East Oklahoma
I was on vacation for a little over a week and my sister was watching the animals when we came back we relised that 2 of our almost full grown chicks were gone we searched for them and later we found poop in a corner were they may have escaped and taken shelter for the night. We never did end up finding them but again later that day we relised we were missing another chicken we found her fethers everywhere we thought it was a hawk because there was no fur in the fence like an animal may have squeezed in and the fact that it's protective for ground predators. The next day we let the chickens out and I went back inside for a little bit. I came back outside to check on them and there was more feathers where the last chicken was killed except different colors of feathers and there was another missing chicken
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Folly's place said:
Keep your birds locked in their safe coop and run until this situation is resolved! You will loose all of them! Mary
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This. Unless, of course they are being killed in the run. In that case, you need to secure it. Can you cover it? I use welded wire, many others use bird netting - depending on the size of the area you're protecting.
 
I wouldn't advise trapping the hawk. It could get you in trouble with the law. Birds of prey are protected. Your best best is to secure your chickens so that the hawk can't get to them. It will move on once it can't hunt them so easily.
 
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Is your run covered? If not, then I'd suspect a ground predator, such as a fox or coyote-both are master climbers and this is the time of year where fox are hunting for and feeding their pups so not at all unusual to see them out and about during daylight hours. You mentioned your hens were almost full grown. Most hawks are unable to carry a full-size chicken away. They will strike eat larger prey, such as chicken, on the ground.

As Kyanite mentioned, raptors are a protected species and it would not be advisable to trap one.
 
In the state I live in it is very legal to kill birds of prey if they attack fowl or kill them or other animals and I know it's a hawk because I hear it make noises in the woods right next my house and I see it circling the run some times only part of it is covered the rest is covered by large trees
 
Top Rooster said:
In the state I live in it is very legal to kill birds of prey if they attack fowl or kill them or other animals and I know it's a hawk because I hear it make noises in the woods right next my house and I see it circling the run some times only part of it is covered the rest is covered by large trees
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Most other predators, yes. Birds of prey, no. They are protected by FEDERAL LAW. Your state has nothing to do with it. Permits are granted in special situations, but they must truly be special situations. You will not get a permit to trap or kill birds of prey just because they are killing your birds in an open pen. Wildlife agents will tell you to cover your pen.
 

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