A two pound chicken is small enough for a hawk, but still too big to be carried away without a trace. The largest hawk in the USA is slightly under 3 pounds, so a 2 pound limp weight would be quite a load for it. Usually they do some disassembling if they need to carry prey off. So, I think you need to protect against the hawk that you saw, but you also need to consider other predators as well.
Keeping the birds penned unless you are there to watch over them is a good idea. Then it doesn't matter what is after your birds, they will be safe. Whatever has found a nice chicken dinner will be back to see if the buffet is still open.
Keeping the birds penned unless you are there to watch over them is a good idea. Then it doesn't matter what is after your birds, they will be safe. Whatever has found a nice chicken dinner will be back to see if the buffet is still open.
