Best guard animal against hawks (besides dogs)???

[centrarchid]

Our peacock, Larry, beat the stuffing out of a hawk:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/608864/hawk-attack-stopped-by-larry-the-peacock


Go Larry!

In my neck of woods peacocks are targetted by great horned owls pretty consistently and roost that protected are a bit expensive to build. Turkeys may work but even those are owl bait on occasion. Guinees are very popular with red-tailed hawk and great horned owl.

 

[JosieChick]

We put 2 pygmy goats out with our chickens and the hawks are a little concerned about the bouncing white creatures that now inhabit the pen so they don't hang around much anymore. I have found that if I am vigilant about going out and making a racket every time the birds kick up a fuss the hawks don't fly over our property but along the fence line way back in the woods to avoid bringing me out swinging my crazy lady stick and shouting!!

 

[angidee]

I spent the better part of the night researching peafowl. Those of you who have them, did you start with chicks, juveniles or adults? What age helps they bond to your flock?

 

[angidee]

And how many do you keep? How many chickens can each watch out for?

I am also researching the guineas. Anyone have good success with these? How many do you keep at a time?

 

[CrazyChcknChick]

I'm new to poultry-keeping..our chicks have not even arrived yet. BUT, I also am in Washington (Eastern) and have visited others with chickens, and they swear by guinea hens as protection. The last place I visited had about 10 guinea hens free-ranged with the chickens, and they said that they had not lost any to hawks because the guineas are bigger and so noisy. Other tips I've read about and plan to use are having shelters out in the pasture so that the chickens have a place to dive for cover should they be attacked, having larger animals out in the pasture with them, and removing cover or perching spots in the pasture that hawks might use. We have a dead tree out in the pasture that needs to come down for that reason. My primary concern for predators are hawks and owls..the pasture is electrified and also enclosed with chicken wire around the bottom, so any coyotes, dogs, or neighboring cats would be in for a very nasty surprise...the neighbor's huskies that seem to get loose all the time come to mind. I do plan to order some Guineas in a few months...as soon as I can find people willing to split the order with me...I certainly don't need 25 of them!!

 

[angidee]

Shelter boxes are absolutely on the list for protection this week!!
I am going to be adding Anconas to my flock. I am researching peafowl and guineas to see if they will be joining our flock. @Crazychcknchick

Quote: Are you ever on the west side of the mountains, I may be interested in splitting an order!

 

[animals1981]

wild turkey, canada geese, reeves and silver phesants, domestic cats

this is a cat taking on a coopers hawk that killed a chicken?

 

[animals1981]

feed crows, jays, mockingbirds, sea gulls, blackbirds

all these birds attack birds ruthlessly

the worst are ravens which will try to kill hawks and even eagles

dont forget gulls they attack hawks pretty bad also, but all corvids are the best hawk mobbers just set up a feeding stations when corvids consider your land theirs they will not let hawks join

we had a egret colony near us that a pair of crows nested right near single pair protected the WHOLE colony from a red tail, egrets cant protect because they lack the flying ability of crows so they are sitting ducks for powerful talons of red tails just like chickens are


here is a wild turkey defending its chicks from a red tail

again dont expect that from a bbr

canada goose taking on a eagle

again dont expect this from a chinese goose it would be killed

 

[chigger bait]

We saw a young red tail try to tackle a wild turkey hen, several years ago.

It was a draw.

I'm sure the red tail went home and told his momma to leave those blue heads alone.

 

[ThreeBoysChicks]

We have three big barn cats that have actually taken down a Red Tail Hawk. In addition, we have Geese and Guinea that run the place. And if that is not enough, the goats and the draft horses that share the fields keep them at bay.