Guess I got my right of passage as a chicken owner :(

[chickengeorgeto]

That's terrifying! I feel badly because I was just thinking I wish it was this chicken instead of the other chicken that was killed last week. I think I know how it got in. It's a hoop house covered on the top and sides in chicken wire, HOWEVER, the chicken wire isn't zip tied very close around the pipe (tied every foot or so), so I bet it landed on the top and created a gap to fly right through :/

Also forget about the images of a hawk swooping down from outer space like a meteor and pouncing on you chickens. Hawks don't kill their prey like that at least not prey as large as an adult standard size hen or rooster. It requires quite a bit of killing to accomplish turning almost any brown egg layer into hawk bait.

 

[ehoneybee]

Also forget about the images of a hawk swooping down from outer space like a meteor and pouncing on you chickens. Hawks don't kill their prey like that at least not prey as large as an adult standard size hen or rooster. It requires quite a bit of killing to accomplish turning almost any brown egg layer into hawk bait.

Yeah, I'm mad at myself for not researching more on how they kill prey.

 

[ehoneybee]

Just read: "Red-tailedread hawks live in various habitats, including scrub deserts, grasslands, farm fields, pastures, parks, and woodlands. They need an open hunting area with several scattered perches. The red-tailed hawk is one of three species sometimes referred to as chicken hawks, although it rarely preys on standard-sized chickens."

Well, I'm sorry but this is exactly the hawk that got into the run and killed a large BO. Anyway, I see that it definitely got in through the top of the run. I had told my husband to put the plastic tarp back over it so the hawks couldn't see the birds but we did think the chicken wire would suffice :/

 

[Wellsken]

I'm thinking a dog might be a predator deterrent but how would it get along with the chickens?

I have a dog that roams into the run with me, and it completely leaves the hens alone. Usually, my experience is that neighborhood dogs are more of an issue than one that is raised around your birds. However, don't count on it for protection, unless it will be confined in the area of the chickens.