I really like the pinwheel idea. I also saw in a magazine article somewhere that someone was stringing old VHS tape between posts and the slight buzzing kept predators away. I am also looking at the Great Pyrenees. There have been some good ideas in this thread I look forward to trying out.
This is my first year with chickens and, knock on wood, I haven't lost any to predators yet. My neighbours cannot say the same. They have lost a few in the last couple of months. All I do is lock them up at night, make sure they have places to hide when the hawks are overhead, and mark my...