We were taught a hard lesson in chicken keeping yesterday when our rooster attempted to notify us of a predator and we ignored the warning. Our neighbors had come over and we were talking and my wife and son said they saw our rooster run across the back yard (the chickens were out of the covered pen) clucking and flapping his wings. We were too busy entertaining and all of the chickens but one had run into the pen. The neighbors left about 10 min. later and my son made his way across the back yard to the chicken pen and the wife and I had gone inside. He said he counted the chickens and noticed one was missing. About that time he said he saw the hawk about 20 ft away standing on top of the hens body and looking directly at him. He immediately ran to the house screaming and when I heard him I ran out and the hawk flew away as I approached but it was too late for our best layer (Barred Rock). I was talking to my wife and son when I returned to the back porch and spotted the hawk on a limb in a tree in the woods about 50 yards from the chickens. They are now confined to the pen and are not happy about it. My son, was extremely upset for the rest of the day. I was afraid he might have nightmares about it but I guess he slept ok. I felt so bad for him having to see all of that. I felt bad for letting it happen too.
I'm so sorry for your loss! We learned about hawks this summer.... We had wire strung up over our run to deter hawks. We left a space open since our rooster loves to fly up and get out, and we just love watching him strut around our yard. I was near the coop when I heard a bunch of screaming and looked to see an extra bird in our run. I just stood there for a moment, dazed, before I realized it was a hawk. It shrieked and flew back up through the opening. Thankfully, it wasn't able to snatch a chicken, but it sure gave me a scare. Unfortunately, I'm like you, I don't always take the rooster seriously. However, I always go outside when our dogs start to bark, because that's usually a reliable sign something's out there. We've scared away coyotes, cats, raccoons and the neighbor's big dogs that way. Sorry about your hen.
Quote:A tough lesson indeed. Roosters are walking radar screens, they are always watching the sky, trees etc... I pay attention to the sounds in the woods, listening for squirrels barking...that usually indicates a predator on the ground. Squirrels normally wont bark if a hawk is close by, they instinctively know they might become the next meal. Squawking blue jays and mockingbirds are a good indicator that a hawk or owl is nearby. Watch your rooster alert and perk up when that happens. I've actually seen blue jays squawk at snakes, obviously near a bird nest. Roosters will squawk at cats too, hens tend to cluck at them. I watch my birds when they look up in the sky, I look up too. It's usually a vulture or a plane....when they scatter, I know it's a hawk. There are other things I watch for, just cant think of them now. Good luck.
Oh so sorry your son had to see that, and for the loss of your hen. We had to learn the hard way too, and it sucks but all we can do is do our best to not make the same mistakes.
A harsh lesson, but it's the chance we take when we free range. If not a resident the hawk will remain in the area for at least several days hoping for a repeat performance. Be cautious if you free range your birds and good luck.
That's a good lesson for you and your boy. Now both of you will know never to ignore the sounds of distress. Like Dawg says, even though I'm losing my hearing a bit, I hear just about everything that goes on outside now. My biggest warning system is crows. They alert to just about everything that ain't good. They evern took me a to a copperhead.
It is unfortunate we can not dispatch hawks.They make chicken keeping so difficult at times.Sorry for your loss.Atleast the roo was able to herd the others away.
It is most amazing to me to see our RIR come into his role. For the first time I saw him do a warning sound, not really a big warning, but a strange noise. I was out with the flock and looked up to see a bird (not a predator) flying overheard. He was staring at the bird. It was kind of cute....like he was practicing or something. I've never really seen that up close nature doing it's thing. None of the girls ran so it must not have been that kind of call. But it was neat to see.
