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Fluffy family said:
Hello and welcome to byc :welcome it’s sad the hawk died. I know they’re mean to chickens but they’re still beautiful birds
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Indeed! A beauty - and a rarity here by now as well. Of course I hate it killing my birds - yet it is my duty to protect. BTW By now, when roosters are already grown up, a hawk (an another one) have visited my birds at least twice. One time, I I myself managed to intervene and it got nothing but some feathers without even harming any chicks. I only saw it to escape in hurry.
The other time, most likely roosters intervened - because I did not saw the hawk, only what it had done. Killed a white naked-necked Silkie - yet left it laying on the ground without taken even a mouthful. The Silkie laid on ground, eyes closed - and the blood dripping from it's beak. Some loose feathers also were around.
For the next year, I already ordered hatching eggs for turkeys - no hawk would dare to attack if a big male turkey is around, I guess. :D
 
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Hello Harri, and welcome to BYC! :frow Glad you joined.

The Silkies will never be good a free ranging. You might need to pen them in a covered run to do your breeding project. Maybe you can breed some predator awareness into them but the floofy feathers on their heads inhibit good sight so...

My flock has had many hawks strikes here but I've only lost one bird and have had no injuries to any others. I myself have been witness to 4 hawk strikes and I'm certainly not out with the flock constantly so there must be many more that I've not been around to see. Lots of eyes to the sky and lots of good cover are key. I still feel bad for the hawk and too hope it wasn't carrying any disease communicable to your flock. We've had raptors come up positive in this country for HPAI.
 
DobieLover said:
Hello Harri, and welcome to BYC! :frow Glad you joined.

The Silkies will never be good a free ranging. You might need to pen them in a covered run to do your breeding project. Maybe you can breed some predator awareness into them but the floofy feathers on their heads inhibit good sight so...

My flock has had many hawks strikes here but I've only lost one bird and have had no injuries to any others. I myself have been witness to 4 hawk strikes and I'm certainly not out with the flock constantly so there must be many more that I've not been around to see. Lots of eyes to the sky and lots of good cover are key. I still feel bad for the hawk and too hope it wasn't carrying any disease communicable to your flock. We've had raptors come up positive in this country for HPAI.
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For my breeding project, a covered pen for the Silkies is a must be indeed, I understand that. But in general, I love to have a big mixed flock (chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys...) more or less openly roaming. To get eggs for incubation - well, it is an another story. For that, I'll keep the breeds separated in smaller pens.
 
DobieLover said:
Hello Harri, and welcome to BYC! :frow Glad you joined.

The Silkies will never be good a free ranging. You might need to pen them in a covered run to do your breeding project. Maybe you can breed some predator awareness into them but the floofy feathers on their heads inhibit good sight so...

My flock has had many hawks strikes here but I've only lost one bird and have had no injuries to any others. I myself have been witness to 4 hawk strikes and I'm certainly not out with the flock constantly so there must be many more that I've not been around to see. Lots of eyes to the sky and lots of good cover are key. I still feel bad for the hawk and too hope it wasn't carrying any disease communicable to your flock. We've had raptors come up positive in this country for HPAI.
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I caught that hawk a couple of months ago - and no signs of any illness among my birds so far. I think I was very lucky in many ways! :D
 

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