Anyone have Sharp-shinned hawks get chickens?

[Zenbirder]

I am having a devil of a time chasing away a sharp-shinned hawk from my chickens. It sits right above them, they squawk (sounds just like they are yelling "Hawk") and luckily my dog really runs hawks away. But it just doesn't go very far!!!!

This hawk is smaller than a chicken, but still thinks chicken is on the menu. Has anyone actually had a hawk this small get a grown chicken? It normally eats small birds and up to the size of a dove. I have the chickens in the run now because I can't face another disaster today.

 

[LynnGrigg]

We have a mating pair of Coopers(about the same size as Sharp Shin) in the woods right next to the lot. They've been there for years and haven't ever taken a chicken or even a puppy. We do also have a great horned owl. It wouldn't surprise me if that bird or a redtail made off with a chicken.
Although they are not native to our area, we had a goshawk(huge)in 1998 that was caught in the act of taking a chicken carcass off with it. I put the chickens in a more secure place after that. I suggest you get some netting over the run. Good luck with your flock!

 

[Zenbirder]

Thanks Lynn,
the chickens normally free range, so hiding under a thorny bush for awhile is normal to their day. The run is covered with netting and protected from hawks. We have been so hot though I hesitate to keep them in the run for the afternoon as it is much cooler under the big oak trees. I would really like to relax about the sharpie but he is so determined!

 

[chicknmania]

We had a Sharp-Shinned hawk get one of our roosters the very first week we had chickens. He didn't take the whole bird...just ripped his head off and left the body. It was gross, and we were horrified, of course. The hawk hung around after that, and has on a few other occasions. We find that if we lock the chickens up for a few days, the hawk will go away. They are very shy and afraid of people. You can also try flares called "bird bombs" (they don't hurt the bird) or firing a few bottle rockets in the air in his general vicinity (not at him). Our roos are very good at spotting hawks and making the flock take cover...we have all kinds of hawks here but the ones most interested in chickens, for some reason, are the sharp-shinned hawks. I have read they, in particular, like to eat birds and poultry. Our pair of Red-Tailed hawks living in our woods usually couldn't care less about our birds.

 

[lotsofeggs]

we have free range chickens in woods. sharp-shinned hawk came a few times today and killed 2 of my brown egg layers. the hawk try to catch my guinea fowl, the female try to hide the male makes warnings, and try to get me, I see lots of guinea feathers on the ground in a few spots, but my guinea fowl couple managed to survive. when i arrive, the hawk is eating one of my brown egg layers, poor girl guts all out. reminds me one of my little silkie chick i found dead one month back, it's very similar. I got a maremma dogs for ground preditors, what should I get for hawks? goose?