Are bantams safer from Eagles than full size chickens?

[navajas]

Hey folks,

We've got a small (now very small) flock of free range chickens living with us on five acres of mostly extensively wooded land. I thought the amount of tree and shrub cover would be enough protection, but after starting with 10, we're quickly down to five. Lost two to an owl, and the other three, I assume to eagles: One rooster and a blue disappeared without a trace, and one of our pearls got eaten last week... with lots of trace.

Anyway, trying to figure out what to do. Give up? (Bummer because I spent a lot of effort building the coop and my Mom loves the birds.) Just figure we lose 10 chickens a year and keep cycling through them? Try a guard goose next time?

Then I thought, what about bantams? There are a lot of chickens, including two small family commercial endeavors, within about 5-20 seconds flight time for our resident Balds. Are bantams worth an eagle's trouble? Also, since they're (I assume) much faster and more flighty, are they harder, more skittish, less desirable targets?

Thoughts?

Thanks!

 

[nuthatched]

Won't make a difference, sadly

 

[SilverBirds]

Free ranging comes with the risk of losses. In my experience, bantams are more likely to get taken by predators than standard size breeds. I recently moved, but my property was mostly woods with a few fields, populated with many wild animals that like to eat chickens: raccoons, opossums, foxes, bobcats, coyotes, feral cats and stray dogs, snakes, owls, hawks, and eagles. In the 5 years of living there I only lost 3 standard sized birds to predators and 12+ bantams (I had an even amount or more standards than bantams in my flock ratio). Most of the attacks where by aerial predators, including the bald bagles that nested in the pond across the street. If I noticed an increase of predators or had an attack everyone was locked up for a few days before getting let out again.

Getting a guard goose, dog, rooster, or any other protection animal is not going to guarantee your chickens safety. Usually a "guard" animal will just sound an alarm before running away itself, or a larger animal may deter certain predators. Very rarely do you get an animal that rushes into battle, and when you do, they don't usually have very long lifespans. If you don't want to lose anymore birds, you'll need a predator proof coop and run and only let them free range under supervision.

 

[mcdze]

haha, ultimately not really .. however they tend to be super fast and ive watched them dodge hawks literally outrunning them faster than the hawks can maneuver .. its when they get blindsided ..nothing usually escapes that kind of hit ..

 

[SwampPrincessChick]

It is true that bantams have a much better ability than large fowl to escape predators, since they can fly better and are a lot faster. They can also maneuver in flight at an unbelievable rate . . . I have seen my bantams turn quickly and with ease during flight. The only exceptions are Cochin Bantams, Silkie Bantams, and other bantam brewds that are heavy or have feathers that make it hard for flight. However, they could certainly not outpower an eagle and can be easily killed by one.

Do NOT get a guard goose, whatever you do. Keeping one goose by itself will make it depressed and lonely, as any social species will be when separated from its own kind. Waterfowl and landfowl should not be mixed together anyway. If a male waterfowl mates with a female landfowl, he will tear her insides apart and she will bleed to death or have a serious injury. That means keeping a male goose for protection is not good at all if you truly care about your chickens. Geese in general are too large and powerful to be kept with chickens, as they can easily kill a chicken, especially a bantam.