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Chicken flock or recovering after eagle attack

Moragh Eilish

Hatching
Apr 29, 2020
2
0
1
Hello everyone,
I’m hoping to get some advice from you all, so here’s my situation...
My chickens won’t leave their pen without me being present after an eagle came down and tried to snatch one of my hens three weeks ago. The chicken is fine but had some mild injuries, plus had a big chunk of her feathers ripped out. They have also stopped laying. I have tried lots of different tactics. I played soft music during the day, went and spent time with them, put fake eggs in their baskets, gave them lots of treats...
The eagle attack was the day after we got them, so new environment + predator invasion... maybe it was a bit too much to handle?
I am wondering if I need to move their pen into a forest area and give them a new environment. We put a net over them, so they are safe, but they don’t seem to think so. They don’t seem to have any other issues. They’re eating and drinking still (at least while I’m around), but they just spend all their time huddled together in the coop.
 
I am afraid our flock may do the same. My beautiful lavender Orrington was killed Thursday by a bald eagle. What is most I nestling is I don't know what happened. Our free range area is very small and I really didn't think there was enough room for a bird of prey to dive down and get airborne again. She was a big hen so maybe the eagle couldn't carry her and simply landed in the coop and proceeded to attack her. The only fortunate thing is that I heard the girls and ran out and scared the eagle off before it could eat her, but the talon had punctured her heart and she died within minutes. Our girls will not come out of their fenced and covered run now...we will only allow this now if we are with them at all times. Hopefully they will calm down over time, but I guess fear is their friend right now 😪
 

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