Cooper's Hawk - will it eat a full grown chicken?

[deerman]

Quote:
Cooper main diet are birds, mostly small one, but chickens too..... very few mammals..

http://www.bioone.org/doi/abs/10.1650/7219?prevSearch=&cookieSet=1&journalCode=cond

 

[Malpower]

The rather large Cooper's hawk that killed my 6 month old hen earlier last year appeared to have chased her down, all over the yard, under trees and bushes, and back under the redwood trees where he caught up with her -- there were piles of feathers found under bushes here and there where she most likely tried to hide -- I appeared on the scene as the hawk was eating her there on the ground, her head was already gone. She wasn't full grown but she wasn't particularly petite either. It was shocking, it was awful! I let the hens free range when I'm around to keep an eye to the sky, but as the hawks start coming back this month, the girls will spend much more time closed in the enclosure with the netting roof over it. I gather other hawks like to swoop down and can be deterred a bit but it looks like the Cooper's aren't stopped by much.

 

[cnj-tx50]

Just walked out the door to gather eggs and saw a pile of feathers in the yard and was trying to figure it out when the hawk flew off. Every one else was under the coop except the roo and he was very upset . I could not believe it. My first loss. I am so sad.

 

[Opa]

Coopers hawks are definitely considered to be chicken hawks.

 

[Malpower]

Quote:
Yeah, I know how you feel, I'm still sad a year later about my first that was killed -- so sorry about yours!

 

[tinamanley]

Hawks will definitely kill full-grown chickens. We have a Cooper's Hawk that has killed 6 of our Golden Comet hens. He dives in and breaks their necks, dragging them into the bushes to come back and finish later. We've tried everything I can think of - fireworks, keeping the hens shut up until noon, lots of activity in the area. My husband has shot a shotgun in the air to try and scare the hawk. Hawks are protected so shooting at him is out. Nothing works. I'm not sure what to do next. I want my chickens to be free-range but right now they are so scared they just run from cover to cover and still the hawk manages to get them.

Tina (in rural South Carolina, USA)

 

[axtin125]

you have to shot him with a less loud gun cause thats the only way, i had an Americana die friday due to a red tailed hawk and im gonna shot next time i see it.

 

[crazy_4_chickens]

We have red tailed hawks here and the one will stop at nothing to get to me hens so i added flight netting to a large pen. That way my birds are safe

but have lots of area to run around in the grass!! So far it has worked good! i hope it keeps working

 

[Opa]

I understand how frustrating it can be to lose birds but if you are seriously planning on shooting a hawk (protected by federal law) posting it on an open forum is not very wise.

 

[tinamanley]

Quote:
Just to go on record as saying = That wasn't me!! We would never plan on shooting a hawk and posting about it in an open forum. My husband is not that good a shot, anyway. He tried to shoot at a squirrel robbing our bird feeder and totally destroyed the bird feeder. He might have scared the squirrel, but I doubt it.

New Egg (tinamanley)