Crow stealing eggs!

[HereDucky]

I hate those little creatures. The last crow visit was June 2013. This is what it looked like. After my turkeys chased it off, it hasn't returned. We'll see if any come back again this year.

Someone posted this PBS link about crows. I didn't realize how smart they are.
http://video.pbs.org/video/1621910826/

 

[HereDucky]

Crows are SCARY smart, it's true. I wish I had some turkeys to scare them away!

 

[DonMilne]

Hi. I joined up to thank people for this discussion, and offer a few of my own experiences. It's nice to know that this was a well known issue!

I was finding broken eggs in the coop and production besides was way down. I assumed one of my girls was the culprit but couldn't see any of the classic signs that I remember from childhood: yolk on beak, same chook repeatedly sneaking back into coop etc. Then I happened to look out and see a carrion crow wander quite casually up the ramp and in through the pop hole. I would never have imagined that it would go indoors to steal eggs! Such a bold creature, smart too, you have to admire it.

I was already having problems with the same crow because I'd seen it stealing the chickens feed. How can one crow eat as much as 5 girls combined? - and then want my eggs too?

It so happens that I have a 13x13ft pen around my coop. When I first started keeping chooks they were totally free range. But, after losing one to a early morning dog walker I decided it was better to build the pen and keep them there 'til about mid day. Beside keeping them safe it also encourages them to eat the proper layers meal (boring, but good for them!) , and lay in the proper nest boxes.

Well, it turned out to be relatively easy to build a "tent" of bird netting attached to the top of the pen. With the pen gate closed as it is until midday, the crow simply can't get in - and of course I collect the eggs when I let the girls out. It's only been a couple of days, but egg production has suddenly shot back up, and feed consumption way down, so it's looking good! Quite cheap too.

This isn't the first time I've had a problem with a carrion crow, and I know from experience that bagging it with an air rifle is easier said than done. They're very smart, and with the female acting as lookout it's hard to surprise them, which is the only way you'll get close enough for a shot.

p.s. I'm in the UK. Carrion crows here are larger, smarter than other crows, and form bonded pairs (not flocks). They are very territorial.

 

[bevy21]

I Have a problem with crows stealing my eggs so I have been emptying the eggs and filling with pepper and curry powder ,mixed with a little water.When the crow picks the egg up the liquid runs down its neck.But I am still having problems so I am debating putting ratsack in the eggs

 

[StaceC]

I've just discovered crows stealing my eggs too

I've blown eggs and filled them with hot sauce and mustard. I literally just saw one fly off with the loaded egg.
I hope it likes its surprise!!

 

[bevy21]

I fill my eggs with ratsack and pepper.If that does'nt surprise them nothing will

 

[Wee Les]

My plan is to capture a few of the problem crows and tether them to the top of the chicken run for a few hours in the hope that they will squawk their heads off warning others of the danger.

I don't really want to harm them but I cant keep loosing eggs every day, its bad enough that they stand alongside the hens at the feeding trough and scoff all the food. I plan to fit a remote latch to close the door once the crows go into the run and catch them in a net. If Crows are as smart as their supposed to be then a few weeks of terrified captives should spread the word that my garden is a No-Go area.

 

[Wee Les]

Just a quick update!

I noted that someone recommended a radio or similar with the idea that the human voices keep the crows away so I tried it. It 1/2 works.

I left my I-pad in the coop playing an audiobook which lasts about 17 hours. It played all day yesterday and I had eggs this morning. Its playing again today but its not keeping the crows totally away. they are still visiting the food trough but seem very nervous and only stay for a few seconds to grab a quick mouthful, or should I say beakful, before flying back to the surrounding trees.

I still plan to go ahead with my capture and release idea and have completed a totally enclosed run with a fall-down flap to trap them.

I will post a few photos in the next few days but at the moment we have typical Northern Ireland Summer weather, rain, and I'm already soaked to the skin building the run. My wife says I should have more common sense at my age.

 

[Wee Les]

Went up the garden this morning to talk with my girls, (surly I'm not the only one who talks to their chickens). Anyhow, there was a crow in the new pen that I just completed yesterday and in its panic to get away it completely forgot about the 20" square flap that the chickens use to enter and leave the pen. Quick as I could I dropped the flap so it couldn't escape and went inside to capture it. Quite a scramble but I managed to grab it by the tail feathers and took it outside to tie a piece of string to its leg and keep it captive for a few hours.

The noise was deafening, it screeched and squawked so much that even my girls became alarmed and a wild Pheasant in an adjoining field also sounded alarm.

That's when it did something unexpected..! It dropped all its tail feathers the way a small lizard might do and took off like an out-of-control rocket.

However I've kept watch all day from a discrete distance, and guess what, not a single crow anywhere in the garden. I even put out some fresh feed and no interest at all. It will be curious to see how long it lasts.

 

[starryhen]

Ha ha ha. That's a good one, catching the crow and tying it up! I just assumed it was ok to kill crows. They are just determined to ruin agriculture, aren't they? Anyway, I took the 22, single shot, and casually sent a round in their direction. 3 hours later they were back over the free range chicken's nest. I casually took another shot as the crow or whatever took off in a zig zag pattern. Either it is dodging or the first bullet hit a wing or something. Here's the funny thing, though. There were odd eggs in the nest! Large and rough and a pale color. Not classic crow eggs but these could be something similar like a raven. I ran out the camera battery so I can't take photos yet. In any event I put rotten eggs in that nest to replace the good ones the wild birds were after. I like the idea of putting out a scare crow made out of black plastic. I might even buy one of those rubber chickens and put the black plastic over it with the yellow feet sticking out so it's lifelike.