Did the crows just save my chicks???

[DDRanch]

Yes, the crows did protect your chicks., inadvertently. They are the best babysitters in the world for chasing off hawks. I have an annual nest of ravens (large crows) quite close to my chicken coop for 3 years now that I welcome every spring. Yes, hawks are attracted to your babies and will attack even with you present. A hawk attack can happen very quickly and you may be powerless to intervene in time. Do remember that crows are also predators and will attack and kill young chicks. I have seen the crows and ravens take baby wild turkeys.

 

[luvmychixandducks]

Thank the crows for their early warnings--- but don't trust them with your babies. I have a neighbor who had a nest of starlings in the dryer exhaust on the side of their house, and as the babies exited for their introduction to the great outdoors the crows would grab them by their beaks and fly away with the dangling babies, despite the best effortts of the parents. I'm no starling lover, but if a crow would fly away with a fledgling it would do the same to a chick.

 

[sydney13]

i love the crows because when ever their is a hawk the crows start to squawk and i hear them and run out to see. i only let my hens free range when im home but i have never lost one to a hawk and i think its partly due to the crows making noise.

 

[Emzyyy]

My chickens were out one day & I was standing not 10 feet away from them and a hawk came down and swooped a hen up. I chased it and he dropped her. She ended up being fine thankfully.

 

[Alabama ee]

I have seen the Crows chase a Hawk away . A pair will gang up on a Hawk. Then, the Mocking Birds chase the Crows. It is a lttle funny...lol

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

Quote:
So will grackles

 

[greenfingers]

We in Alaska have eagles to watch out for, but also the ravens are terrible (like a crow, only larger). I had a raven kill 12 chicks that were in their pen, but did not have netting over it. I came home to 12 little headless bodies all around in a small circle in one part of the pen. The chicks were about 10 weeks old. I didn't know it was a raven at first, but we did see one hanging around the next day (I had the netting up by then). Later I talked to one of my friends who said that's what ravens do, they just eat the head and a part of the neck. She had ravens pull her silkies out of their coop and killed 8 of them in 2 hours while she was gone one day. So needless to say, I have no fondness for ravens now!

 

[pkw]

I have had crows kill every duckling I ever had so if they will kill ducklings they will definitely kill a chick