Flock Protector

[ReikiStar]

If you have cougars in your area, goats will attract them. Their bleating (the sound they make) is music to a coug's ears according to our states Wildlife agency.

I'd put a really low hot wire (you could put the larger 2" hot tape to give them a larger obstacle) and a dig skirt to keep mink and weasels out. Hardware cloth would keep them out.

 

[Tam'ra of Rainbow Vortex]

As far as day protection, provide shelter for chickens free ranging. Hawks will pick them off unless they have cover. Stories of roosters or dogs fighting off hawks are far fewer than reports of hawks eating chickens. My dog (heroic chaser of raccoons and generally protective big dog) couldn't keep the hawk from eating my birds when we lived in a place with open pasture land. Now the chickens' yard has an oak tree canopy with some small bushes for shelter and though we have a pair of hawks living nearby (sometimes circling our house or perching in our trees) we haven't lost anyone to hawks. We also have an early warning system: if the hawks show up, the crows squawk, if the crows show up, the woodpeckers squawk, if the rooster sees a possible threat or hears the woodpeckers or crows he squawks, and if anyone squawks everyone heads for cover. During the day we do fine, but at night they need me to close them in.

I Lock the coop up tight at night. It's the only thing that works for sure. I lost 4 young birds to something small this year because I slacked off door opening and closing. Needless to say that when I lost them, I returned to my protective habbits and lock up every night at dusk now. The dogs keep big things out, but a rat or weasel can slip in unnoticed too easily. Make sure you coop seals well enough to keep rats out and lock up before you go to bed. It's a hassle, but it is worth it.

 

[Game Bird Guy]

Quote:
I have geese and muscovies, but they are getting killed aswell, 1 goose is left from 11. If I got a shamo, aseel or malay rooster wouldn't it kill my other roosters aswell though?

 

[animals1981]

why cant the dog protect from the hawk? ive seen guinea fowl gang up on hawks once they are down also roosters spurring has when they are on the ground nothing works like a big mean dog, livstock guardian anotolian shepherds are the strongest anti predator dogs capable of dispatching just about any predator other then a cougar or wolf


remember a cougar can kill a full grown domestic horse if the horse is in an enclosed area so there is no animal that can stop a cougar other then if a dog bluffs the cougar away by barking or a pack of domestic dogs


cougars are rare tho so scared and shy of pple better to get a donkey then a goat big donkey make great pets and do well with birds


OMG if ur muscovy and geese getting killed u have a predator that is serious this is not a small predator u got a big seriious predator something i know that is bigger than a simple fox id put my life on it i bet it is coyotes, they carry away geese all the time big 20 pound geese. For coyotes i am sorry but only lama, donkey, emu cassale warry, ostrich and aggressive large powerful domestic dogs

if ur into falconry u can get a golden eagle they will kill it lol might also kill u though in the process

can u look for a mean donkey to live with ur birds? they are easy to keep dont get a lama or a mini donkey get a big standard female or a giant donkey the bigger the better make sure it hates canines and trys to kill them


i dont know about them mixing i mixe all my roosters together like i forced them to be friends but they were all gamey by nature and brought up together from chicks they fight scrap but never serious

u know u can put metal spurs on ur roosters if they all get along and dont fight u can put spurs on them to help them defend themselves from predators if they are game roosters

 

[Game Bird Guy]

Quote:
I actually have a hawk and a falcon. They can't hunt on my property as it is too full of foliage. The geese and ducks were killed by a mink. I actually saw the mink kill them. He ran around them until he was in a good position, and then he bit their throat. With the ducks he was actually able to break their necks in the process. He then buthcered them and took the down a ditch to its den in the valley below my house. Some of the geese were killed while on their nests by coons though. There are no coyotes or foxes where I live, only mink, coons and the occasional cougar sawell as your usual assortment of birds of prey. Could a turkey do anything? They live with mink and coons in the wild.

 

[animals1981]

turkey are not as strong as wild canda geese


if mink is ur issue then in the day time a seirous game rooster like a shamoo rooster would be ur best bet ask around for oriental wild fowl

i cant believe u r a falconer ur red tail can kill that mink, if there is any way can fly someones great horned owl or eagle on ur proprty? sucks its not legal.

Game roosters bred for aggression u need to start with chicks though and it will take over a year for them to get strong wild turkey can handle them so can wild large geese and swans

why dont u get a hunting dong that u can take with u during falconry? Pick a medium sized dog that has a history of mink hunting? To be honest i am not into hunting but in ur case u gota protect ur property getting a hunting dog to take with ur on ur falconry trips would be really good it will take out the minks on ur property also

 

[animals1981]

also from now on maybe u can change the type of birds u want for free ranging ? Pick more predator savvy birds from now? DOmestic geese are easy to kill they are slow they mostly made out of fat and bone while the wild egyptian and canadian geese are muscle with strong powerful wings thesebirds are very fast can fly if they have to and fight very good.


ALso pick the game type chicken breed pheonix, shamoo, asil, pheonix, all the game long tailed fowl and summutras.


Silver pheasants, peafowl, wild turkey are all fast and can be aggressive if they have to be if an emergency happens they can fly


like someone said before a good flock of guinea fowl are great they gang up and fight things also they are fast. Ive seen them fght dogs cats and hawks in gangs. They work as a team. Not all birds are the same tho they al lgot their individual personality.

 

[Game Bird Guy]

Theres a small chance I can fly an eagle or an owl over my property. My redtaile dis really easily distracted by the hens, so i don't know how an eagle would do with them. also, ny pheasants go hysterical if they see an owl, so i would have to lock them up. as for adog, i've tried to get one, but with several hundred animals, its hard to convince my parents

 

[animals1981]

what kind of phesants do u have right now ? add silver phesants and reeves they are VERY aggressive to predators so are adult green peafowl but be prepared they are going to attack u also lol

 

[Game Bird Guy]

Quote:
I have silvers actually. the mink, or a coon, took 1 of my 2 hens. also, the cock pheasant gets beat up by my silkie rooster, so hes in a sepereate pen now