I walked into our home office a little while ago and heard lead roo raising a fuss like he does when a hen will sound a distress call. I looked out the window and he was looking up and I could hear the crows calling. There was a crow sitting on a wire above where the rooster was so I just thought "Silly Roo, that's your friend". He was still sounding the alarm when I left the room ao I thought I'd just go out there and encourage the crow to find another roost.
When I turned the corner of the house and looked up at the crow, there... Not three feet from the crow, on the electrical pole, sat a large red-tailed hawk. It took off as I walked over there, followed by about six crows in hot pursuit (thanks guys!). I started calling chickens and almost all of them were hiding in the brush under where the hawk had roosted. The rest were already in the run.
I don't know for sure, but the hawk probably swooped on them while they were ranging in the pasture and they took cover in their favorite brush spot that they love to dust bathe in. I got them all back into the covered run and closed them in for the day, three of them (understandably) needed more convincing to leave the cover of the brush
. They seemed glad enough after I got them all in there, and that's a first! They usually raise heck if I close them up during the day. Odd thing is that I had seen a hawk dead on the road very close to our house two days ago and thought to myself that it would be one less to worry about.
Don't really know if this is the flock's first encounter but glad they came through it unscathed.
When I turned the corner of the house and looked up at the crow, there... Not three feet from the crow, on the electrical pole, sat a large red-tailed hawk. It took off as I walked over there, followed by about six crows in hot pursuit (thanks guys!). I started calling chickens and almost all of them were hiding in the brush under where the hawk had roosted. The rest were already in the run.
I don't know for sure, but the hawk probably swooped on them while they were ranging in the pasture and they took cover in their favorite brush spot that they love to dust bathe in. I got them all back into the covered run and closed them in for the day, three of them (understandably) needed more convincing to leave the cover of the brush
Don't really know if this is the flock's first encounter but glad they came through it unscathed.