drstratton
Enabler
What a terrifying experience! I'm so glad they were all safe and accounted for! I lost my favorite hen Little Madeleine to a hawk the first part of December! We free range our chickens in a very large enclosed pen, with lots of tree's. There is one area that isn't covered and that's where the hawk got her. Since then the hawk has been back, but my roosters alert everyone and the all flee into the safety of the enclosed pen! Do you have very much property. If so maybe you could put in a free range pen where you have tree's and bushes. This is our place! The fence is 6' tall and the run is 110'x48' wide. We lost our other flocks to roaming dogs, so knew we needed to protect these beauties better!The puzzle Bob has put up is a good distraction as I'm sorting out a near-disaster today.
The coop tractor is not unattached yet from the large run, and I had let the chickens free-range, supervised, the last several days, but I'd gotten too casual about it. Of course I had thought, hawks are going to be coming through here soon in their migrations, got to get the tractor unhitched and going soon, but I trusted the chickens to stick close to the house, thinking that was a safe strategy, and they mostly have done that. I noticed how very happy and enthusiastic and just chicken-y they behaved when they were exploring and scratching and moving around naturally. They are encountering a varied environment that challenges and exercises their brains too as they look for good things to eat. They are totally built for free-ranging. Yesterday they all helped me garden, and were spotting worms way before I could even get started seeing one.
But today they were attacked by a hawk. I believe they are all okay. I did a basic check on the two I was most concerned about, Popcorn and Butters, and will check more thoroughly tomorrow. Later this afternoon back in the big run Peanut and Hazel were digging a hole to China and getting into a dustbath, and I didn't want to stress them again with a closer check as at least for now they appeared well enough. Queenie looked good and a quick feel of her sides and breast feathers turned up nothing.
Also tomorrow I'm going to unhitch the coop tractor and start moving it around and keep them in it. I am thinking of building a secure low tractor that I could also move with it to give them more square feet in each spot. They will have new ground every day - leaves and woods floor stuff and grass, and that's got to be better than the run litter they've been looking at all winter. I decided at least for now, I didn't want to lose anyone this way, through a free-range attack, and from my point of view the fun times of free-ranging wasn't worth the terror of today for them and the sadness and guilt for me, at least not for now.
But maybe a chicken's thoughts work differently. Do they just roll with these things? They had no desire to leave the coop for several hours after this incident, about six hours. But late today I think they would gladly have gone out again. Short-term memories at work? Or when I'm around the coop or they see me anywhere they feel safe and want to come out? Or do I have here a bunch of thrill-seekers on my hands?
My neighbors have urged me to free-range the chickens. I have been researching electrified predator fencing for ground predators, and thinking of ways to protect against aerial predators in combination with the coop tractor moving around. With free ranging, I considered that there could still be a loss when outside the coop tractor even with reasonably good protections, and have been weighing how I feel about that possibility. Now I know. The thing is, a chicken that gets to really be a chicken by not being confined is living a great life, but if it is killed or wounded by a predator, was or is that still considered a good life? Who is the judge of this? And what kind of vote am I entitled to? Am I okay with knowing they lived really well and happily up until meeting a violent death, or painful wounding, or having a just-plain terrifying (thrilling?) experience?
What happened, if you care to read more --
I let the chickens out to free-range around the house, and DH was outside too, working nearby, about 70 feet away. I was in and out, and had just noticed that Hazel was in the coop run but didn't see the others. So I had gone in for a few minutes when a hawk attacked four of them in some blackberry bushes right at the base of a tree about 10 feet from the house. I think the brambles being in the way helped, slowing down grabbing someone. Queenie let loose all kinds of desperate calling and screaming and DH looked over to see a lot of flapping and realized it wasn't just a group of chickens flapping there, there was a big hawk on them, and he rushed over to drive the hawk off. The hawk saw him but paused and didn't want to move. DH kept going toward him and it finally flew off. That pause DH reported made me think someone had been in it's talons. But now I think there was still a chicken there - Butters - right in front of it, so close, and the hawk had not wanted to leave.
I flew out the sliding door on the side where the screaming was, and Queenie was right there at the door and hopped up and inside as I went out, and I saw the hawk flying up and circling around, and land briefly in a tree near the road. It was big but I was pretty sure it wasn't carrying anything. One Buckeye was coming from the brambles straight toward me and went right under the little deck that that door opens on to and I was standing on. I looked around and didn't see anybody else, then found Peanut under the nearby Rhododendron bush. I called her and she came towards me all twittering, and I led her to the other Buckeye - turned out to be Butters - under the deck space, then got Queenie and showed her the others and got her under there too. Then we went looking for the fourth; Hazel had retreated to the bump-out nook of the coop run and was scared but okay, but the fourth Buckeye was nowhere to be found.
Checked on everyone under the deck again and the one Buckeye was crouched in a most inaccessible corner of wood, she appeared to be sitting and not moving much, with Peanut standing but wedged right next to her, looking around but sort of cowering, and Queenie standing in front of them, all neck up and wary, seemingly guarding them both.
We looked around and called and called, and I checked under the house crawl spaces, then we did a wide circle around in front, checking every fallen tree and nook and hiding place. It didn't make sense that a hawk could carry anyone, and we both thought it didn't have anything when it flew up. I made a big circle around the house, checking on Hazel again as now I didn't see her either - but she had moved to the coop itself and was sitting down on the roosting bars, a very unusual daytime place for her but a safe one. She looked wary but okay. She later moved into the nestbox to lay her egg.
After a long search I was very sad and worried but concerned for the remaining group, so I got the three hens out from under the small deck with some mealworm enticement. They were really reluctant to leave there, but I led them along the house's front, which was reassuring to be next to, and then across the driveway and when they saw we were going to the coop they broke into a run toward it. Nobody was limping or bleeding in any obvious way. Saw it was Butters with them, so it was Popcorn who was missing - spunky Popcorn! We circled and searched again, but this time also went around to the very back end of the house and the garage barn.
It took half an hour to find her. At least it felt like ages. She had got herself in under a corner of our big back porch and side decking. Totally hidden, and up on the slope of the ground, way under the decking. I was calling and suddenly thought I heard a tiny, faint pip. Called again, and there it was again, a little louder bok. Then I saw a shadow move through the light coming through the deck boards. She must have run straight back from the attack toward DH, but along and under the overhanging side of the house, a good fifty feet, to then hang a sharp right and run another twenty feet to the most dark and far-away corner under there.
She came partly out and I gave her some mealworms while I cried. Then she scooted back in. It took some convincing to get her to come out. Then I picked her up, which I know she isn't crazy about, but I wasn't sure she would go with us back to the front and the coop. But she didn't want to be held, and putting her down again she did follow us back, my DH calling and encouraging her too. When she got to the barn and kitchen doors that was familiar territory, and she acted comfortable again, running to the coop when she saw the others there.
They all seem fine, so far, and are tucked in tonight.
This day was pretty stressful.
Just to the left of my hubs is the auto door into their enclosed pen!
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