Free Ranging Risks and Rewards

[fluffycrow]

Ah ok. When the hawk landed on their tractor, they all freaked out and clumped together in one corner. It's not a huge tractor so they don't really have anywhere to go. They were noticeably scared and seemed to want to get out of the tractor.

That's good. Does the tractor have anything they could realistically hide under? Their reaction tells me no, but I need to make sure. Try to observe as much as possible. My best helpers are doves. Young birds do not know what doves are, so they should hypothetically run for the trees. Doves are also pretty vocal, which again makes your life easier

 

[tori729]

That's good. Does the tractor have anything they could realistically hide under? Their reaction tells me no, but I need to make sure. Try to observe as much as possible. My best helpers are doves. Young birds do not know what doves are, so they should hypothetically run for the trees. Doves are also pretty vocal, which again makes your life easier

Yeah, it really doesn't. After that I did put a tarp overtop of it to keep them covered.
They are pretty alert to what's going on around them. Funny story: my notification on my phone is a seagull. One day while I was outside watching them, it went off. They all stopped what they were doing, put their heads up and froze for a good 5 seconds, then went back to what they were doing. It was pretty funny! I love watching them, they are so fascinating!

 

[fluffycrow]

Yeah, it really doesn't. After that I did put a tarp overtop of it to keep them covered.
They are pretty alert to what's going on around them. Funny story: my notification on my phone is a seagull. One day while I was outside watching them, it went off. They all stopped what they were doing, put their heads up and froze for a good 5 seconds, then went back to what they were doing. It was pretty funny! I love watching them, they are so fascinating!

OK. The the reaction to the gull was good. Sounds promising, IMO

 

[SueT]

I stopped letting mine free range 3 yrs ago because of hawks, and I’ve been seeing the hawks every day since. In one instance, the rooster attacked a hawk that was after a hen, and probably would have been killed himself if I hadn’t run outside. In the other, a hawk killed a hen and was eating it in front of the coop where all the others had retreated. No one even asked to go out after that, though lately, there’s one old hen who slips out now and then when the gate is left askew. I don’t worry about her too much, she’s kind of expendable at this point. Maybe she’s my canary in the coal mine. So far, she’s survived.

Update to the above. Yesterday, the old hen (Speck) slipped out again when I opened the gate to toss in some scratch feed and gather eggs. She is lowest in pecking order, so can’t enjoy the treat w the others. Just getting away from them is a relief to her. It’s really hard to corral her, so I just let her be. Before bedtime I was sitting in my chair by the run, and one of the hens inside the run, growled, then froze. Speck who was nearby also froze. Suddenly a hawk or ? flew in front of the trees about 20‘ away. Little songbirds burst out of the trees in fright. Speck asked to be let in the run, and hurried in. She’s probably lucky to be alive. I don’t know what bird of prey it was. I have not heard a chicken growl like that before.

 

[tori729]

Updating this: Not too long after this post, I gave in and decided to let them range more. I stayed out with them at first and they would often go under our cypress tree and rest/dust bathe. Now they get to range all of the time when we're home, which is most of the time. I've heard hawk calls sometimes and I've seen the birds sound a warning call and they all run for cover. When the birds are all resting under the tree, I have a black maran that sits by herself as a lookout, I assume she's the dominant hen and she's my favorite.
I saw them run after a squirrel once so they aren't scared of everything. We also let our cat in the run as a test and one hen made a warning call and another (I think it was my maran) started going after her. (we took her away after that so no one would get hurt lol) I think they are going to be a feisty bunch!

 

[LaFleche]

Updating this: Not too long after this post, I gave in and decided to let them range more. I stayed out with them at first and they would often go under our cypress tree and rest/dust bathe. Now they get to range all of the time when we're home, which is most of the time. I've heard hawk calls sometimes and I've seen the birds sound a warning call and they all run for cover. When the birds are all resting under the tree, I have a black maran that sits by herself as a lookout, I assume she's the dominant hen and she's my favorite.
I saw them run after a squirrel once so they aren't scared of everything. We also let our cat in the run as a test and one hen made a warning call and another (I think it was my maran) started going after her. (we took her away after that so no one would get hurt lol) I think they are going to be a feisty bunch!

Great update, thank you.

 

[Debnsync]

I currently have eight hens that are 8-9 weeks old. I don't have a run made for them yet so they are in a small tractor outside that I rotate every day and a large dog cage in my garage at night. They seem to really want to free range but one day I let them out for a bit and shortly after I returned them to their tractor, a full sized red tailed hawk landed right on top! I think he was migrating b/c while we definitely have the smaller red shouldered hawks around here, we don't usually see anything bigger. This has pretty much deterred me from having them range. I've let them out before when I'm outside but we have so many mosquitos that it's not comfortable to stay outside for any length of time so I just can't stay out with them for too long.
We have named them all; they are pets. I wouldn't want to/couldn't afford to lose them at this point. We plan to have a 200 sq ft run for them with bird netting over the top but it's already mostly weeds/cleared area so not much in the way of foraging for them. We don't have a dog, we can't have a rooster. We do have some RIRs which are supposed to be good for sounding alarms/being alert. We have a lot of tree cover but do have a large clear area in the center of the yard. We have a six foot fence all around.
I could put up disco balls/shiny deterrents but really don't know what my risk is and I'm trying to figure out how to keep them happy while I wait for the run to be built (having someone else do it for us). TIA!

Hi, S. C. neighbor, check out the Audubon website, article “Red-tailed Hawk”, lists all native hawks as y’all have the exact same hawk species as we do in the Piedmont of N. C., year round, including Red-tails and Red shouldered hawks. They are often difficult to be seen and are very able to silently drop down on their prey, aka our beloved chickens. Personally I would simply hold off free-ranging your girls as others here recommend, for all the same reasons. Perhaps while you are having the predator-proof chicken house and/or run built you can limit the free-ranging to when you can walk around with your girls and maintain peace of mind while giving yourself the time to continue researching.
Now we only let our sweet little flock out according to when one of us can be present and stay with them the whole time outside ‘til sunset when they will walk into the run and coop. I have wanted chickens forever and now that we live on our farm full time , like you, I never imagined not free-ranging the little RIR flock that we finally raised newly hatched chicks. Their good-size, predator-proofed hen house and outdoor run was ready in the first year, yet we wanted them to be able to free-range. After-all, I thought, they would be safe as long as we could check in on them since they stay close to the house, near shrubs, trees and gardens until tragically we lost a hen within minutes after I had just been hanging and taking photos with them. We found her body, apparently taken then killed and eaten there by a hawk as they usually cannot lift their heavy weight, just a few yards behind the row of dense evergreen trees and hollies along the property line. I’m always with the flock unless someone else is home to take over whenever they free-range.
What is the most horrifying part was that despite my presence the hawks didn’t stop attacking- I witnessed the most alarming, closeup hawk attacks. Two Red-tailed hawks quietly dive-bombed from overhead, straight down through the limbs of a huge pecan tree til they suddenly reversed when they apparently realized I was there with the girls, together, walking around near their run. Then more recently was the worst moment when I had just stepped in the kitchen door for one minute to grab something and upon hearing/seeing panicked chickens flying around the patio, I ran out to find myself looking into the intense, wild eyes of a huge Red-tailed hawk, three feet away, on top of my sweetest and biggest hen…. no options but to leave her and fly away when he saw my stare down while yelling “No! Go!!” No harm, but a mere second later my girl would have been dead. Needless to say the flock gathered and remained hidden under the shrubs by the house and didn’t come out until sunset, tending to “Girlie”, barely bleeding from a claw-scratch. It obviously traumatized the roosters and chicks for days and still today main rooster Cash along with one-eyed Johnny hover around the house rarely taking his eye off the girlies and Cash knows what it means when I say, “ Get your girlies!”
I’m glad that you are also here to write in questions and read as this is where I’ve learned everything from the only and best people and website, for real. Best to you!

 

[Debnsync]

Updating this: Not too long after this post, I gave in and decided to let them range more. I stayed out with them at first and they would often go under our cypress tree and rest/dust bathe. Now they get to range all of the time when we're home, which is most of the time. I've heard hawk calls sometimes and I've seen the birds sound a warning call and they all run for cover. When the birds are all resting under the tree, I have a black maran that sits by herself as a lookout, I assume she's the dominant hen and she's my favorite.
I saw them run after a squirrel once so they aren't scared of everything. We also let our cat in the run as a test and one hen made a warning call and another (I think it was my maran) started going after her. (we took her away after that so no one would get hurt lol) I think they are going to be a feisty bunch!

Hi, thanks for the great update, I had already written and posted a “short-story”, lol, as we have had a plethora of sightings this year, as well as GH Owls, Barred Owls and Barn Owls that we only hear around sunset and during the midnight hours, if I happen to be outside star gazing. The hawk stories are creepy but real.
Btw was going to mention that I thankfully love to be outside and can occupy myself alot when babysitting the flock as I love gardening and have been working slowly on adding to pollinators gardens and herbs in raised beds, ha lol the chix have taken over those as they make great dirt baths!
Best of everything. Hope the mosquitos die back, it’s hellacious especially on the N. C. coast.

 

[Debnsync]

Now that the hawk knows they are there it will check back if it isn't migrating. I personally wouldn't put them out without a cover.

I would keep them in the tractor for safety sake. Chickens will always prefer free ranging. Hopefully your run gets finished soon. Tossing some scratch or pulled weeds into the tractor will give them something to scratch around in.

Bird netting isn't always reliable. Birds can go through it if it rips easily. So investing in some better quality netting is always a good idea.

For run enrichment we do deep litter. Adding grass clippings, pulled weeds, old mulch, hay, some food scraps, fall leaves, and whatever organic matter we have about. It takes a bit to get it going.

Hi like your advice and sounds true, love being able to add things into their run, too, dry grass clippings, dry leaves and pray for no rain at least for a part of the week! Question for you though: what sort of protective safe net-like cover would be strong enough to keep adult hawks out if they divebomb? Would it be supported by wooden posts that shape the space? The arched run we built really works well, long row of cattle panels that are tall enough for 6’5” son, ha, and completely critters proof with lining of hardware cloth, though if we add on to it for just extra space and fun for the little flock, the way would be to connect to the original, another tunnel perpendicular at the end, etc. Thanks! p. s. a bff horticulture/landscaping gal had suggested adding netting like y’all discussed, but like me wasn’t sure since we were new to this, not sure what that would look like and which is strong and safe enough? Hawk-proof. Unless we were going to build a new building like a run with roofing, etc.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Hi like your advice and sounds true, love being able to add things into their run, too, dry grass clippings, dry leaves and pray for no rain at least for a part of the week! Question for you though: what sort of protective safe net-like cover would be strong enough to keep adult hawks out if they divebomb? Would it be supported by wooden posts that shape the space? The arched run we built really works well, long row of cattle panels that are tall enough for 6’5” son, ha, and completely critters proof with lining of hardware cloth, though if we add on to it for just extra space and fun for the little flock, the way would be to connect to the original, another tunnel perpendicular at the end, etc. Thanks! p. s. a bff horticulture/landscaping gal had suggested adding netting like y’all discussed, but like me wasn’t sure since we were new to this, not sure what that would look like and which is strong and safe enough? Hawk-proof. Unless we were going to build a new building like a run with roofing, etc.

I've seen industrial grade heavy duty netting used by game bird farms sold online. I wouldn't use the cheaper stuff sold in farm stores. It rips so easily. If you can rip through it a hawk can.

Another option is a wooden grid with fencing on top. The cattle panel top you describe sounds perfect too.