has anyone used a baby monitor to alert for predators

[bunkerhomestead]

About 10 days ago I saw a mink run across my goat yard in the daytime. I ran out with my dog to chase it away and it ran in the other direction and into my barn where I house my ducks and chickens in winter. I opened the doors and banged things making a lot of noise and yelling and it left pretty quickly. But it now knows the birds are there. I've been leaving a radio on and lights on in the barn at night. I leave the dog loose in the barn, changing up the times and length of time the dog is there. I've been patrolling with the dog. I set a have a heart trap 3 days ago but nothing has been caught. I'm wondering if anyone has used a baby monitor. My house is close enough to the barn that if I heard a commotion, I could reach them in time. Thanks in advance for any advice.

 

[staceyj]

About 10 days ago I saw a mink run across my goat yard in the daytime. I ran out with my dog to chase it away and it ran in the other direction and into my barn where I house my ducks and chickens in winter. I opened the doors and banged things making a lot of noise and yelling and it left pretty quickly. But it now knows the birds are there. I've been leaving a radio on and lights on in the barn at night. I leave the dog loose in the barn, changing up the times and length of time the dog is there. I've been patrolling with the dog. I set a have a heart trap 3 days ago but nothing has been caught. I'm wondering if anyone has used a baby monitor. My house is close enough to the barn that if I heard a commotion, I could reach them in time. Thanks in advance for any advice.

I’m going to follow along because I’ve always wondered about this.

 

[Melky]

Ditto I would think it might if the distance to the coop where the monitor is meets the companies guidelines for how far away you can go with it. I don’t need one because I wake and hear everything and my coop is close by in my back yard.

 

[Melky]

Funny enough I used one with my daughter as a baby and turned it off first night I used it because she broke my ear drums when she woke hungry.

 

[Folly's place]

When I had foaling mares, I had a baby monitor out there. It made me a little crazy, actually, because there are so many sounds at night that will wake you up, and few are what you are waiting for. Then, after rushing out there too many times for false alarms, you'll sleep through the main event.
Mary

 

[centrarchid]

I have used such and have reservations about how effective it will be. With the exception of raccoons in a group, you are unlikely to hear the predator itself. The raccoons talk to each other a lot, but the sounds are not of the type that wake me from a sound slumber. In most settings, the first sound you will hear is the distress call of a chicken as it is captured. If predator is raccoon or opossum, you will hear screaming from the victim that will last from a few seconds to minutes. If the chicken is screaming, more likely than not, it is being harmed in a grievous manner. If a fox is involved the sound production will very short indeed as fox dispatched chicken; I have heard that several times in recent years. If owl, then chicken will make a muffled squawk before death. Owl is a critter that promotes sound from birds not being directly attacked, assuming chickens can even see shadow of the owl.

I suggest you couple use of baby monitor with a nightlight so chickens can see predator and produce warning calls before contact is made. The chicken warning calls are much more likely to wake you up and gives more time for you to act.

All this for not if you do not respond quickly enough. I have a fully charged flashlite over door I run out. Do not take time to fully dress, slip running shoes on and hall butt with flash lite and possibly a weapon. I have used a light rifle, but found that approach is seldom the most effective because you will not be able to get a shot off. Running with a rifle is not always smart, especially when loaded. What seems to be optimal for me is a wooden baseball bat. I have struck raccoons and opossums, those where exceptions. The bats can be used to make noise as you approach and can be used to easily dispatch in the event you get lucky and close enough.

Treat this sort of approach as a stop-gap measure only until you can get location birds are kept in more predator resistant.

 

[Folly's place]

I'm not engaging a big raccoon with a baseball bat unless there's no other option! NO! NO! Maybe throwing it? Is my aim that good? NO!
My 22g is a much better option, but not if it means running with it first!
Mary

 

[Melky]

I just send my dog out to use the lawn and she chases anything away, moves much faster than me, and scares everything off while sounding an alarm. Much safer.

 

[centrarchid]

I'm not engaging a big raccoon with a baseball bat unless there's no other option! NO! NO! Maybe throwing it? Is my aim that good? NO!
My 22g is a much better option, but not if it means running with it first!
Mary

If you are mad as I get, then you will have more than enough wallop with bat to dispatch. Raccoon is going to be running for its life even if a child is chasing it.

 

[Folly's place]

My dogs would love to get to the chicken coop after almost anything, but they love chicken too.
If a critter gets into their fenced yard, it's history.
Mary