Hawk in my COOP!! It was a Falcon!**Update post 18**

[chicken stalker]

Well this morning I didn't let the girls outside and while I was enjoying my morning cup of coffee my DH and I saw the hawk fly into our barn!!! Our coop is in the barn!!! My DH ran outside and scared it off. I can't believe it just flew right in through a small open door!

So I put some netting over the door and made a small run with a top to tie them over until the ground thraws and we can put something up more permanent.

This all really bums me out. I wanted my chickens to be free range now after a fox attack (spring) and now circling hawk they are getting more and more confined....sigh.

 

[WriterofWords]

I'm sorry! This sure seems to be hawk week doesn't it? I had my first ever in the yard on the ground experience this morning. If it weren't for Pudster and Nugget I think I'd have a much different result.

 

[Jenski]

Our local hawk has been coming closer and closer too. . . he's feeling that rumble in the belly now that it's winter, and I have to keep a close eye when I let the big girls out to stretch their legs. Luckily their covered run is sealed tight.

Sorry to hear about your girl! She looks like my Baby Chicken. Good luck with the rest of your chickens ~ keep them safe through the winter, when the preds are hungry!

 

[AmazonDragon]

Ya, you need a top on your run of some sort.
Sorry to hear about your loss.

 

[CoyoteMagic]

Sounds like you are going to need a chicken tractor. I'm beginning to think I'm going to be needing one soon too, my neighbor keeps letting his dogs run loose. We don't have any fences out here so they can run in the same places my chickens can. It's either that or I'm going to have to buy a bunch of shotgun shells.

 

[Attack Chicken]

This guy was flying over today. He's the only one we have to worry about, the other hawk is a Coopers and he's to small and this one is a Red Tail hawk. Did he look like this one?

 

[SpottedCrow]

Sometimes they kill the bird and then figure out that they can't take off with it...
The Juvie Red Tail that got Miss MoneyPenny bit off more than he could chew with her too.

I'm sorry for your loss.

Winter's such a bad time for wildlife especially when the weather's screwy like it's been.

 

[chicken stalker]

After a little research I found out that the "hawk" was actually a female Peregrine Falcon. Which I think is pretty cool with the excepting she ate one of my hens. The girls are now in a covered run because I know she'll be back. Hopefully she can't get in the run or in my coop again! Here's a picture and a link for more information on falcons.

http://www.migrationresearch.org/research/peregrine/profile.html

 

[SpottedCrow]

She's a beauty!!!

As much as I hate loosing birds, it seems not as bad if you loose them to something that will eat them and not just play with them and leave the bodies...

 

[mamabird]

We lost 4 birds last year due to hawks. We penned the chickens up in the chicken yard (covered with netting), and would you believe a Cooper's hawk broke through the netting and ate a bird in the enclosure? My DH had to go try to get the hawk out, and after much flying and bouncing around, it finally tore it's way back out. We now have wire fencing over the top of the pen. Love hawks, but am TIRED of providing free meals for the wildlife! Don't even get me started on the deer that think my garden is a salad buffet!