Hawk is picking off my flock!! Help!!

[ariri30]

None of those things work for long, if at all...
...someone makes a lot of money off people who believe it tho

Omg

 

[alwaystj9]

I have a redtail that has overwintered the last 2 years. Took me most of the first winter to figure out where the chickens were disappearing to. This past winter the hawk would hit chickens even when I was near the pen. It would kill every 3 days, just dropping from the sky and the chicken would explode in a cloud of feathers. The hawk would carry it nearby and eat on it. Covering is not doable, the free range is my pasture. The plastic owls really don't work. The roosters are no deterrent. Mostly I try to minimize losses, regulating time out of the pen (the pen is covered). I just keep hoping it won't bring friends and that the chickens will keep it off the goats - they kid in the winter. I cannot cover my whole animal range of property. I wish it would eat more squirrels.

 

[HopeSprings]

None of those things work for long, if at all...
...someone makes a lot of money off people who believe it tho

Well, that's not a hawk it's perched on!
Maybe little leather jackets studded with needle sharp spikes,.... Hmmmm.....
Oh, for the chickens to wear when free-ranging!

 

[aart]

Well, that's not a hawk it's perched on!

From my ponding days I know that fake herons do not dissuade other herons from partaking of the buffet....just don't have a pic

Maybe little leather jackets studded with needle sharp spikes,.... Hmmmm.....
Oh, for the chickens to wear when free-ranging!

They actually make these for 'dinner' dogs.

 

[ellend]

Raptors are protected, and for very good reason. You don't want to encounter those fines. Domestic fowl are our own responsibility to protect, by appropriate coops, or we must accept losses.

 

[FeatheredFeetBuffBrahma4]

For our hawk problem, we put up a fence and put string, in a criss-cross spider web like pattern, over the top, and we haven’t had anymore problems with the hawks. I think the hawks think it is completely covered or something...

 

[Mary Chapman]

Once a predator finds food they won't leave till you make it so your poultry is protected. I haven't had free range for 8 years. When I did I had 2 guardian dogs (since passed) that lay in the yard and even the hawks left my poultry alone. Now I keep them all in covered runs because we have eagles that don't care what's around. And owls at night. I prefer to protect my flock and just let them play in a run. I do mulch leaves in the fall and put them in the run and it's funny to watch them all flying everywhere (The mulched leaves not the chickens lol)

 

[leighks]

I have a red tail hawk and vultures now flying over my yard. Starting to worry me . I will shoot them.

Turkey Vultures eat carion, which is dead meat, they aren’t a concern. Only black vultures, if you live in an area with them, would eat live prey

 

[RoosterML]

Bang bang bang problem solved.