Hawk killed my 3 week old buff orpington-need predator advise

I'm pretty sure hawks are federally protected, so they cannot be harmed. I am doubtful they would attempt to harm your children or the dog, but young chicks are an attractant. Keep the chicks in a covered pen. Sometimes just laying a tarp or piece of wood over the top is enough to not make them so noticable. Although I find when the hawks are being a pest, it is best to keep everyone inside their coop for a day or so, till he moves on. If you live in an area that has a lot of hawks, I would plan your coop and run accordingly.

 

Hawks will attack around their nest/young. Kids should be safe.Add some chicken wire or even simple bird netting around the crate.

If the hawk should accidentally die I would not mention it to anyone since you could be fined-accident or not!

Loud noise,cd's,fishing line ,plastic owls,red mylar strips,bottle rockets.Besides a very secure run with top cover of metal wire the other options only deter or slow down.AC will have little to offer.

Sorry for your loss!

 

I would add bird netting over it.

 

I'm sorry for your loss. That must have been very disturbing for your entire household.

People have posted on the forum a couple of times about setting chicks out in cages and having hawks kill them through the side of the cage. Raccoons will also do this, although they're usually a problem at night. Even a dog or fox can kill a curious chicken that sticks it's head out through the side, which has been known to happen.

The best defense is 1/2" hardware cloth over a cage or around the bottom couple of feet of a run. This keeps chicken heads inside, raptor heads outside and raccoon paws outside.

I don't think you need to worry about your children at their age or your large dog. Cats or tiny dogs can sometimes be preyed upon by large raptors. Adult chickens will still be at risk if you free range. Chicks are preyed upon by just about everything, even cats, rats and snakes. They are just too small to resist.

 

Peregrins are a medium-sized falcon, not a buzzard. And they are noticeably smaller than a red-tailed hawk (although a male red-tail and a female peregrin might be similar in size. Peregrins weigh 1.3 lb, red-taileds weigh 2.3 lb. To find a 10lb raptor, you are looking at an eagle, not a hawk or falcon or vulture. That said, birds often weigh far less than it appears that they would. Bones are hollow to more readily allow flight.

In general, falcons hunt aerial prey while hawks hunt prey on the ground. There are certainly exceptions to both. Also, falcons tend to have slender wings that are angled like a ^ ; hawks tend to have broader wings that are relatively straight on both front and back. The wingtips of falcons tend to be more pointed, while those of a hawk are more rounded. The peregrin is the fastest animal in the world, with a dive speed exceeding 200 mph.

There are a number of hawks and falcons in your area. whatbird.com gives excellent information on wild birds.

Buzzards generally eat carrion, not live prey, although if hungry they will take live. Black vultures are particularly apt for taking live prey; turkey vultures will only do so if very hungry.

 

You can shoot the hawks if you know they are killing your birds.

I use 3 plastic owls on poles that seems to work very well keeping birds of prey away. I have one in the garden and the other 2 about the yard. I often see hawks soaring very high but have never had them go for the chickens. I did see them taking a close look at our Yorkie a few yeaars ago. That's primarily what led to the idea of the plastic owls and it seems to have an impact on the hawks. There is never a guarantee with the hawks except enclosing them (the chickens) all the time. Good luck
These are Buzzards and don't prey but feed on dead.