Hawk problem

[chicken4prez]

Hi there!

My chickens have been inside for the past few days because there has been a lot of snow and an ice storm.

But for the past few days there has been a hawk circling around very low. Is there anything I can do to get rid if it?

 

[Trish1974]

Realistically... no. They are illegal to shoot (at least here in the US), and things like hanging CDs, reflective tape and fake owls only deter them for so long. Best thing to do is secure your flock.

 

[theoldchick]

Not really. I have a pair nesting right behind my chicken coop. I'm so excited to see the pair interact. I'm not worried about my chickens because my place is hawk-proof. Honestly I have more problems from stray dogs than I do the hawks. Stray dogs have stopped any free range privileges for my flock.

 

[RodNTN]

X2 @Trish1974

 

[Patinas]

I agree there's no way to completely deter aerial predators other than a covered run that you never let the flock leave.

Maybe a dog would help. My dog barks at large birds overhead and the flock runs for cover when she barks but thankfully I don't have a regular ongoing issue with birds of prey. There are plenty of hawks and eagles around but they tend to stay in the valley below our house where there is a lot of agriculture and very flat, open ground.

In the year I've had my flock, we have had only two near misses with a hawk. The experience has made the flock much more vigilant with keeping an eye on the sky and I try to keep the dog out with them when they are foraging.

Obviously any time a flock is allowed to free range, you are taking a risk but every situation is different depending on the predator load in your area. My flock can't wait to get out of the run to forage in the yard so I would have a hard time locking them up 24/7 in the run. If I couldn't let them out to forage, I don't think I would even keep chickens. Makes me happy to see them happy wandering the yard looking for goodies and eating grass like they should be.

On the other hand, if I had hawks or eagles nesting in the perimeter of the yard, I probably would keep them locked up until the nesting period was over. That would be way too risky to let them out in that situation.