Hawk scare

[doublecrossranch]

it can screaming by the backdoor. I jumped up from my chair and throw my chicken shoes on. I could hear that little bastard screaming as it circled the house and went into the trees. I ran down to the coop shutting the front gate behind me. The few chickens out the back door can running thinking I had treats. Unfortunately to their disappointment I didn’t have treats and I shut the back gate. Thank goodness all were there. No free ranging this morning.

We have lived in this house since January and the chickens have been in their coop since May. I have been terrified of the turkey buzzards, bobcat, fox, raccoon, etc. This is the first hawk I have seen. Beautiful bird but I had bad thoughts when I thought it hurt one of my babies. Yes yes I know free ranging and raising chickens is a lesson in nature. That doesn’t mean I can’t be protective or sad.
Sad news. He didn’t get my chickens but he got a hummingbird off my porch

 

[cmom]

I feel bad. I just recently lost 22 birds from a hawk. Somehow it got into one of the pens. I'm pretty sure I found the breach and repaired it. I have netting covering my pens so thought they were well protected. I was away for a few hours. Everyone was fine when I checked the birds before I left and I came home to a mess, the hawk was in a pen and the birds were screaming and bodies laying around. I still don't free range anymore due to losses. I thought the hawk may have had company but didn't find any breaches in that pen. I have electric wire around all of my coops and pens, netting covering the pens, concrete under the gates, and in some places I dug a foot deep trench and put some welded wire in the trench and hog ringed it to the bottom of the fence. My fences are welded wire with chicken wire hog ringed to the welded wire.

 

[doublecrossranch]

I feel bad. I just recently lost 22 birds from a hawk. Somehow it got into one of the pens. I'm pretty sure I found the breach and repaired it. I have netting covering my pens so thought they were well protected. I was away for a few hours. Everyone was fine when I checked the birds before I left and I came home to a mess, the hawk was in a pen and the birds were screaming and bodies laying around. I still don't free range anymore due to losses. I thought the hawk may have had company but didn't find any breaches in that pen. I have electric wire around all of my coops and pens, netting covering the pens, concrete under the gates, and in some places I dug a foot deep trench and put some welded wire in the trench and hog ringed it to the bottom of the fence. My fences are welded wire with chicken wire hog ringed to the welded wire.

I am so so sorry. I would be devastated.

 

[Sobek]

I have a neighbor who was trying to get hawks to land in the backyard on her arms. One was swooping down real close a couple feet from fence level when I had walked outside of my door. When it saw me it bailed out. Hawks know what happens around here. My neighbor is a very weird lady she had the nerve to say "the hawk wasn't trying to eat your chickens it was trying to land on my arm" ??? What? hawks are predatory you think that thing was trying to be your friend? It was trying to eat my chickens and you were encouraging it by offering it food??? She's a weird lonely old woman who is like desperate for friends even if it's a wild animal. I put down a possum that attacked my chickens and that outraged her because animals have the right to live to. This is PETA level garbage. My chickens have the right to live too

I got lucky the other day she stepped outside and possibly scared a hawk off while I was asleep. I'm paranoid now so I'm trying to keep my guard up even though I work night and sleep days. The hawks around here have a schedule and like to attack early in morning. It's the time of the year when hawks come around here in huge flocks. I have to keep patrolling my backyard every 20-30 minutes.

 

[doublecrossranch]

PETA level garbage

And she rather chickens get ripped apart?! I hate those people. I would lose my mind. Good luck to you. We had a ton of turkey vultures around until they tore down an 1800’s house they were living in. We still have some around but not as many.

 

[Sobek]

And she rather chickens get ripped apart?! I hate those people. I would lose my mind. Good luck to you. We had a ton of turkey vultures around until they tore down an 1800’s house they were living in. We still have some around but not as many.

Yes she's a weirdo lol She once told me one of my chickens got out of the fence and she saw the neighbor kill it with a shovel and put it in a bag. Turns out... That never even happened :l

 

[ShannonR]

And she rather chickens get ripped apart?! I hate those people. I would lose my mind. Good luck to you. We had a ton of turkey vultures around until they tore down an 1800’s house they were living in. We still have some around but not as many.

PETA level garbage, LOL

By their logic, chickens have the "right" to run free and live natural lives (as food for every predator around) and your keeping them in captivity is a cruel abuse of their rights.

 

[Sobek]

PETA level garbage, LOL

By their logic, chickens have the "right" to run free and live natural lives (as food for every predator around) and your keeping them in captivity is a cruel abuse of their rights.

Well clearly I'm not holy enough to decide if my Babies live or die so it's natures decision

 

[keesmom]

And she rather chickens get ripped apart?! I hate those people. I would lose my mind. Good luck to you. We had a ton of turkey vultures around until they tore down an 1800’s house they were living in. We still have some around but not as many.

No need to worry about turkey vultures. They are strictly carrion eaters. Black vultures however are a different story.

 

[doublecrossranch]

I know you can’t shoot hawks but I would start shooting in the air every time she tries to feed them. Lol. But I guess that’s the advantage of living outside city limits.