Hawk Sighting! Any suggestions for adding cover to existing run with big trees inside?

[BlueEcho]

We moved into a new place end of last year with existing chicken coops and run. This spring we got our first baby chicks and have been very lucky with no predator losses - but close call with a hawk today.

The run boundaries are fenced and an electric wire is run along the outside to deter predators from climbing in. There is a bit of a hardware cloth apron along the bottom but we have plans to upgrade that to be more secure.

So far all the trees in the run have been full of leaves since we first put the girls outside full time and provided adequate protection. Now that the leaves are thinning, we started having issues with aerial predators.

Adding pictures, but our run is quite spacious and has a lot of trees. We’re struggling to figure out how we will better protect them. Before today we thought maybe some paracord and old CDs would be enough deterrence.

Without breaking the bank how would you approach this? We are in NJ, so not a ton of snow but enough that we need something that won’t collapse if we do get snow or freezing rain. The area is big enough that a hardware cloth or chicken wire cover would need to have some upright beams to support them, plus the difficulty of working around 2 coops and all the trees.

Might set up some tarps or something for a quick fix before we build something more permanent.

Spoiler: TLDR: Hawk Attack, 1 chicken being treated for shock

On Wednesday morning when I checked before work, all the girls were spooked and hiding in the coops but no one injured or missing. We thought maybe a hawk but caught nothing on the cameras and everyone was acting normal.

This morning we caught an attack on camera - hawk perched on the side of the run went after one of our Orpingtons. She has no visible injuries or pain from what we can tell but is very lethargic. She’s currently inside where it’s quiet and warm & being treated for shock (vitamins /electrolytes in her water, scrambled egg once she was lucid enough to eat. She laid an egg in the cage we set her up in). She was lethargic for quite a few hours so I’m feeling better that she seems to be more lucid. But only time will tell how well she recovers.

 

[FrostRanger]

Hmm, tarps are good for a temporary solution but I think since you do get snow wire fencing of some kind would be your best bet long term. I honestly think plain old welded wire fencing would work well enough to stop hawks as they are too big to fit in the gaps and nowhere near strong enough to break through. You can also try fish netting as that's pretty strong although I can't speak as to the cost

 

[PrettyCoolChicks]

Yeah, I have a reclaimed fish net hung over a laundry line above my run, had to patch up a few holes but was very effective we've had no issues with hawks, balk eagle, owls thanks to that, despite them hanging out in the area... If you're able to find one cheap, definitely worth it and cheaper than real bird netting in the same size. I'll give one warning though, which is pullets can get stuck in it if part hang down, so cut off any spare material.

 

[ChicNmom]

This morning we caught an attack on camera - hawk perched on the side of the run went after one of our Orpingtons. She has no visible injuries or pain from what we can tell but is very lethargic.



Hawks can hit pretty hard. Did you part her feathers to check for scratches?

I bought some sturdy netting on Amazon. But you would need a lot for a space that size.
How tall is the fence around the run? You could add more things for them to hide under too. But the hawk knows they are there so it will keep being a problem.

 

[BlueEcho]

Yeah, I have a reclaimed fish net hung over a laundry line above my run, had to patch up a few holes but was very effective we've had no issues with hawks, balk eagle, owls thanks to that, despite them hanging out in the area... If you're able to find one cheap, definitely worth it and cheaper than real bird netting in the same size. I'll give one warning though, which is pullets can get stuck in it if part hang down, so cut off any spare material.

thanks, I’ll look into cost of getting something like that in our area. Would probably need to connect a few of them together to cover everything.

This morning we caught an attack on camera - hawk perched on the side of the run went after one of our Orpingtons. She has no visible injuries or pain from what we can tell but is very lethargic.



Hawks can hit pretty hard. Did you part her feathers to check for scratches?

I bought some sturdy netting on Amazon. But you would need a lot for a space that size.
How tall is the fence around the run? You could add more things for them to hide under too. But the hawk knows they are there so it will keep being a problem.

My partner and I both checked her over a couple times. I parted a lot of her feathers but not everything. (I probably should have. This is our first injury and I was scared to stress her too much) She is a light gold color and doesn’t have any obvious blood on her either.

Honestly more worried about a neurological issue. She’s was a bit twitchy and uncoordinated once she finally started moving around.

My partner propped up multiple scraps of plywood around the coops so the girls have easier access to some cover and we are talking about tarps or putting up the lines and cds for now.

Both today and the suspected visit earlier this week the hawk struck around the same time (7am). I’m planning to have my coffee out with the girls for a little while once I let them out. We’re also talking about getting a rooster

 

[ChicNmom]

@BlueEcho

We have a coop/run camera with sound. Hawks usually do a couple of flyovers before going for a chicken. I turn the sound on if I'm in the house since the girls will make the danger sound.

I've only had one rooster that would fight a hawk. He was part Sumatra and I found out later they are known for that.
All my other roosters just warned of danger so the girls would take cover.

 

[BlueEcho]

Just a quick update on our Orpington. She has pretty much fully recovered. Monitored her exploring the garden for an hour this morning with some of our calmer birds before putting her back in the run with everyone.

She’s still a bit jumpy but otherwise seems to have returned to her normal self. And no major bullying issues after the reintroduction

Going to count that as a win and work on continuing to better secure their safety

 

[gootziecat]

I have somewhat unconventional shapes to my pens and a big tree nearly in the middle of them. The pens are the 6' dog kennels. There were old pipes laying around from something and they were put across the kennels, bigger ones stuck inside smaller ones, until it reached from one kennel panel to another. Then 5' -2" hole chicken wire was strung across and attached on the kennel panels on each side and each row to one another. There is no way to keep the raccoons out because of the tree. But it does keep out aerial predators. If you get wire, be sure the holes are large enough to allow for removing leaves and twigs.

 

[BlueEcho]

I have somewhat unconventional shapes to my pens and a big tree nearly in the middle of them. The pens are the 6' dog kennels. There were old pipes laying around from something and they were put across the kennels, bigger ones stuck inside smaller ones, until it reached from one kennel panel to another. Then 5' -2" hole chicken wire was strung across and attached on the kennel panels on each side and each row to one another. There is no way to keep the raccoons out because of the tree. But it does keep out aerial predators. If you get wire, be sure the holes are large enough to allow for removing leaves and twigs.

Thanks for the tips! Didn’t think about the leaves and twigs removal

 

[KyCoop]

Masons string. You can string from tree to tree high enough you don't hang your head on it when you go in the run. String it back and forth no real pattern. It won't stop a hawk completely from getting in but it will stop a drive bomb and give the girls a chance to run for safety.
I've seen hawks pull up at the last second and crash into the neighbors bushes and I've also seen a hawk standing in the chicken yard confused on what to do next since the sneak attack didn't work and the girls where just looking at it.