Hawks, any methods to keep them at bay?

[katiedarling]

Glad this thread is here. I've been discussing with my neighbor about this very issue. They gave up on chickens because of the predator situation. If it wasn't areal, there was a fox hanging round. I have a 'predator proofing' plan in place for when we build the coop and run this weekend but I will now be adding the Cds as well. We chose BOs because they are a larger breed. We assumed that a chicken that size might be less appealing to hawks but I'm guessing that was a silly assumption? We also have Coyotes that roam the area and have been known to get pretty close to our house.

 

[The ChickenKing]

If you want a good protective rooster, I would recommend a Silver Laced Wyandotte, big and not afraid to fight off a predator, but not too friendly in my experience.

 

[enola]

My daughter owns an Araucana/game rooster that broke a hawk's wing when the hawk attacked one of his hens.

 

[finnfur]

Our crows are an integral part of our hawk defense here and I couldn't do it without them. The dog helps but he's getting older now and less attuned to aerial threats, but the crows are vigilant and very aggressive to the hawks. They forage in a part of the meadow that the chickens rarely go, so they don't come into any contact but even if they did I wouldn't worry one bit about disease.

You can establish crow feeding stations around the perimeter of your land by placing pedestal feeders with field corn.

Yes Bee I know how the dog feels I have the same problem sometime. Or maybe it comes with lots of maturity - when your older you separate the real threats out . Not worth wasting the energy LOL

The crows are the positive best sentry for Hawks presence. We have a local rookery and when nesting they even chase the buzzards - when you hear the crows making a racket start looking.

I also made some ScareHawks - don't know if they work but no more losses since I started using them.
They are easy to make with a couple electric fencing poles and scrap 2x2 - old milk carton.
Heres a pic of him streaking

And here is one dressed

 

[The ChickenKing]

So, the hawk showed up today, and I noticed that the only birds brave enough to stay in the yard with it were the local grackles, so I had an idea. I was wondering, will they do the same job as the crows in keeping hawks away?

 

[RoboDuck]

We have breeding/nesting crows on our 20 acres.  Just got lucky I guess.  The neighbor puts out a lot of corn for turkey and deer and the crows like the dividends. 

We got even luckier...we have a nesting pair of Red Tail Hawks on our property. We still lose more birds to possums and coons though....but those I can dispose of. Our LGD are useless against raptors and small predators. But our lgd stands for livestock guardian donkeys. We are more concerned about losing goats and miniature horses to coyotes than losing chickens. But for our large pen we strung mason string back and forth over it. We haven't lost any more birds from that pen to gawks/owls. You can generally tell if it was a bird on bird kill....feathers everywhere. Possums and coons will kill and carry. Chicken take out if you will. OR they will simply chew the head off and leave the rest. That is what we get more often than not.

 

[Folly's place]

I have a hawk-proof covered run, and if a hawk has killed one of my birds, or if I see one hanging around, I lock the flock in their run and coop for seven to ten days, until that hawk moves on. Much easier predator management than the dogs, foxes etc. that can show up during the day and take many birds at once! Mary

 

[mamahen16]

My murder scenes are one or two close puffs of feathers and no body. Except the neighbor did find one near his house a football field away. Birds?
Hubs Is working on a tractor. I just feel so bad to lock them in the coop all the time. But I'll definitely try the 10 day period first.

 

[seminolewind]

So, the hawk showed up today, and I noticed that the only birds brave enough to stay in the yard with it were the local grackles, so I had an idea. I was wondering, will they do the same job as the crows in keeping hawks away?

I have crows keep the hawks away. In 7 years I've lost one chick to a hawk. They normally get chased away. But now the crows steal about 5-6 eggs a day, and dip the neighbor's bread in the chicken water. They are pretty annoying and there's more of them.

 

[Beekissed]

You need a good dog living around your coop!