Hawks....

[QUAILHILLFARMS]

I am so glad that I found this forum. We are in the beginning stages of getting a chicken flock. (Haven't gotten our day olds yet) I noticed that a lot of people are from Missouri as we are. We live in Jefferson City and go to our farm 3-4 days a week. We are going to free range our chickens with electronet so are not worried about coyotes or raccoons but we are worried about hawks and owls. Besides the coop, we are going to build shelters (for the heat and hawks) and are thinking of other ways to protect our birds. We are going to have buff orpingtons both hens and roosters and are worried that they are not as aggressive as other breeds. Since we will be moving the range every 2 or 3 weeks we are trying to find other ways to protect them. We thought about using 20ft rebar and bird netting that can be moved and about posts and stringing fishing line on them that can be moved. Does anyone have any experience with this or do you have any other suggestons?

Regardless, we will get back to you when we have experience and see how it worked.

 

[lesgo54]

S.S.S. - Shoot, Shovel, Shut up.

x2

 

[centrarchid]

I am so glad that I found this forum. We are in the beginning stages of getting a chicken flock. (Haven't gotten our day olds yet) I noticed that a lot of people are from Missouri as we are. We live in Jefferson City and go to our farm 3-4 days a week. We are going to free range our chickens with electronet so are not worried about coyotes or raccoons but we are worried about hawks and owls. Besides the coop, we are going to build shelters (for the heat and hawks) and are thinking of other ways to protect our birds. We are going to have buff orpingtons both hens and roosters and are worried that they are not as aggressive as other breeds. Since we will be moving the range every 2 or 3 weeks we are trying to find other ways to protect them. We thought about using 20ft rebar and bird netting that can be moved and about posts and stringing fishing line on them that can be moved. Does anyone have any experience with this or do you have any other suggestons?

Regardless, we will get back to you when we have experience and see how it worked.

Foxes and coyotes can jump fence cleanly without recieving a shock. Even a modest threat on inside will keep them from jumping. Consider a dog slightly larger in size than coyote on inside with chickens. Fencing plus dog will keep raptors out as well. The line will work if impractical amounts are used. I use binder twine for same purpose to keep great blue herons out of ponds. It is a pain in butt to set up and occasionally a bird will learn how to defeat it.

 

[centrarchid]

Did not in any way intend to imply that you didnt have a serious problem with hawks trying to kill your birds, only to say from my experience that if a hawk has locked down on a food source like your chickens, from my experience, it's impossible to scare it away.

They can be convinced to hunt elsewhere simply by imposing an unpleasant hunting experience. They want the easy catch with minimal risk. Many legal options available to make hunting chickens more of a challenge than going after smaller prey.

 

[MusketeerinFla]

Here in Florida, we have a lot of trees. I live on 3 acres of heavily wooded rural land. I have several Barred Owls living about me, but they tend to be nocturnal. We do have hawks though, and they will take a chicken. I have noticed hawks are very careful about their wings. They seem to know how to avoid areas that could potentially lead to them having a broken wing. So I decided to use that against them. I ran some cordage at different levels within the trees. I made 3 foot x 4 foot rectangles of welded cage wire and suspended them from the cordage. They hang in the fly ways between the big trees. They aren't that noticeable from the ground but apparently the hawks can see them. Some are 50 feet above the ground, some 30 feet , and some at 20 feet. Seeing a hawk hit one is hilarious! But it only happens once, maybe twice! They sway a little in the breeze and catch the hawks attention. I don't know if anyone has done this or if you can, but here it works. MiF

 

[chigger bait]

Foxes and coyotes can jump fence cleanly without recieving a shock. Even a modest threat on inside will keep them from jumping. Consider a dog slightly larger in size than coyote on inside with chickens. Fencing plus dog will keep raptors out as well. The line will work if impractical amounts are used. I use binder twine for same purpose to keep great blue herons out of ponds. It is a pain in butt to set up and occasionally a bird will learn how to defeat it.

Coyotes will jump on an electic fence if all of the wires are hot and not receive a shock since they are not grounded,and climb them like a ladder, up and over the top.

Sheep farmers learned to alternate hot and grounded wires to prevent this from happening.

 

[centrarchid]

Coyotes will jump on an electic fence if all of the wires are hot and not receive a shock since they are not grounded,and climb them like a ladder, up and over the top.

Sheep farmers learned to alternate hot and grounded wires to prevent this from happening.

I think they also jump simply because wire is unsteady or unpleasant to stand on.

 

[chigger bait]

I think they also jump simply because wire is unsteady or unpleasant to stand on.

Around here they use a lot of 10 ga High tensile smooth wire for live stock.

They have up to 8 stains of it.

This is what we use on my home place in Virginia for pasture rotation.

 

[RedheadErin]

I saw a hawk light in one of our trees today. He flew in just as I was driving up the driveway, and by the time I got out of the car, he was gone. He was also facing out of our yard, toward the neighbor's windbreak trees.

They can be convinced to hunt elsewhere simply by imposing an unpleasant hunting experience. They want the easy catch with minimal risk. Many legal options available to make hunting chickens more of a challenge than going after smaller prey.

Please tell me more! I cannot afford a covered run at this time.

 

[cassidy22]

Here is my experience with predators:

Skunks bite their heads off and suck out the blood.
Hawks will dig into their middles and eat out their entrails.
Foxes grab and run, often only leaving behind a pile of feathers and maybe a short trail of feathers.
Coyotes will kill many - you may find pile of feathers, some carcasses that are partially eaten, some dead birds that weren't eaten at all, and often a trail of feathers back to their den.

Electric fencing stops none of these predators. Coyotes and foxes jump right over, hawks obviously are not swayed, skunks can sometimes squeeze through the fencing, and their fur protects them from shock.

Great Pyrenees can protect all of the above. My dogs don't let birds land on our property, and foxes and coyotes walk the fenceline, not even thinking about crossing unless they think the dogs are gone. Mine are afraid of thunderstorms and we almost always lose birds to coyotes during storms because the dogs are not out. My boys often come in smelling of skunk, so I know that little punk is still around. We tried trapping it, but it doesn't go for it.

ALl of the research I have done about keeping predators away - electric fencing, traps, lights, motion detectors that set off lights or sounds, running radios, etc. - none of it works long term, Guard dogs do!