Help with a stalking bobcat

[MsCannaBass]

There is a bobcat stalking our birds. It tried to run off with our 50lb old white breasted Turkey before it was interrupted by a yelling human. Now its lurking around trying to get another chance at our injured turkey. Our turkey is in an aluminum shed with the doors secured right now.
Aside from the obvious steps to keep our birds safe what things that are not commonly known can we do to protect our birds?
We have about 40 free roaming peafowl, free roaming geese & ducks in our pond & cooped up pigeons & chickens.

 

[HenKeepers]

There is a bobcat stalking our birds. It tried to run off with our 50lb old white breasted Turkey before it was interrupted by a yelling human. Now its lurking around trying to get another chance at our injured turkey. Our turkey is in an aluminum shed with the doors secured right now.
Aside from the obvious steps to keep our birds safe what things that are not commonly known can we do to protect our birds?
We have about 40 free roaming peafowl, free roaming geese & ducks in our pond & cooped up pigeons & chickens.

Be prepared to lose a few. Dogs are a great deterrent. A large spring trap will hold a 50lb bobcat.

 

[MsCannaBass]

We also saw a big mountain lion about a week ago & I heard bobcat are mt lions favorite food.

 

[HenKeepers]

2 large breed, female dogs. Mountain lions prefer chicken, everything prefers chicken. Dogs should be 75lbs or heavier. Always 2 dogs, so they can look after each other. Dogs 2yrs old can be trained not to eat chickens. Otherwise be prepared to lose a few while training. Chickens are small and run, puppies do not usually kill on purpose, but they LOVE the chase and only know 1 way to tag.

 

[Folly's place]

Electric fencing!!!
@Howard E and @cmom have good articles and experience, and Premier1supplies has great products and advice.
Meanwhile, keep everyone in their safe coops and runs. You may be able to trap and shoot this cat, and the pelt will be beautiful, but more will turn up.
Mary

 

[cmom]

I have electric wire around my coops and pens. Many years ago I did have a bobcat killed 14 birds. I locked them in their coop and put leg traps inside their pen. It didn't come back the next night but made the mistake of coming back the following night. This is actually why we put up the electric wire. You can run as many lines as you want. I use a 1.2 joule fence charger and an 8' ground rod. The smaller chargers will feel like a bee sting. My charger will make the heart skip a few beats. I want anything that touches the wire to know it touched it. I also put concrete under the gates to the pens and in places dug a trench a foot deep along the bottom of the fence and attached welded wire and buried it in the trench. I put heavy duty netting covering all of the pens. Good luck...

 

[cmom]

The bobcat that killed the birds. It shouldn't have came back.

 

[Folly's place]

Dogs can be a great deterrent, but there are difficulties with this approach:
It takes up to two years to train one.
Dogs and their care are expensive, the most expensive option actually.
They need to be fenced in!
Unless you have two or more, 24/7 protection won't happen.
Did I mention expensive?!
Electric fencing and good coops and runs can be done sooner!
Mary

 

[MsCannaBass]

We do have 2 big dogs. A great pyrenees & great Dane. However we are expecting snow any minute so the dogs havent been out there in a few days. I know with the snow coming & the dogs in the predators see it as the perfect opportunity.
We have lost 8 chickens already. Luckily we dont think we lost any of the 40 or so peafowl we have. Even the little baby peafowl are still around.

 

[FathertoFeathers]

This is something that I just thought of. Not entirely sure it would work but its worth a try. Get some turkey meat or maybe some tuna fish and put it over a live wire. Then the bobcat will be enticed by the smell nd grab hold of the wore giving it a nasty shock. I would put it over by your turkeys coop so he can connect that this are over here equals pain. Ive heard that bobcats are attracted to feathers blowing in the wind so you might want to tie some feathers from a tree branch over the live wire so the bobcat will be attracted by the feathers movement in the wind and the smell. Good luck.