- Mar 29, 2010
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We have two silkie hens in our backyard. (Originally started out with 3, but the leader of our group, "Little Yellow", was attacked and killed by an opossum two months ago). We've had our hens for almost three years now, and until this year, predators haven't been too big of a problem.
The next morning (after Little Yellow was killed), a hawk tried to attack our white hen, Snow White. That hawk had come a few times in the past, but normally isn't a frequent visitor. Apparently, earlier this week, the hawk tried to attack her again, and from the looks of the backyard, it was a brutal chase. Thankfully, she is still alive, but she lost quite a few feathers in the process and is extremely traumatized now. I went outside to hold her earlier (she normally hates being held) and she was shaking while in my arms.
She's been spending much of the time in the coop, and when I looked at her earlier, she was wide-eyed with fear (almost as if she's reliving the incident/ready to attack & bite a predator). Coincidentally, she's also the one who goes broody most often...so I guess I'm quite "used to" her being in the coop much of the time. On top of that, my other hen, Gwen, has been "protecting" her, spending much of the time with her while she's in the coop--Gwen was snuggled against Snow White, protecting her.
Is there any extra thing I should do to calm her down? It's been a few days since the incident, but since I'm not at home much (I'm off at college most of the time and on top of that, it's FINALS right now) I don't really know if she's been like this since the incident. She's been through quite a lot within the last few months....and adding a hawk attack on top of that....my heart breaks for my poor baby.
The next morning (after Little Yellow was killed), a hawk tried to attack our white hen, Snow White. That hawk had come a few times in the past, but normally isn't a frequent visitor. Apparently, earlier this week, the hawk tried to attack her again, and from the looks of the backyard, it was a brutal chase. Thankfully, she is still alive, but she lost quite a few feathers in the process and is extremely traumatized now. I went outside to hold her earlier (she normally hates being held) and she was shaking while in my arms.
She's been spending much of the time in the coop, and when I looked at her earlier, she was wide-eyed with fear (almost as if she's reliving the incident/ready to attack & bite a predator). Coincidentally, she's also the one who goes broody most often...so I guess I'm quite "used to" her being in the coop much of the time. On top of that, my other hen, Gwen, has been "protecting" her, spending much of the time with her while she's in the coop--Gwen was snuggled against Snow White, protecting her.
Is there any extra thing I should do to calm her down? It's been a few days since the incident, but since I'm not at home much (I'm off at college most of the time and on top of that, it's FINALS right now) I don't really know if she's been like this since the incident. She's been through quite a lot within the last few months....and adding a hawk attack on top of that....my heart breaks for my poor baby.
