How do

[Chick1043]

you scare a hawk? If you can..One of my chickens was dinner yesterday unless I saw it! Good thing I did though. My only layer! So far all the rest are too young.

 

[Chick1043]

I mean like scare it away...Like scare crows or something. lol I'm scared to let my chickens out!

 

[Patricia Jane]

Pretty hard to scare a hawk since shooting it is against the law, here anyway. You may be able to frustrate it but once it knows a meal is there they will be back. Make sure there are hiding places your chickens can run too, staying out with them helps, if you can, buy a guard dog, hang cd's, play a radio. I have heard all of these but not sure how well they help. I have been fortunate and haven't had any problems. I know a lot of people hate crows but I feed the ones living here to keep them here and they chase the hawks away. Every other day the hawks try to come back but the crows are right there doing what I want them to do. Most everyone in my area has chickens so the crows are plentiful. I'm sure someone else who has had problems with hawks can give you better advice. Wish you luck.

 

[Chick1043]

Thanks. Yeah, it's against the law to shoot them here too. There wasn't 1 hawk spotting my girls there was 4!

 

[sourland]

At this time of year I have frequently seen redtails hunting as a pair with the seasons offspring. The 4 may just be a family that think they have located a chicken buffet. Supervised free ranging and a covered pen are your best solutions to the problem.

 

[Scooter&Suzie]

I ran and screamed at one, but it still got two of my chicks... (In the days I was VERY stupid) You could cover their run.

 

[Chick1043]

The top of their pen is covered. Haha its 8 feet tall and my chickens climb up it! lol I'm too scared to let them out.

But then again I feel bad not letting them out. Should I wait a couple days and watch for the hawks and see if they come back? I'm mostly outside anyways. Do hawks come by during winter too?

 

[sourland]

My most frequent hawk problems occur during the winter when natural prey are less available.

 

[Chick1043]

well good thing there is no bugs and grass during winter..lol i guess i won't let them out during winter. didn't see any hawks today..