HOW TO GET RID OF HAWKS/OWLS

[Achickenwrangler#1]

Yesterday I decided, since the rain stopped and it warmed up some, to see how mama hen and 6 chicks would do, and besides wanted them to have some greens while they are still around(nothing left in the chick pen) they are 2 weeks old. Of course I played shepard and after an hour or so, decided I had enough, about to herd them back and in comes a red tail hawk, chicks dove into the weeds, red roo jumps into the air and the hawk veers, I jump in the air and yell, so mission abandoned and the hawk takes off. Back to the pen we go where mama hen plays statue and chicks hide under a rooty stump. The songbirds go back to their usual noise and all is well...for now.
The chick pen is surrounded by smaller saplings and covered with chicken wire..no easy way in or out. Red roo was taking an offense posture, I don't think he was defending anybody (he is more a lover than a fighter this one) and he is smaller than that hawkand if I hadn't been there he would have been next,the chickens all free range and this is the first event with the hawk, I'm pretty sure the chicks are what tipped its radar.
So until the chicks are big and fast enough to evade the hawk they will have to stay in an enclosed pen, only 6 in this clutch so I don't want any losses, odds are it'll get the only red one too, I have eleven chicks that 9 of them are black and started free ranging themselves atabout 4 weeks old, flying out over the fence, they stay in the woods and rarely in the open, and then only for a few minutes. I wondered why so many free range chickens are black, must be natural camo for them.
If I had domestic birds, with most of natural instinct bred out of them, I think I would have lost most of them. If there wasn't so much natural prey I think the hawk would have been there sooner...if that hawk were gone, next day there would be another.
Everything eats chicken, except my mil. So it's up to me to provide them with the advantage over the predators, if I can't do that then I guess they will all be eaten by something other than me.

 

[AlbionWood]

You can't "get rid of" raptors, because they migrate. At this time of year, thousands of hawks - including the most notorious "chicken hawks," Cooper's and Red-tails - are beginning their southward migration from the breeding/nesting regions. During this period, they may pause for a while where the hunting is good, then move on. So even if you "get rid of" one hwk, another will be along shortly to take its place.

The best strategy seems to be a combination of deterrence (overhead fishing line spiderweb, netting, etc) and shelter (the strategy described up-thread of providing several shelters for chickens to use is great), to limit your losses. And accept that the occasional loss is the price of letting a delicious, slow-moving prey species free-range in the raptor's habitat.

Oh, by the way: Ospreys do not take chickens, they only eat fish. I suppose Bald Eagles might take a chicken - they are as lazy a raptor as there is in the world - but deterring them will be easy, much easier than it is for Cooper's Hawks.

 

[mbcmama]

i know this thread is old, but we have some 7 week old black austrolorps and about a week ago, we started letting them out of the run while we watch them. within a day, we noticed 2 hawks flying in and landing on the power lines behind our house. we live in the suburbs in a neighborhood. i've never seen these hawks around before, but i guess they've spotted my girlies (we have 4)! it's crazy, the chickies can be in the run/coop all day and we don't see the hawks, but we can let them out ( with us standing there with them) and within minutes, those 2 hawks come squawking and flying in! my hubby's a cop and was like...."i'm gonna shoot those dang birds if they try to get my girls!". i told him #1. we live in a neighborhood. #2. i think they are protected and #3. our HOA doesn't know about our girlies and i think this might give us away!

so....besides hanging 100's of cd's all over my yard, how else can we get rid of them???

 

[Nambroth]

i know this thread is old, but we have some 7 week old black austrolorps and about a week ago, we started letting them out of the run while we watch them. within a day, we noticed 2 hawks flying in and landing on the power lines behind our house. we live in the suburbs in a neighborhood. i've never seen these hawks around before, but i guess they've spotted my girlies (we have 4)! it's crazy, the chickies can be in the run/coop all day and we don't see the hawks, but we can let them out ( with us standing there with them) and within minutes, those 2 hawks come squawking and flying in! my hubby's a cop and was like...."i'm gonna shoot those dang birds if they try to get my girls!". i told him #1. we live in a neighborhood. #2. i think they are protected and #3. our HOA doesn't know about our girlies and i think this might give us away!

so....besides hanging 100's of cd's all over my yard, how else can we get rid of them???

I'm afraid you can't. If they are suburban hawks, they are used to people, and I suspect that most 'scare tactics' (CDs, scare'crows', etc) won't work. You could place netting over your yard, but your HOA would surely notice! Otherwise, just keeping your girls in a covered run is about all you can do. You can try only free ranging them when there is someone out there with them, but if the hawks are used to people, they may try to take one even with human presence. If you have a larger dog that you 100% trust around your girls then sometimes they make a better hawk deterrent than a human does, but only if they are actively staying near your girls. That's a really hard situation, and I'm sorry. I do hope it works out for you.

 

[centrarchid]

i know this thread is old, but we have some 7 week old black austrolorps and about a week ago, we started letting them out of the run while we watch them. within a day, we noticed 2 hawks flying in and landing on the power lines behind our house. we live in the suburbs in a neighborhood. i've never seen these hawks around before, but i guess they've spotted my girlies (we have 4)! it's crazy, the chickies can be in the run/coop all day and we don't see the hawks, but we can let them out ( with us standing there with them) and within minutes, those 2 hawks come squawking and flying in! my hubby's a cop and was like...."i'm gonna shoot those dang birds if they try to get my girls!". i told him #1. we live in a neighborhood. #2. i think they are protected and #3. our HOA doesn't know about our girlies and i think this might give us away!

so....besides hanging 100's of cd's all over my yard, how else can we get rid of them???

I am guessing you are new to this game so welcome. Additionaly, my thinking is getting rid of raptors is seldom practical especially when migrants are involved. Pushing them away with repellents like CD's and large amounts of string may not be desirable owing to appearances / lawn maintenance concerns. Handily the best repellent for me are active dogs but if you are in an urban setting or not prepared to get dogs into that role then such an option is also not available. An adult standard sized rooster will help with smaller hawks like Coopers but not all breads are equal in that regard. Providing more cover can help, especially with adults but juveniles will be pursued on ground unless something like dog or rooster intervenes. Since your birds are small, penning them up is best way to go. You can still free-range them if desired under supervision and if hawks attacks you just need to be vigilant and chase hawk off (no weapons needed).
I have lots of hawks and owls but seldom suffer losses.

 

[jahphotogal]

Glad to find this thread, as the hawks have found my chickens. I've had them since May with no trouble -- they have a fairly large enclosure in my yard to range around in (we live on Main Street in a very small town surrounded by open fields and countryside -- plenty of raptors of all kinds in the area.) A few days ago my neighbor spotted a hawk attacking one of the girls (ironically, the others had gotten out of the pen and were well hidden in the bushes.) She chased it away, but my daughter and her friends have said they've seen hawks around, sitting in the forsythia bush next to the coop. (From their descriptions, I'm thinking red tailed.) We don't have a rooster or a dog so I'm the only one to chase away a hawk. So I've kept the girls cooped up, which is sad because the coop is only 8' x 5' (with a loft) - technically enough space for 5 chickens but they aren't very happy about it. I have been letting them out in the late afternoon when hawks are less active and I'm home to keep an eye out. I'm getting a big dog pen that is about 12'x12' and turning it into an extra run for them -- I just have to figure out the logistics of connecting it to the coop.

ETA: my husband saw it -- cooper's hawk. Girls stay inside til we figure out a new run design!

 

[BMaverick]

One deterent is placing barb-wire weaved atop the fence posts connecting them from one-side to another. The cost per roll isn't that bad actually. It's more effective than clothes line.

The next level is electric fencing mesh over a long, but narrow run.

 

[Nambroth]

Depending on mbcmama's HOA rules, most of the solutions we might have are going to be out of the realm of possibilities. A good protective roo is good, but if you aren't supposed to have chickens, a crowing rooster is the last thing you want. Putting up large covered runs or netting might be right out. Even fishing line criss-crossed over the ranging area (with arguable efficiency in hawks) could be a no-no. It's a really tough situation. I lived in a HOA once with very strict rules and even the barbed wire suggestion would have gotten us in trouble! So I really sympathize. The only thing I can really think of is human presence or better, 100% trustworthy dog presence, and even then a city-smart hawk might not be very deterred. Good luck to you, mbcmama!

 

[jester8484]

this is a great thread.

I had my first Hawk scare yesterday. our chickens aren't true free rangers if it's good weather. it not I leave the run door closed. if it's open they have a 50'x150' fenced area in a wooded lot.

Luckily my dogs were outside with me, I was "hunkered down" hood up and watching the ground on my way back to the house when my Bischon ( white cotton ball looking dog) was starting at the sky doing the stalk walk, then started barking, I looked up and a hawk was a few feet overhead circling. So I ran back towards the coop area and grabbed a shovel ( not sure what that was going to do) , eventually the hawn flew a little higher and then flew off, I'd like to think my barking Bishon played a part. I also notived the hens hang around the evergreens and other year round green trees, i'm starting to think it's a protection thing but wasn't sure until reading this thread.

so theres my input, trees and dogs to protect the chickens

 

[redsoxs]

this is a great thread.

I had my first Hawk scare yesterday. our chickens aren't true free rangers if it's good weather. it not I leave the run door closed. if it's open they have a 50'x150' fenced area in a wooded lot.

Luckily my dogs were outside with me, I was "hunkered down" hood up and watching the ground on my way back to the house when my Bischon ( white cotton ball looking dog) was starting at the sky doing the stalk walk, then started barking, I looked up and a hawk was a few feet overhead circling. So I ran back towards the coop area and grabbed a shovel ( not sure what that was going to do) , eventually the hawn flew a little higher and then flew off, I'd like to think my barking Bishon played a part. I also notived the hens hang around the evergreens and other year round green trees, i'm starting to think it's a protection thing but wasn't sure until reading this thread.

so theres my input, trees and dogs to protect the chickens

I've had something silmilar happen, jester8484. My chocolate lab (pictured in my avatar) named Churchill is super protective of anything in the yard - a hawks swooped low under the deck one day after a hen and he was outside in a flash - jumping in air (the hawk was well out of reach) and barking - chasing after the hawk. Great sight to see and I'm glad is is vigilant!