How to protect ducks from hawks?

[ChickenMom04]

I have three young female ducklings (only a couple months old I think) and we need to move them outside before their indoor pen becomes too small for them. So far, our idea for the setup will include a duck house with their food and water inside, netting covering the super exposed area, a tree covering the other half, and an overhang where they can take shelter. They’re pretty wild and we didn’t take much time to tame them. I’m hoping this helps their survival instincts. Since they’re all female, there’s no drake to protect them. HOWEVER we do have 4 goats who are in a pen next to them, separated by wire fencing. Will bigger animals, like goats, deter hawks? It’s probably overkill what we’re doing, but after our old duck got eaten by a hawk a few weeks ago, we don’t want to take chances. Hopefully they’re smart enough to take shelter when one is overhead.

 

[nchls school]

I have three young female ducklings (only a couple months old I think) and we need to move them outside before their indoor pen becomes too small for them. So far, our idea for the setup will include a duck house with their food and water inside, netting covering the super exposed area, a tree covering the other half, and an overhang where they can take shelter. They’re pretty wild and we didn’t take much time to tame them. I’m hoping this helps their survival instincts. Since they’re all female, there’s no drake to protect them. HOWEVER we do have 4 goats who are in a pen next to them, separated by wire fencing. Will bigger animals, like goats, deter hawks? It’s probably overkill what we’re doing, but after our old duck got eaten by a hawk a few weeks ago, we don’t want to take chances. Hopefully they’re smart enough to take shelter when one is overhead.

I have been lucky so far even with a number of hawks in the area. My flock is mixed species that includes turkeys, peafowl, and muscovy ducks as well as many smaller breeds and species. I credit our hawks' bad luck to the big birds and the many bantam roosters. Hawks have a hard time sneaking in. And I've witnessed the turkeys and peafowl attacking the hawks when they have dropped down on a smaller bird. We also have dwarf goats; no deterrent to the hawks at all.