I almost fought a Hawk today.

[frankenchick]

I think you may still be able to free range. I lost my sweet, beautiful Jane Marple to a Cooper's Hawk just before Christmas. After being REALLY sad for a couple days, I decided to do something for the rest of the girls.

My chicken yard is pretty bare -- no bushes or trees -- so I brought down some big branches from the brush pile and made a couple of shelters for them to run to. I'm also planting shrubs and evergreens down there this Spring. I think Jane would've made it if she'd had somewhere to hide.

I don't think you have to do the same, necessarily. It might be as simple as stringing up some fishing line with CDs dangling from them. I'm sure the other folks on BYC have ideas, too.

Man, I'd LOVE to go one-on-one with the hawk that got my girl. You rock!

 

[Lorettawyandotte]

I hit a very large hawk with a bucket one evening when he came into the yard and landed on one of my BA pullets...three pullets were standing by the 8 foot stretch of fence between the coop door and the gate into the main chicken yard...the hawk flew in and landed on the middle girl...everyone went nuts and he, the hawk starteled and flew into the coop...realizing that that was a bad idea, he flew out and landed on the pullet again...I had made it through the gate by that time and had a big bucket in my hand...that darn hawk rolled his eyes up at me just as I swung the bucket and gave him a serious upper cut...the girls were screaming...the roos were hysterical, I was totally ticked off and the hawk had a headache that he decided he needed to take home...I did not see him for a very long time but as of a few days ago, he is back and he has a girl friend...darn things have to make a living but my chickens are not on the menu...

Good going on going after your hen and saving her...woohoo!

 

[Biddieacres]

Quote:
HAHA YES! I love that story! Don't mess with our chickens!

I am on my way out to work on a new run right now so I may let them out while I am there. They almost knock me over to get out when I open that door. I got my boxing gloves on!!!! Bring it on!

 

[vermontgal]

I have also just seen hawks in the sky - way up. I don't have a rooster. I tried to show my gals the hawk, but they didn't get it. I'm building a covered run. No more free ranging when they're alone. (I can't have a big turkey where I live - if you can, might want to check this thread: https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=135002&p=1 )

Over the winter, I used my and my neighbors' discarded Christmas trees as extra "cover" for the gals. This technique might help until your real-live plantings grow up.

 

[briana1975]

Somebody had a post on here titled Hawk deteriant. It's a big turkey. We actually got a couple from TSC. We have a lot of hawks around our home. All the little wild song brids tend to gang up on them and try to chase them away.

 

[Faverolle]

Quote:
Yes I met her!

The gals are OK. I did wonder....if I had a Roo if it would be better? I see you have a Roo and I am guessing he might alert them for you. Even then, it is a risk.

I see the hawks in pairs scoping out the yard from the tree tops. I think I saw a juvenile also because the tail wasn't red yet.

I have 5 roos out on free range with the girls and I still loose a bird every couple months or so to the hawks. Actually, I think I lost 3 in the last two months recently.

 

[Biddieacres]

Aww that is too bad! There seems to be a huge hawk population in MA.

 

[Ducklove334]

it's spring, and really you cannot blame the hawks, thats the way I think of it, we've lost only one bird to a hawk, but it didn't have time to carry her off, the dogs scared it, but with spring, hawks are pairing,nesting,mating and hatching chicks, those chicks are hungry, and chickens are an easy prey,


there have been alot of hawks around here, a one of them KNOWS where the chickens are now, I cought it circling for atleast 30 minutes, then it flew off, calling al the way, I can just imagine "HEY,HEY JOE!, I FOUND A BUFFET!, ALL YOU CAN EAT!", it's really only a matter of time before w e have an attack, the hawks know, and there is no mesh top on the pen, the roosters are stupid, it's a garuntee that we will have an attack this summer.

 

[Biddieacres]

I know it is nature taking its course and the hawks are hungry too.

I am taking every precaution so I don't say, "if I only did this, or if I only secured the run etc..." I guess we only have a few birds now and I don't want to loose them.

 

[crysmom]

I lost two birds to a hawk last month. First day it got my partridge chantecler, I thought well since it was a brown bird and the ground was covered in snow it was an easy target, but I put the coop on lockdown and only let the girls out for an hour of outside time a day... but five days later the hawk came back and WENT IN my coop and killed one

My birds are too big to carry away so I guess he just eats them right there. I saw him sitting in the tree that same day, really low. I threw some rocks at him but he didn't leave so my girls were in lockdown for the last month until enough snow melted that I could get in and fix up the chicken yard with netting.

of course my dog is only a little bit bigger than the chickens so now i'm worried about her too