Lady feeding raptors - law on my side?

[spolicas]

Call your Dept. of Fish and Game and Wildlife office. I have a neighbor who was feeding vultures! Because she was putting out meat or rotten meat, depended on her mood, it also brought all sorts of fun things to our farm. When I called the above, they did go out and she did get a verbal warning, she ended our friendship, after having asked her politely multiple times, and is quite rude and nasty now. We still have trouble with her AND 2 other people feeding the wildlife on our road so I live by the 3 S's...shoot, shovel, and shut up.

I look at it that my chickens depend on me to take care of them. Mine do not roam, they do not get into anyone's yard or dig up bulbs or spray urine on their horse blankets (like the above neighbors cat has done to me), or anything else. So why should I have to put up with a crazy old woman who has nothing better to do than feed the wildlife around me because for her, she wants to see it up close...if that is the case, go to a zoo!!

I called the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission and it is perfectly legal to feed/handle raptors in The State of Florida - so long as they are not being penned. I am going to call the Florida Department of Agriculture and report her as a nuisance to my farm, maybe?

I do know in The State of Florida that we do have a law which allows us to buy fireworks that lift off the ground for agricultural purposes (otherwise they are banned). As most people abuse the law, I am unable to find much of anything that is helpful related to agriculture use online. I do know though if I get an Agricultural Fireworks Permit that I can light off ground-to-air rockets whenever this lady or the birds are around in order to protect my property and defend my right to farm. Has anyone used this?

 

[Oregon Blues]

Every year around the 4th of July, my town spends a couple million dollars fighting fires started by fireworks.

Now, I know Florida can be wet, but at least look into whether or not that might be a problem in your area.

I also think you are causing yourself a lot of unnecessary stress by trying to control what your neighbors do on their own property. You will be happier in the long run if you concentrate more on things that you actually have control over.

 

[centrarchid]

I called the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission and it is perfectly legal to feed/handle raptors in The State of Florida - so long as they are not being penned. I am going to call the Florida Department of Agriculture and report her as a nuisance to my farm, maybe?

I do know in The State of Florida that we do have law which allows us to buy fireworks that lift off the ground for agricultural purposes. As most people abuse the law, I am unable to find much of anything that is helpful related to agriculture use online. I do know though if I get a Agricultural Fireworks Permit that I can light off ground-to-air rockets whenever this lady or the birds are around in order to protect my property and defend my right to farm. Has anyone used this?

spolicas,

I do not do this very often but for your situation I agree with Oregon Blues. Your neighbor is operating well within rights. The harassment system you propose works only while your are there to operate them and cost you will find is prohibitive. Even if raptors were not being trapped or kept by a falconer, your flock would be subject to predation by the typical raptor community, so look into methods to prevent such losses. They will work for typical as well as enhanced raptor presence. Confine your birds in raptor resistant run or coop. Provide cover birds can seek. If flock not already of mixed gender, then get an adult standard sized rooster, a gamerooster would be better. Rooster plus cover can be very effective deterant for hawk. Look into using a dog. A dog can break a hawks back or wing in single bite and since hawks know this they will not be as likely to attack. My place crawls with red-shouldered, red-tailed, and Coopers Hawks yet I have not lost any birds to such for over a year despite hawks being very much aware of my place and even making overflights with prey back to there nest and now fledged offspring. I manage this with free-ranging young birds through use of all the management options I suggested. Best part is I still have hawks.

 

[jak2002003]

Here is an idea: pen up you chickens in a covered run.

No more problems.

Let the lady feed her birds and you keep you chickens safe.

Plus it is very unlikely she can feed an osprey as they eat fish, not meat, and are hunters, not scavengers.

Maybe she is doing you a favour - the hawks are well fed - so they will not want to eat your chickens.

 

[spolicas]

Every year around the 4th of July, my town spends a couple million dollars fighting fires started by fireworks.

Now, I know Florida can be wet, but at least look into whether or not that might be a problem in your area.

I also think you are causing yourself a lot of unnecessary stress by trying to control what your neighbors do on their own property. You will be happier in the long run if you concentrate more on things that you actually have control over.

Very true. I will keep all of that in mind. Thank you.

 

[spolicas]

Here is an idea: pen up you chickens in a covered run.

No more problems.

Let the lady feed her birds and you keep you chickens safe.

Plus it is very unlikely she can feed an osprey as they eat fish, not meat, and are hunters, not scavengers.

Maybe she is doing you a favour - the hawks are well fed - so they will not want to eat your chickens.

Possibly... but I have seen a hawk come down, kill a hen, and then leave - as if it were for sport.

And I do keep my hens in a coop, also when they are free ranging I keep a very close eye on them.

Glad to know she can't feed the Osprey, although it does hangout around my barn a lot... hopefully it won't try to go after my chickens like the hawks do.

Thanks.

 

[spolicas]

spolicas,

I do not do this very often but for your situation I agree with Oregon Blues. Your neighbor is operating well within rights. The harassment system you propose works only while your are there to operate them and cost you will find is prohibitive. Even if raptors were not being trapped or kept by a falconer, your flock would be subject to predation by the typical raptor community, so look into methods to prevent such losses. They will work for typical as well as enhanced raptor presence. Confine your birds in raptor resistant run or coop. Provide cover birds can seek. If flock not already of mixed gender, then get an adult standard sized rooster, a gamerooster would be better. Rooster plus cover can be very effective deterant for hawk. Look into using a dog. A dog can break a hawks back or wing in single bite and since hawks know this they will not be as likely to attack. My place crawls with red-shouldered, red-tailed, and Coopers Hawks yet I have not lost any birds to such for over a year despite hawks being very much aware of my place and even making overflights with prey back to there nest and now fledged offspring. I manage this with free-ranging young birds through use of all the management options I suggested. Best part is I still have hawks.

Yeah we only have Buff Oprington hens, I may get a rooster... we'll see about that, it's just in the past we've had bad experiences with roosters (not very nice as pets).

We do have a raptor resistant coop and the chickens also have cover, plus I am always at the barn when they are outside their coop.

We also have a German Shepherd/Lab mix dog.

Okay, your situation gives me some hope. Thanks!

 

[centrarchid]

Yeah we only have Buff Oprington hens, I may get a rooster... we'll see about that, it's just in the past we've had bad experiences with roosters (not very nice as pets).

We do have a raptor resistant coop and the chickens also have cover, plus I am always at the barn when they are outside their coop.

We also have a German Shepherd/Lab mix dog.

Okay, your situation gives me some hope. Thanks!

Hens only and young bird only always a method for me to feed hawks when free ranging. Get a game rooster if possible. Most of those are way above average in respect to being friendly and they are also more capable of dealing with small predators like hawks if cover available. Having your dog out with chickens helps immensly. Dog confined is close to useless.

 

[spolicas]

Hens only and young bird only always a method for me to feed hawks when free ranging. Get a game rooster if possible. Most of those are way above average in respect to being friendly and they are also more capable of dealing with small predators like hawks if cover available. Having your dog out with chickens helps immensly. Dog confined is close to useless.

Yeah, the dog has started to come out with me. I'll look into a game rooster, is that a breed?

I may try another Orpington roo... the last two I had were very aggressive, but I also had an Orpinglorp rooster who was very docile.

 

[Achickenwrangler#1]

You may look into American games or old English game fowl, you prob have a few people in Florida that have them! I have lots of hawks where I live now, but they usually go after smaller chickens and chicks, then the rest learn to look out and hide....I'm not sure bout Fla laws and raptors since they are governed by special interests, but here, you can kill any bird of prey that is killing your livestock....just make certain it is...I have few losses from hawks, don't know why exactly....but I gotta say, the person feeding that hawk is an idiot, if she knew what she was doing, she would stop in their best interests. She probably killed the hawk herself feeding it spoiled meat since that is not their mainstay. I'm really surprised there isn't a law against feeding wildlife of any sort in Florida....next it will be gators. I'd start digging for that blanket law.