Look who I found watching my hens today...

[JenellYB]

Back some 30 yrs ago, when redtails were extemely endangered, we were so proud and protective over a pair of redtails that took to nesting on our proiperty every year, raising young, within sight of our house. andwe have a farmyard full of chickens. And I never once even suspected they were bothering my chickens. Even as parents feeing hungry young, they didn't. They would sit and watch a lot, but that's just normal hawk behavior,they watch everything going on in their territory, actually seem to enjoy watching all the activity around a place with people and stuff. People see them sitting watching like that, I think, just assume they are sizing up their chickens, planning an attack.

We have Red Tail Hawks flyover all the time, and never go after our chickens. The chickens don't seem to mind them either. Do hawks actually ever take chickens, or only as a last resort ?

 

[sourland]

Keep in mind the smaller hawks that aren't really a threat to chickens do serve a postive purpose being in your area...they prey on mice and rats that would make their way into your coops and feeders! Hawks are not always chicken keepers' enemy, they are friends as well.

Actually this is mostly incorrect if you are talking about Sharpshins and Coopers. They are primarily bird eaters which frequently includes poultry. The larger hawks although primarily mammal eaters can be opportunistic and switch over to poultry if hungry.

 

[7L Farm]

Keep in mind the smaller hawks that aren't really a threat to chickens do serve a postive purpose being in your area...they prey on mice and rats that would make their way into your coops and feeders! Hawks are not always chicken keepers' enemy, they are friends as well.

I like them when they are eating anything but my birds.

 

[BlueBetween]

Actually this is mostly incorrect if you are talking about Sharpshins and Coopers. They are primarily bird eaters which frequently includes poultry. The larger hawks although primarily mammal eaters can be opportunistic and switch over to poultry if hungry.

So far I've seen three photos on the internet of the sharp-shin eating - one was a squirrel, one was a mouse, and one was a small wild bird.

 

[sourland]

So far I've seen three photos on the internet of the sharp-shin eating - one was a squirrel, one was a mouse, and one was a small wild bird.

"Primarily"

 

[Geckochick]

Thank you G-Man - I just got a new lens today, stepped outside to try to capture some photos of the chickadees - and they were all gone - weird! where did all the birds go - ahaha! what is that! A gift from mother nature for my new lens! But then I zoomed in and realized it looked hawkish... and had to lock all the hens up quick.

Yes, I had to comment on the shot, too! Gorgeous bokeh!

 

[oldrooster]

It sounds like if you free range "let the buyer beware" is the key phrase, if you have them in a fenced run then put a cover of some sort. But the key is not allow any prey think your chickens a a free meal. If you make it even a little difficult and depending on the near by food supply the predator's may not even try to touch them, but if food is scarce they may do anything to get to them.

 

[JenellYB]

Same. i think, as burglars and your home. Have lots of expensive goodies out on open display with no obviousl security and you are like to get hit. Make it harder, and they'll move on to another place where its easier. Just as I don't think any homeowner thinks having stuff out on open display without protection is a worthwhile trad-off for having to sit at home on edge with their gun handy to run out and shoot at would-be burglars all the time, life's a lot easier if you just make your place a less attractive target, so they go on by looking for easier pickings. and that can vary with things like local food supllies, predator population/competition for resources.

It sounds like if you free range "let the buyer beware" is the key phrase, if you have them in a fenced run then put a cover of some sort. But the key is not allow any prey think your chickens a a free meal. If you make it even a little difficult and depending on the near by food supply the predator's may not even try to touch them, but if food is scarce they may do anything to get to them.

 

[oldrooster]

A few years back the local paper did a write up because the county and state road crews where dumping road kill in rural areas adjacent to the 4 lane highway in our county in 2 locations, one area they where dumping them the animal carcases where ending up at the bottom of a hill on private property, so the trucks had to switch to disposing of the animals at an incinerator about 40-50 miles from where they where formerly dumping. it seems the northern dump site is about 4 miles away from me and it was in an area where the state highway median was about 100 to 150 yards wide due to rock out cropping and hillsides so the coyotes that where eating on the easy meals had to look for food elsewhere many people with pets including my 2 cats where served for dinner for those scoundrels. I hate loosing my pets and I hate the thought of all the wear and tear fuel and paid man hours lost do to hauling the road kill that far, It seems more financially and environmentally friendly to dump the road kill that way and it kept most predators away from the pets in this area and if there was an over population of predators in that area then allow the people to reduce the herd or relocate them.

 

[JenellYB]

Actually, no, it isn't such a good idea in the long run. While the easy food might provide a brief distraction from domestive livestock a while it is also nature's response to an abundant easy food supply to kick up rate of reproduction and survival of young among those predators, ending in a worse predator population that you started with. It also makes them lazy, eating that free food just laid out there for them. When they need more than that, or the supply stops, their predatory skills may have dulled, even their physical condtion weakended from lack of active hunting, so the natural wild prey is harder for them to catch, making your plump easy to get tame livestock look even better.

A few years back the local paper did a write up because the county and state road crews where dumping road kill in rural areas adjacent to the 4 lane highway in our county in 2 locations, one area they where dumping them the animal carcases where ending up at the bottom of a hill on private property, so the trucks had to switch to disposing of the animals at an incinerator about 40-50 miles from where they where formerly dumping. it seems the northern dump site is about 4 miles away from me and it was in an area where the state highway median was about 100 to 150 yards wide due to rock out cropping and hillsides so the coyotes that where eating on the easy meals had to look for food elsewhere many people with pets including my 2 cats where served for dinner for those scoundrels. I hate loosing my pets and I hate the thought of all the wear and tear fuel and paid man hours lost do to hauling the road kill that far, It seems more financially and environmentally friendly to dump the road kill that way and it kept most predators away from the pets in this area and if there was an over population of predators in that area then allow the people to reduce the herd or relocate them.