Magpies stealing my eggs??!! HELP

[Mr Chicken 1]

I know this is rather late but if you are up to shooting the magpies seal of all the entries except the small door that the chickens go through. make the door so that it can slide up and down with a pulley and rope. tie a long rope to this door and then run it through a window or tie it to a post where the magpies won't be able to see you. as soon as you see a magpie hop into the coop untie the rope. thus having the magpie fully captured take a pellet or bb gun and shoot it through an opening. this was the only successful way i found to get rid of them. i really hope this helps!

 

[barbarabackyard]

I finally outwitted the magpies with a fly curtain combination and by filling in all the gaps under the eaves with wire netting.

Every day I'd try something new, found another gap under the roof and blocked it with wire netting, tried using the pop-hole again in the hope the magpies would not find it - all to no avail. Then I finally went and bought this very pretty fly-curtain (used to keep the flies out but it works for magpies too). And it works! I thought it might stop the hens and ducks too but it really doesn't bother them - they trot through quite happily but the magpies don't like it at all.

The hens got really upset and kept finding new places to lay their eggs but the magpies very often found them. I don't mind the wild birds eating the food I put out for the hens but taking the eggs is just not on. Evidently jackdaws are just as bad. If you have trouble with crows a dead crow hung nearby will stop them but I'm told this doesn't work with jackdaws or magpies. Shooting them is of course the best option because it stops them taking the wild birds' eggs - and they take young birds too. Anyway I now have some very happy hens now.