Maine

[quailtrail]

Mine free range when someone is home and can keep an ear and eye out for them. The teenagers (our 2pm olds) are out ranging the past few days. I was hoping they would integrate with the group but they all keep separate they did go right into the garage and into their cage all on their own the other night...so yay!!!

 

[dlynne1123]

So sorry for your loss.  How did he get in?

I used an old greenhouse frame for my tractor with chicken wire wrapped thoroughly around and underneath. It was intended to grow out my babies until they were big enough to incorporate with the big girls. It was wrapped, pinned and ziplock tied at any corner but he chewed at a corner enough to fray some wire. We caught him in the act this morning, couldn't get a good shot, by then I realized all but two were gone or dead. One is pretty badly injured. Alive, with several punctures. TSC didn't have any electrolytes. Not sure what else I can give. He's inside now and I'm watching him. He's feisty and doesn't want me to get a closer look, and it didn't want to stress him. His friend is screaming for a buddy but I'm afraid to put them together with his injuries.

If he makes it to Monday I can get some stuff at work. (A vet) just not sure what to put topically or injectable that is safe?

From 16 eggs, to 9 chicks to, 1 blue ameraucana roo, and 1 black Ameraucana unknown. (Probably a roo with my luck!)

Haven't had a loss in over a year in our big run/coop, but we learned we needed a roof or netting in the run area the hard way. We buried the wire 12" deep and aproned it out away from the pen about 2'. When we tried free range we had too many losses for me to have eggs be satisfying enough for all my hard work! Now they are penned up unless I'm home working in the yard. The critters would scare my girls into the trees and all about, then pick them off. So without netting they learned it was easier to spook the birds than try to get into the pen. Even with a hot wire we had diggers and climbers. Fat raccoons!

Raccoons, skunks, possum, weasels, were at night. Fox issues were dawn and dusk. Coyote was broad daylight and awfully brazen, which is why we shot her. With 3 large dogs, and only an acre in Kennebunk Me, we have quite the critter problem!

Hope someone can learn from my losses!

A secure coop run combo so you don't have to worry about locking them up each day/night is ideal. With only 10 birds at a time, it's devastating when you lose a few. It messes with all my partnerships, my girls have to readdress their hierarchy, and I have to re raise chicks. (Not that I mind it, it's just I want those eggs as a reward for 6 months of feeding and caring for!) I was really hoping for my foundation stock for Ameraucana breeding. I wanted to try to breed and hatch my own for the first time! Next year!

 

[lazy gardener]

Thanks for sharing Dlynne1123. Sounds like you have a huge predator load. We used to hear coyotes a lot, but haven't heard them much this year. Perhaps they aren't around as much, or perhaps my ears are getting older. There was also a fox visiting my yard last summer, but he didn't get any meals here. This is only my second year. My girls get out to range when i am home, and just the past 3 days, i've been letting the littles out as well. I'm using electronet fencing for their run. The coop which is cattle panel, is covered and aproned with 1/2" hardware cloth. The coop is enclosed in the electronet run. The run sits in an area of the yard with trees close on the north and west. So far, i've not had any losses, but, honestly, with the coon and skunks around, not to mention renegade dog risk, it's just a matter of time. Not many hawks around this year, hopefully because the crow population is up. One thing i've done in the run is let the grass grow tall and put an extra fiberglass fence post every ten feet or so, as well as parked the 7 x 6 and 3 x 6 tractors for shade and extra protection. It looks trashy, but provides lots of obstacles for any hawk to work around before he can snack on chicken. By far, i think the most important predator deterrent is to close the chickens into the coop every night without fail.

I've heard of one BYC person who uses tennis balls soaked in ammonia. She then hangs them in the trees around the periphery of her property. She swears that it keeps the predators away. An other thing i've heard recommended is to tie fishing line so it makes an overhead obstacle course. Some say it's effective against hawks. Others say that it's just a matter of time before the hawks figure it out. Other folks swear by the plastic owls or snakes, but they need to be moved frequently to be effective. Then, there's the recommendation to hang streamers, pie plates, old CDs, any thing that will move in the breeze. Last, but not least is the scare crow.

 

[Heatherschix]

Thank you dlynne1123 for your story...so sorry for your loss.

I'm afraid I may have a similar situation here with the wildlife.. I know we have fox, coyote, bear, raccoon, skunks, and all the little buggers...I've heard the coyote but never seen, I have see evidence of fox on the edge of the field, and this spring we caught a bear tearing down my bird feeder off the house...so I decided feeding the birds is not worth the risk. I have no qualms about shooting any predator that threatens my my flock. I know some don't agree with that, but you have to protect your investment, and I believe it's my responsibility to keep the chickens safe...jmo

I don't think I will free range after reading the stories...maybe only a couple hours before dusk while I'm working in the garden. I have an outdoor enclosure that I will wrap it a second time with hardware cloth before I put the chooks in. More expensive, but it will save lives in the long run. I will also use staple nails to reinforce the corners. The outdoor pen has a wooden roof with shingles...The coop is basically a wooden box with cedar shingles....is there anything else I could do?
Seems I may expand a bit on the other side of the run....since I have decided not to free range. I want to give them more secure space. I will be building another two maybe three of these coops so I want to make sure I do this right.

Oh...some asked, I am starting out my flock with cream legbars from the greenfire line, french black copper marans from the Bev Davis line...I also have dark laying olive eggers and easter eggers for some extra color. As soon as I sort their living situation I plan to get some tolbunt polish, but probably not until next year.

Any advice is very welcomed for keeping the precious ones safe. Seems everything likes the taste of chicken, well maybe not the wild bunnies we have...thank goodness for that.

 

[superchemicalgirl]

I swear by the fishing line strung up crazily as a hawk deterrent. Unfortunately if you have birds that like to fly out they get tangled in it. I've had to remove a couple tight lines from around feet/legs/wings. I only put it up in the fall when the hawks are at their worst. Otherwise in the other months I rarely lose to hawks, those months are land predators.

 

[Heatherschix]

I swear by the fishing line strung up crazily as a hawk deterrent. Unfortunately if you have birds that like to fly out they get tangled in it. I've had to remove a couple tight lines from around feet/legs/wings. I only put it up in the fall when the hawks are at their worst. Otherwise in the other months I rarely lose to hawks, those months are land predators.

That sounds like a great idea, and maybe clip one wing so the chickens don't get caught up in the fishing line...have you ever used bird netting?

We do have a lot of hawks now. I have watched them hunt in our fields from my kitchen window.

 

[lazy gardener]

Thanks SCG. Where've you been? It's nice to also hear from long term keepers about the seasonality of predator loss.

 

[dlynne1123]

I also like the hot wire netting. The coyote was successfull last year at convincing the hens to fly out, then she picked a couple off. Now we only do it while we are home. I like it bc I can move it and navigate them away from my garden! Crossing fingers but we haven't had a hawk problem but we have plenty of trees for then to hide under! If they hear a loud screech they all sprint for the blue spruce!

 

[superchemicalgirl]

Thanks SCG. Where've you been? It's nice to also hear from long term keepers about the seasonality of predator loss.

Been so busy! I've got to finish putting in my garden today and then hopefully from here on out I'm back to "normal" amounts of chores.

My run is waaaaay too big to use a net... this isn't even all of it, it keeps going to the left of the picture. If a net works for you, use it! I just haphazardly string up fishing line. Even if it just slows the hawks and eagles down, it gives my birds some extra time to scoot under or into the coop.

 

[Widget]

NCR in any way but I had to share.
I hate retractable leads. Because of one a dog is now dead. A beautiful 2 yr old black lab from Scarborough, ME who broke free of his owners grasp and ran right in front of my truck. There was nothing I could do. The owners did rush him to the vet but he was unconscious, bleeding from his head and had lost control of his bowels so it did not look good. The cops were really nice, three all together, and so were the neighbors and the guy in the vehicle behind me who stopped and took charge of the situation. What a great way to start a day.
When I stopped at the butchers to pick up some meat for satin balls I also bought some marrow bones for my guys. They all received big hugs too and not to mention a few tears shed into their fur.