My first hawk attack today and dealing with the guilt....

[leithsloft]

I was there, watching them free ranging as they have since May,,, and it happened so fast. The hawk came swooping down, grabbed one of my Wyandottes and tried to fly off with her. It dropped her and the whole flock, (7 hens, 1 little brahma rooster and 2 guineas, ran for cover. I finally found, after 30 minutes, my Wyandotte hen, bleeding profusely under the shed. She came out when I called her and rushed her in the house. After checking her over, and holding paper towels under her wings to try and slow the bleeding...it stopped. But she lost a lot of blood. This was at 4:00 pm and its now 9:00pm and she is still alive. I have her in my bathroom, in a crate, open to come and go. I gave her a warm bath, sprayed her wounds with, Vetericym and gave her fresh water and some food. She ate, drank and is in the crate but keeps wanting to bite at her wounds. Is there anything else I can do? Do I leave her alone or keep checking on her? I can't lose one of my babies! Feeling so bad and guilty knowing I let them be free and couldn't help with an attack.

 

[Folly's place]

So sorry! Cover your pen with netting or chicken wire or something immediately; the hawk will return until it no longer pays off. They may only hunt every three or four days, so keep the birds out of harm's way for at least ten to fourteen days. Mary

 

[heiditam]

This is such a timely post. My girls have been happily free ranging for about two months with no issues until a couple of days ago. I do think the leaf-less trees is an issue with hawks...

Anyhow, my husband pulls into the drive and yells for me to come out. I come out, and he tells me that he saw a hawk flying out of the yard and all the chickens making a ruckus and taking cover in the woods. I saw a big fluff of downy feathers on the ground, and my girls were in deep deep brush, hiding. And that hawk? Hanging out. Stalking. Moving from limb to limb, tree to tree, completely unafraid of my attempts to shoo it. It just was waiting. This went on for a good long while, more time than I have on my hands. The next day, I heard the crows chasing a hawk off in the morning, and around 3 PM, I had not one but three circling really low where the girls normally are. So, needless to say, my "I only have a coop and free range during the day plan" is OVER. :/ I hate it for them, but, I don't want to just feed these hawks. I am currently building one of those 10x4x6 doggie pens and will spend the next two days covering it with wire. :/

As for the girls...they are ok. Thank goodness! I cannot tell how was de-feathered. They all look great. ????? I feel fortunate that my husband came home at that time!

Anyhow, you cannot feel bad, anyone. There is such a balance between giving them a happy life of free ranging freedom, and protecting that life. I plan to free range, but not as freely as before. I think this is a realization many many chicken owners eventually learn. <3

 

[SilkiesForEver]

Goodness! You're hen is a lucky bird! Sounds like she may pull through, especially since she has such a good caretaker.

 

[minnehaha]

So sorry you have an injured girl. I hope she pulls through, it sounds like you are doing everything right to help her. What are you feeding her? If it were me, I would scramble her some eggs with cheese and milk and give it to her warm. Healing protein, and warm easy to eat soft food does wonders for a wounded baby.

 

[Brookliner]

You might try spraying "bluekote" on the wounds. It is antiseptic and will turn her skin blue so she will be less likely to peck at her wounds. You can get it at your local grain store. Note: when you use it wear rubber gloves and old clothes because everything it touches turns blue.
Best of luck with your bird.

 

[bobbi-j]

I let my silkie chickens out in my fenced front yard...is this considered 'free ranging' ? I see hawks fly way up in the sky and never thought about them hunting my silkies...there are bushes and trees along the edges for cover. Once in the summer i saw a hawk swoop low between the house and coop/trees, the trees and bushes were thick with leaves then, so i think it was a deterrent...but now the trees are bare and things are more open... i haven't seen a hawk fly low here again...are my chicken in danger? You said a hawk swooped down and took a large chicken right in front of you? how far away were you? was it in the open? I think i have lot's of ground cover for them to hide under....but now i'm worried after reading this

Some people consider any time out of the coop or run "free ranging". I don't know how big your yard is, or how long they get to be unpenned, so I really can't say. What I will say is, any time your chickens are out of a secure coop and run, they are vulnerable to predators. A hawk, fox, coyote, neighbor's dog, or even your own dog can attack so quickly you and your chicken may never know what hit it. We were pheasant hunting once, and my cousin had a hawk swoop right over his head and take a hen pheasant right in front of him. They can be pretty brazen.

 

[deacons]

OP, I lost one of my first chickens to a hawk attack only a couple of months after having them. I wanted them to be "natural" and have free run of the acreage, and I learned the hard way that chickens are an easy mark for predators. I now do supervised free-range time, as you're describing, but even that has its risks. A few weeks ago, we had an attempted hawk attack while I was standing just a few feet away from the girls. Luckily, they all scattered and found hiding places with no injuries. But I couldn't believe the hawk was so bold with me right there.

You've gotten great advice about caring for your injured girl. I would echo what people have said about keeping her warm and keeping high-protein options in front of her. If you post some pictures of her wounds, you'll probably get more specific advice, but vetericyn and triple antiobiotic ointment have always been my fallback for cuts.

Hope she continues her recovery! We'll all be pulling for you.

 

[leithsloft]

Sweet Pea is doing great today! Her wounds are healing nicely and she is leaving them alone. She is one lucky hen! I thought maybe the other girls wouldn't lay today due to the trauma of the attack. 4 out of 7 laid this morning! Thanks everyone for the kind comments and wonderful advice! Renee

 

[Folly's place]

When I have a hawk attack, I lock my flock in their coop and safe run for one to three weeks, until the hawk moves on. The good news is that the hawk will only take one bird at a time, and confining the flock saves everyone else. Lots of shrubs for shelter helps too, but lockdown is essential to discourage the offending raptor. Mary