Never Experienced This

[Happycowdog]

I have seen hawks around here of course and I am always aware. Nothing has happened and I was beginning to relax, thinking the trees surrounding us were our guards. My cattledog also "babysits" the chickens in our little fenced in area under the big tree while I go to school. Again, no alarms.

Well, I was enjoying a pleasant evening on the porch. I was feeding my three chickens leftover salad and watching the hummingbird come to the feeder (he usually doesn't like the chickens.) I was sitting there enjoying my chicken bliss when a hawk flew in 10 inches from my face out of nowhere, scaring Sonni (chicken) off of the banister, into my lap, and off into the bushes with her sisters!!

Thank God no one was taken.

Now the hawk knows they are here and he will be watching for an open invite. This is now war...

 

[suburbanhomesteader]

Be careful of "war". Killing hawks is illegal.

Are your chickens bantams or pullets/cockerels? I have numerous adult red-tailed hawks which hang around my place and none have ever taken a full-grown hen. I did lose a pullet to a hawk once, and once I lost a near-adult to a juvenile RTH whose eyes were clearly bigger than his take-off capacity. Depending on what it was, it might have just been scoping the situation and if you have standard adults, it might have already decided they were too big.

Cooper's (chicken) hawks are not likely to take a full grown standard size bird; most of their prey is considerably smaller.

In any case, good luck.

 

[Happycowdog]

Yes...I was pretty ticked off last night. No matter how ticked off I am, I would NEVER kill anything that was going after them unless it came to hand to hand, hand to talon, or hand to paw combat of some sort!! I know about the laws. I wouldn't even kill a dog, coyote, raccon or anything! I would just try to scare the daylights out of one of them!! I just don't want anyone coming into my yard and disturbing the peace.

The Redtails are migrating now until November. After the Redtails, then the Cooper's come in from the north. I have actually seen the Cooper take a starling out of the tree and into the snow. I have to know what is out there and I am going to take precautions. My hub is almost finished with the enclosed area.

I honor and respect the Redtails a great deal and they have to eat just like the rest of us, and who is in for an easy, great meal; so no, I would never kill a Redtail, law or no law.

My version of "war" means that it is up to me to make my chickens a hard to get meal!

 

[zazouse]

IMO

Shooting up in the air can be very dangerous unless you are using a flair gun,

If you live in the country like i do bottle rockets are a great deterrent and no one gets hurt , the hawks will learn where no fly zone is in no time if you can be there when they are,i am home all the time.

I do not harass them , just launch a rocket off when they start soring around and don't leave , we just established a territory like they do and they honer it for the most part i haven't lost any birds to them in years.

Living in an area where i could not do this would surely change the way my birds live.

 

[Happycowdog]

Yes, we live in the country. When this happened, I was so upset. We have let those chickens out and about with no problems. I let them out with Jack, my heeler, and he is good at watching them. I was taken totally by surprise when that Redtail took a nose-dive last night. I yelled some obscenities...

I am sure the neighbor heard me.

Anyway, I edited my page before you replied. I did say I would shoot a .22 in the air! I thought, "Jeesh, that would be dangerous, I should take that out of my post!"

I will take your idea on the bottle rockets if my hubs and I don't finish the coop this weekend. The bottle rocket idea is very good! Thanks!

 

[Happycowdog]

Quote:
Yes, our half-peeps are 10 weeks-old. The hawk that flew in was about the Easter Eggers size, but bigger than the other two light Brahma's. My fear is that the hawk will now hunt that area, waiting for an open invitation. Thanks for the insight on the issue!