OHio ~ Come on Buckeyes, let me know your out there!

[cluckitall]

Just pm'ed you, Janalyn!

 

[loveourbirds]

Hi all! I just joined. I'm near Delaware, so I'm hoping I can come browse. No chickens (or coop) yet, but I want to learn all I can before I start with chickens.

welcome to the thread and

feel free to just "jump right in", i don't think you ever quit learning about chickens. to me, thats part of what keeps it interesting.

 

[KirstenJL]

For those that have used the electronetting, did you do any kind of "roof/cover/hawk protection"? We have a LOT of hawks here. You can't look up without seeing one, and can see them nesting in the trees all around. I'm not sure how you would go about adding a top to that sort of fencing.

Sorry it took me so long to reply to this--you miss a couple of days on this forum, and you never catch up! I put strings with plastic flagging over the runs to deter hawks. It seems to work--I had one chick disappear mysteriously last year, but that's the only one that might have gone the hawk route. I've heard that the bright white netting itself can put a hawk off. I also give the chickens a lot of natural cover in their runs (which is pretty easy to do with the netting). I try to make it difficult for the hawks--I prop the coop doors open just wide enough for the chickens to get through and leave them that way all the time so the chickens get used to it. I figure when the hawk comes down, it might give the chicken that extra second to get inside the coop. Despite my best efforts, I have a lot of roosters around! They all seem to know to keep their eyes to the sky.

I have just a couple of acres, but I've let most of it revert back to fields/woods. There's a lot of habitat, and I suppose a lot of natural prey around for the hawks. I think chickens are more vulnerable when they're in an open area where the hawks can see them from far off and have a lot of room to maneuver on approach.

It might depend too on what kind of hawks you have around. Cooper's hawks naturally eat birds--they're aggressive, fast, and maneuver easily through woods. They apparently won't hesitate to bring down a chicken bigger than they are, but when I was feeding my wild birds before I got chickens I noticed that they seemed to target the mourning doves. So I think that's their natural prey size. Red-tailed hawks hunt from perches, then swoop down. If they don't have room or a good angle to swoop, that might help. I've heard red-shouldered hawks don't target chickens at all. We don't have any falcons here, but if you do, you might be in trouble!

In the summer, vultures roost (and maybe nest) in my little woodlot, and year-round there are resident crows. The crows especially seem to deter raptors. I never see hawks around in the summer. This time of year during migration with new hawks coming through I worry. And I suppose that if I had resident raptors around they'd get used to the setup and start feasting!

 

[Inkheart]

Hi all! I just joined. I'm near Delaware, so I'm hoping I can come browse. No chickens (or coop) yet, but I want to learn all I can before I start with chickens.

Welcome - Marysville here!

 

[minihorse927]

Yeah, I want to get a few faverolles sometime so I can have some more pinkish eggs in the basket. The basques occasionally give me a cople that are kind of a tawny pink-tan, at least Glad to hear about the air cells -- I was worried about those two extra SFHs...

I've got a few extra favorelle pullets, but no cockerel to go with them right now

 

[big medicine]

Sorry it took me so long to reply to this--you miss a couple of days on this forum, and you never catch up! I put strings with plastic flagging over the runs to deter hawks. It seems to work--I had one chick disappear mysteriously last year, but that's the only one that might have gone the hawk route. I've heard that the bright white netting itself can put a hawk off. I also give the chickens a lot of natural cover in their runs (which is pretty easy to do with the netting). I try to make it difficult for the hawks--I prop the coop doors open just wide enough for the chickens to get through and leave them that way all the time so the chickens get used to it. I figure when the hawk comes down, it might give the chicken that extra second to get inside the coop. Despite my best efforts, I have a lot of roosters around! They all seem to know to keep their eyes to the sky.

I have just a couple of acres, but I've let most of it revert back to fields/woods. There's a lot of habitat, and I suppose a lot of natural prey around for the hawks. I think chickens are more vulnerable when they're in an open area where the hawks can see them from far off and have a lot of room to maneuver on approach.

It might depend too on what kind of hawks you have around. Cooper's hawks naturally eat birds--they're aggressive, fast, and maneuver easily through woods. They apparently won't hesitate to bring down a chicken bigger than they are, but when I was feeding my wild birds before I got chickens I noticed that they seemed to target the mourning doves. So I think that's their natural prey size. Red-tailed hawks hunt from perches, then swoop down. If they don't have room or a good angle to swoop, that might help. I've heard red-shouldered hawks don't target chickens at all. We don't have any falcons here, but if you do, you might be in trouble!

In the summer, vultures roost (and maybe nest) in my little woodlot, and year-round there are resident crows. The crows especially seem to deter raptors. I never see hawks around in the summer. This time of year during migration with new hawks coming through I worry. And I suppose that if I had resident raptors around they'd get used to the setup and start feasting!

Just wanted to say with the succesfull reintroduction of peregrine falcons, they are getting more common in Ohio. Breeding pairs in most larger cities now days.

 

[KirstenJL]

Just wanted to say with the succesfull reintroduction of peregrine falcons, they are getting more common in Ohio. Breeding pairs in most larger cities now days.

Yeah, I watch the Columbus pair's webcam when they're nesting. Can't say I'm sorry they're coming back! I haven't seen any falcon larger than a kestrel here though.

 

[Natashka]

Welcome - Marysville here!

Awesome! I'm between Marysville and Delaware.

 

[ekeyser73]

Just a reminder.....next weekend Oct. 5th and 6th is the poultry show in Lucasville.

 

[loveourbirds]

Just a reminder.....next weekend Oct. 5th and 6th is the poultry show in Lucasville.

that is the show, and not the swap- but you can buy some great chickens at the show. i wanted to try and show something at that show, but not going to have time - i am going to the swap on friday though. gotta get rid of some of these puppies LOL. we still have 9.