predator

[Treehouse1]

Hi, guys,

New owner, earlier this year, my wife and I got a dozen mixed chicks. We lost two early on to one of my dogs. However, up until today, everything has gone relatively well. we had 10 happy, healthy hens (possibly one or two roosters snuck in) but today, I've lost 2 more.

I found one carcass, LOTS of feathers, no head, no organs that I can see. I buried what was left. The other that I can't find is a small, they called it a bantam at the store, but they are about half the size of the Domonickers (spelling?) with feathers around their feet. I can find no trace of a second strike, and am hoping the little one just got scared, ran off, and will return later.

I currently have the chicks in fenced in area, that I just expanded a few days ago. The one I know I lost was outside of the fence.

We have a lot of free roaming dogs in our neighborhood, and besides I would have thought a dog would have grabbed the bird and run with it. I haven't seen any sign of raccoons/etc. and the bird I lost was not a small one. I am thinking that It might be a hawk, since we have a at least three that are currently in or around our property.

Any advice on getting predators to move on that doesn't involve me getting into a conflict with my neighbors, or the local authorities?



I understand that we are going to lose a bird, every now and then. As I understand it, that is just part of the game, but my wife is beside herself, right now, and any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Kody

 

[SilverBirds]

So sorry for your losses.

What kind of fencing are you using? Is the top of the pen covered? I feel that if it was a bird, of prey, it would have flown off with the chicks. Unless it ate one at the site and took the other for the road. A raccoon, opossum, or rat are other possibilities if you have a covered run space where a bird of prey could not have entered.

It's spelt Dominique.

Bantam is the name for any small breed of chicken. It's a common misconception that bantams is just a singular breed, but like regular sized chickens, (aka, Standard or Large Fowl, or you might see it abbreviated to SF or LF), there are many breeds of bantams, such as Silkies, Seramas, Japanese, Sebrights, Old English Game and many more. There are a few common ones that have feathered feed that your bantam could have been, namely the Cochin/Pekin bantam, d'Uccles, or the Brahma bantam.

 

[Treehouse1]

Hello, everyone.

Update. Fortunately, the small one that I thought I had lost did come back, so I'm only down 1 chicken.

I don't have a roof over the area, and the fence is a heavy duty netting. what I've done is a serious review of the netting. I found a few spots that might have been the exit point. I've run line across the yard, and hung pie plates at intervals, and purchased an owl decoy. So far, the hawks seem to have moved away from the area.

Thank you.

 

[mcdze]

its a constant battle, while your paying attention to it youll tend to lose few birds ..get lax, something will get them .. especially if you free roam them .. so, lock them up in a bulletproof pen at night, be aware of 'when' hawks are around, theyre seasonal and keep them locked up through the morning, and i suggest eliminating every predator you see with no exception .. 'pcp airgun' theyre super quiet and stealthy, dont flash it, you dont want anyone to know you have it, and if the problem predators are mostly at night a thermal optic is a plus ..