I have a little experience with this. We have a red tail that comes every summer (okay maybe not the same one, but anyway). In the first two years he/she took 2 Auracanas, 3 Barred Rocks, and 2 RI Reds, everything, didn't matter what color. Really ticked me off though. Unfortunately I like hawks too, so I kept trying to out think him/her instead of something more drastic.
To make a long story short, after maybe stupid ideas that didn't work, he/she and I have finally reached an agreement as of about three weeks ago. I untangled him/her from the landscape netting I put over the chicken run and let him/her go (with only a few scratches (on me, he/she only had a bruised ego)), and he/she now looks for dinner somewhere else. So far he/she seems to be upholding his/her end of the bargain.
I don't think my wife laughed as hard as when she saw me out there with wire cutters, detangling and talking outloud to that f@$%ing hawk.
I put the netting up last August and haven't lost a chicken since. It's pretty light weight and easy to install, yet sturdy enough to really ruin a winged predators day. I've found a whole new high voltage way of dealing with neighborly dogs but that's another story.
Now I've got a small flock of black sex links. Fantastic layers, and a lot prettier than you'd think.
Good luck!
Mark
To make a long story short, after maybe stupid ideas that didn't work, he/she and I have finally reached an agreement as of about three weeks ago. I untangled him/her from the landscape netting I put over the chicken run and let him/her go (with only a few scratches (on me, he/she only had a bruised ego)), and he/she now looks for dinner somewhere else. So far he/she seems to be upholding his/her end of the bargain.
I don't think my wife laughed as hard as when she saw me out there with wire cutters, detangling and talking outloud to that f@$%ing hawk.
I put the netting up last August and haven't lost a chicken since. It's pretty light weight and easy to install, yet sturdy enough to really ruin a winged predators day. I've found a whole new high voltage way of dealing with neighborly dogs but that's another story.
Now I've got a small flock of black sex links. Fantastic layers, and a lot prettier than you'd think.
Good luck!
Mark
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