Redtail in pen eating young pullet today!!!! How do I scare it?

[QHcowgirl]

Had chickens for 24 years with never a hawk kill! Only one close one, years ago and the roosters attacked and saved a hen{which was awesone!} Well I happened to walk out to see my horse, and low and behold a redtail took flight, and what was left of my poor pullet was laying there. But they were outback in a small wire pen,{ leftover cukes back there!!!!! Won't do that no more!} not free ranging, which is what I let all my chickens do. I just open all the doors with the summer heat for air flow. Also have a wounded one, that I think won't make it. This looked to be a young redtail, with the few strips on his tail, as a pair have a young one every year here. And I love to watch the redtails, and they are important in our hay fields. I chased him out of the trees by the house, and followed to make sure he left to the fields. But tasty chickens are on the menu here now!!! Great!!!
But do any of you have any ideas on scare tactics???? Looks like I may lock up the coops for afew days so the easy pickings are not here! Their not gonna like it! And I am going to buy netting for over my run now!
Any advice would be helpful. And a big thanks in advance.

 

[shesaredroan]

Hey QHcowGirl,
You are lucky if hawks have not found your flock till now!!!
I live in central Texas, over the ten years I've had chickens coyote have been my main predator problem with just a few redtail loses.
Two years ago I started building my great Pyrenees dog herd......(farm security!!!) Now I have 3 pyrenees dogs and haven't had a coyote on the place (10 acres) since.
I was feeling pretty happy about how well I'd solved my problems.............THEN the hawks showed up this late spring. Shoot!!! Once one problem is solved another one pops up!!!
I put up some black plastic bird netting and a few tarps over their runs and have had pretty good success. Of course that means I can't let my girls out of their runs very often, so they can't free range very much.
Around here the nesting mockingbirds chase and fuss at the crows that are in the area, and the nesting crows chase and fuss at the hawks that are around, it's a real bird ballet to watch!!! The hawks don't fuss at anybody, they just go after the field mice/rats, snakes, rabbits and MY CHICKENS!!!!! BUT the more the crows chase the hawks, the less time the hawks want to stay around!!! : )
I like crows, they help protect my chickens!!!
Good luck QH cow girl, remember, you are smarter than the hawks, it's just that they are hungrier.
: )
Christine

 

[panner123]

You can place a string across the top of yur run every 10 or 15 feet and hang old CDs from that. I did a whole 5 acreas that way to keep the hawks out. It looked funny with all the string and CDs, but the chicken were safe. It has something to do with the reflection of the CCs moning in the wind.