Six Chickens Adopted Us - Need to Find Home - One already killed by hawk.

[BigBlueHen53]

This is just sad. I'm so sorry for this!

 

[TwoShepherds]

Did you try buying a small bag of feed and leaving some on the ground to lure her down? You could try putting some feed or treats in a live animal trap (I rented one from the local humane society once to catch a skittish cat that I wanted to adopt).

 

[dadamato]

Seriously. Still could not get her out of trees. Went out last night and she was not there. Only came back for a brief visit today. Snow starts tonight. She will be a goner. Any suggestion? And just now, another black hen just appeared who we can not also catch. This is ridiculous. When will folks start taking care of them own animals.

UPDATE: Red hen came back late this evening but back in the trees. Black hen back here now two. Cannot catch either one of them. Five remaining still doing fine in make-shift coop. Lows tomorrow 6. They will surely parish. Anyone have any silly idea on how to possibly catch these little girls?

 

[dadamato]

This is just sad. I'm so sorry for this!

Thank you. And yes it is. Any suggestions on how to capture these little girls would be appreciated. Tried coaxing with food under the tree (when they are in the tree). When we look away for just a minute they end up disappearing and then we spend hours trying to find them. As soon as we give up, they show up just long enough to let us know they are still alive but that does not help us. They still will not let us catch them. We are both senior citizens so our options are limited.

 

[AgnesGray]

I have no advice, but it's so good of you to care that they need help. Hopefully someone in your area can help with catching advice/assistance or adoption.

 

[Eggscaping]

Seriously. Still could not get her out of trees. Went out last night and she was not there. Only came back for a brief visit today. Snow starts tonight. She will be a goner. Any suggestion? And just now, another black hen just appeared who we can not also catch. This is ridiculous. When will folks start taking care of them own animals.

My advice (we are senior citizens too) is take a deep breath or two and relax a bit. Predators are a threat, yes - but not the cold. If you read articles here you will see that chickens have the same feathers and under-down that wild birds have. Most posters here who own chickens...even in very cold climes, attest to the fact that chickens are able to survive in single digits if they can stay dry and get out of the wind...which is probably why they get into the trees - they aren't down on the cold ground (predators skulking about) and the branches and/or trunk will provide some protection from the wind.
You're doing a very kind thing, and are to be commended for doing so! That being said, you should do what you can do, and accept that you may or may not be successful for all of them, but - the predators do have to eat too and are only trying to survive. Good luck, and please let us know what happens.

 

[ariri30]

My advice (we are senior citizens too) is take a deep breath or two and relax a bit. Predators are a threat, yes - but not the cold. If you read articles here you will see that chickens have the same feathers and under-down that wild birds have. Most posters here who own chickens...even in very cold climes, attest to the fact that chickens are able to survive in single digits if they can stay dry and get out of the wind...which is probably why they get into the trees - they aren't down on the cold ground (predators skulking about) and the branches and/or trunk will provide some protection from the wind.
You're doing a very kind thing, and are to be commended for doing so! That being said, you should do what you can do, and accept that you may or may not be successful for all of them, but - the predators do have to eat too and are only trying to survive. Good luck, and please let us know what happens.

Very well said!

 

[dadamato]

Seriously. Still could not get her out of trees. Went out last night and she was not there. Only came back for a brief visit today. Snow starts tonight. She will be a goner. Any suggestion? And just now, another black hen just appeared who we can not also catch. This is ridiculous. When will folks start taking care of them own animals.

She survived another night but tonight it is going to be -10 including windchill. She did come down from tree and ate some (as long as we did not get near her). Going to try another form of a trap. She went back up in the tree when the wind picked up and the snow was going right at her. All the articles I have read about tame chickens. She is not. And she still does not trust us. Leaving her in tree for now as better than being on the ground. She is a smart one and does not want to be caught. Does not realize we are trying to help her. Next two days are going to be very frigid. Maybe if she gets so bad she falls out of the tree or cannot get away from us, we can rescue her.

 

[dadamato]

My advice (we are senior citizens too) is take a deep breath or two and relax a bit. Predators are a threat, yes - but not the cold. If you read articles here you will see that chickens have the same feathers and under-down that wild birds have. Most posters here who own chickens...even in very cold climes, attest to the fact that chickens are able to survive in single digits if they can stay dry and get out of the wind...which is probably why they get into the trees - they aren't down on the cold ground (predators skulking about) and the branches and/or trunk will provide some protection from the wind.
You're doing a very kind thing, and are to be commended for doing so! That being said, you should do what you can do, and accept that you may or may not be successful for all of them, but - the predators do have to eat too and are only trying to survive. Good luck, and please let us know what happens.

Thank you for the kind words. That is very much appreciated. I personally know nothing about chickens accept my parents bought some chicks for easter when I was kid and supposedly they were supposed to die. Not my chickens. They became full grown and I named everyone. I came home from school one day and they had been butchered. My mom cooked them for dinner which I refused to eat and had a peanut butter sandwich in memory of the one chicken I named Peanut Butter. I've never changed. Right now we have a horse, six cats and a bird. That is small in comparison to what we used to have. I just can't stand the thought of her suffering, but perhaps you are right. Maybe she is tougher than I give her credit. Thanks for your words of advice. Much appreciated.

 

[dadamato]

Did you try buying a small bag of feed and leaving some on the ground to lure her down? You could try putting some feed or treats in a live animal trap (I rented one from the local humane society once to catch a skittish cat that I wanted to adopt).

Yes. Right now we have a dog crate out there wrapped in a tarp that will not flap. She is very skittish and any noise scares her. This morning she did come down to eat but when the snow started hitting her, she went back in the tree. She heard her siblings in the coop and acted like she wanted to go in, but there is no way we could open the door without letting the other five out which is what we DO NOT want to do. Yes...we left her bird food ( she really likes that) her chicken feed with cracked corn and some sunflower seeds and raisins. The comes down but there is no way we can catch her. We do have live traps but I think she may be too big for that. Thank you so much for your advice though. Much appreciated.