So. Many. Hawks. Has anyone tried this or something similar?

[PirateGirl]

but does the kite scare the chickens and ducks because they think there is something large flying overhead?

 

[PirateGirl]

My neighbor did this and had reasonable success keeping wild birds out of her garden. She does not have chickens however.

 

[Aceoky]

The ONLY thing I've found to work worth a dime , is to use pyrotechnics (that go up in the air near the hawks screaming siren or bangers) even then it took some "education" on their part. Every other thing we tried was temporary they came back in a week or two and trying to get free chicken buffets (all they can eat I guess) they paid no attention to us whatsoever they being protected had NO fear of man , I think now they do however it's been weeks since I've seen one (have seen > 200 in a day - probably during the migration) when I do see one it sees me and can't get gone fast enough.

I have no doubt without doing this we'd have far fewer than our 50 chickens even with the fishing line covering their 2500 sq ft run area. I think a couple may have gotten injured with the high vis line (they certainly could see it but ignored it best I can tell) they didn't kill any more pullets and soon avoid the chickens entirely (so far at least)

 

[Below frigid]

I would do like Kimberly 848 and get some bird netting. Fasten with zip ties. Yes the Hawks can see them better after the trees lose their leaves. We had one come after ours a few days ago. Scared him off with the Mossberg. If he comes back he is going on a one way flight!

 

[GldnValleyHens]

I hate hawks. Especially red tails. I’ve lost so many birds to them! Most recently my Serama room Little Ricky. Luckily my flock is very alert to any aerial activity, and I only lose the ornamental breeds. All polish, or other weak breeds now stay locked up.

 

[ThreeOfSeven]

I think hawks are pretty smart, especially when it comes to a juicy dinner. Remember seeing a video (BYC or elsewhere) where a hawk found a way to get into the chickens and made itself a feast. Having said that, I have a small completely enclosed run for my 5 girls, but they spend a good part of the day in the fenced-in backyard. Their favorite space is under a row of pine trees aside our fence and in a small wooded area near the pines. We have red hawks, etc., so I think I'm dancin' with the devil a little here. This spring, we're expanding with a 2nd coop and much larger run (plus more chickens), and that will have a hardware cloth ceiling.

 

[New2Chicks97]

Red tails are the reason we made a large run with a metal roof. I had one try to grab one of my girls while they were free ranging, Miss her then land between me and my chickens about 5 feet from me. I yelled at it and picked up a big stick......it left. I guess it didn’t figure a chicken dinner was worth getting a potential beat down.

 

[cinalee]

antyhing you can find...old shower curtains from the thrift store, etc...