Southern NY, Dutchess county and below

[Harborview Hens]

Warmheart.....love the pictures! Your little chicks are just so cute. Mine were about 8 weeks old when I got them and well past the cute and fuzzy stage.

Jersey Hen......I am so glad that I live on Long Island...NO BEARS!!!! I would hate looking over my shoulder and wondering ......the predators here are fox, possum, raccoons and birds of prey. But bears??? Thank you NO!

 

[JerseyHen]

No invasion last night, but I did see claw marks in the dust on the window sill. I am pretty certain that a raccoon made an attempt at it, but it seems it couldn't get in. I will be setting the trap out tonight just in case.

Anyone want some bobwhite quail? I think I can sex them soon. I am only keeping 4 or 5 pair, so I should have several pair left over for sale.

 

[magsrags]

Christina, What would you do if that bear were to begin tearing your coop apart? Are you allowed to shoot an invasive bear in your neck of the woods should it threaten you and your "livestock/pets" ?
I'm really curious to know what the law provides you with these day us in NJ for situations like that.

Scaring them off isn't easy............I don't know for sure what I'd do but my first instinct tells me to protect my own and the consequences be darned.

 

[queenchick16]

Well Lretta took her final 3 kids today.theyll be losing their minds tonight in their new home without their sisters.

My little frizzle is just so tiny, I dont think it's growing any more.
The little silkies I brought home from the conference in Jan. are just so cuddly it's adorable.
What happens if you get a roo from one of these hatcheries that you ordered Pullets from? I really think the salmon Fav is a roo. I just can't win with that breed. Christina I have broke my streak with polish though, thanks to you.

My Wyandotte was attacked by my Ameracanua yesterday. Put a hole in one of her wattles, and in her comb.didnt require stitches like 2yeats ago.Richard has to clip her beak again. I think the new kids are driving her crazy so she takes it out on Kalesie
Peas have flowers and the lettuce is coming in like crazy.

 

[Cheeky Chick]

Christina, What would you do if that bear were to begin tearing your coop apart? Are you allowed to shoot an invasive bear in your neck of the woods should it threaten you and your "livestock/pets" ?
I'm really curious to know what the law provides you with these day us in NJ for situations like that.

Scaring them off isn't easy............I don't know for sure what I'd do but my first instinct tells me to protect my own and the consequences be darned.

I don't know what the law is exactly with bears, but I know upstate, if you are threatened, you can shoot them-just don't miss! They're far more dangerous when irritated.

Out here-we have these God-awful raccoons. The DEC rules are very clear-you cannot trap and relocated a raccoon. you must either call animal control, or kill it yourself. At this point, after losing my whole flock, several years back, I have to say-I'd have no hesitation to dispatch a raccoon if it got into my coop.

Lovey, my Buff Orp that was broody, so I got her the white austras to raise? Yeah, she's done raising them, they are part of the flock, and guess what? Yep-she's broody again.

She went back to laying about 2 weeks ago, and now-she's back to sitting all mean and growly on the nest. Now what? Eh, I'll think about it when I get home from East Durham.

I hope everyone has a grand Memorial day weekend, I'm outta here tomorrow morning until Monday. I can't wait!

 

[JerseyHen]

Christina, What would you do if that bear were to begin tearing your coop apart? Are you allowed to shoot an invasive bear in your neck of the woods should it threaten you and your "livestock/pets" ?
I'm really curious to know what the law provides you with these day us in NJ for situations like that.

Scaring them off isn't easy............I don't know for sure what I'd do but my first instinct tells me to protect my own and the consequences be darned.

We leave them alone unless they threaten or destroy. I am pretty sure we can shoot them to protect ourselves, not that I would hesitate to protect myself, law or not. If they are damaging property we can have the dept of fish and game come trap them. They took a sow and several cubs in a trap a few years ago because she was breaking into garages. We have several category 2 and 3 bears around our property. The one the other night is pushing a category 1. My husband pulled right up to it in the car (he was just getting home from work) with his lights on it and the horn and it just kept licking mayo out of a jar. Not exactly scared of people. It kept him trapped outside for about 10 minutes before it finally decided to move along.

Here is how they deal with bears in NJ:

HOW DO YOU KNOW IF A BEAR IN YOUR YARD IS DANGEROUS:

In the state of New Jersey there are 3 categories of Bears. Category I,II, and III. You can tell what category of bear it is by banging two pots together through an open window. If the bear doesn’t leave from this noise you need to call the police. If the bear does leave it is most likely a category III bear and is just passing through. Here is a breakdown of what determines the categories of bears:

​

CATEGORY I: BAD BEARS These bears must be destroyed.

· Bears that attack humans.
· Bears that attack livestock and pets.
· Bears that charge people, chase people, and come within 10 feet of people.
· Bears that cause $500.00 of damage to a house, shed, car or garage.

CATEGORY II: PROBLEM BEARS. These bears must be conditioned

· When the bear comes back again and again after you have taken away what the bear was eating.
· When the bear does not leave after you bang two pots together.
· Any property damage less than $500.00 to your house, shed, garage or car.

CATEGORY III: NORMAL BEARS.

· Bears that are just passing through going from one section of woods to another.
· Bears in the woods seen while camping, hiking and hunting
· Bears that run away when people are present making noise.
· These bears may be at your bird feeder or garbage can but when they hear or see a human they leave.

Well Lretta took her final 3 kids today.theyll be losing their minds tonight in their new home without their sisters.

My little frizzle is just so tiny, I dont think it's growing any more.
The little silkies I brought home from the conference in Jan. are just so cuddly it's adorable.
What happens if you get a roo from one of these hatcheries that you ordered Pullets from? I really think the salmon Fav is a roo. I just can't win with that breed. Christina I have broke my streak with polish though, thanks to you.

My Wyandotte was attacked by my Ameracanua yesterday. Put a hole in one of her wattles, and in her comb.didnt require stitches like 2yeats ago.Richard has to clip her beak again. I think the new kids are driving her crazy so she takes it out on Kalesie
Peas have flowers and the lettuce is coming in like crazy.

Yay for polish pullets!!! As to the roosters from a hatchery, unless it goes over 10% wrong on the sexing, I don't think they will refund or anything. I can tell you that one of the NN so far is definitely a roo. We named him Bert. He is a love so far.

 

[lichick28]

I know this wont help if you have a bear clawing at your coop but I have screws with washers drilled into the hard ware cloth over the windows not staples for security. Good luck with what ever is trying to get in the coop

 

[smkchick]

I don't know what the law is exactly with bears, but I know upstate, if you are threatened, you can shoot them-just don't miss! They're far more dangerous when irritated.

Out here-we have these God-awful raccoons. The DEC rules are very clear-you cannot trap and relocated a raccoon. you must either call animal control, or kill it yourself. At this point, after losing my whole flock, several years back, I have to say-I'd have no hesitation to dispatch a raccoon if it got into my coop.

Lovey, my Buff Orp that was broody, so I got her the white austras to raise? Yeah, she's done raising them, they are part of the flock, and guess what? Yep-she's broody again.

She went back to laying about 2 weeks ago, and now-she's back to sitting all mean and growly on the nest. Now what? Eh, I'll think about it when I get home from East Durham.

I hope everyone has a grand Memorial day weekend, I'm outta here tomorrow morning until Monday. I can't wait!

Have an awesome time! And plan for some DD time with me next week...Carol, you in?

 

[smkchick]

​

CATEGORY I: BAD BEARS These bears must be destroyed.

· Bears that attack humans.
· Bears that attack livestock and pets.
· Bears that charge people, chase people, and come within 10 feet of people.
· Bears that cause $500.00 of damage to a house, shed, car or garage.

CATEGORY II: PROBLEM BEARS. These bears must be conditioned

· When the bear comes back again and again after you have taken away what the bear was eating.
· When the bear does not leave after you bang two pots together.
· Any property damage less than $500.00 to your house, shed, garage or car.

So if my coop only cost $450 and the bear tears it apart, he's not a bad bear?

Sorry. I know this is serious. I just couldn't help myself. With all due respect to NJ and the DEC, does the bear stop at $499 to avoid being shot? Okay, I'll stop now.

 

[smkchick]

And how does one condition a bear anyway? sorry...