Swedish Flower Hen Thread

[song of joy]

I'm not overly impressed with the flock protection capabilities of my SFH cockerel, who just turned 9 months old. I've lost 2 pullets and 1 hen over the past month to a Coopers hawk while the flock of 13 (now 10) hens and pullets have been under his charge. I've kept a free-ranging flock since 2011, and have never lost more than 1 hen per year until now. This is the first year I've had a rooster in the flock, and the losses to hawks have been higher than in the past when the flock lacked a rooster. It doesn't make sense. Are SFH cockerels/roosters more likely to run or take cover than protect the flock? Will his skills improve over time? Anyway, the flock is now confined to the coop and run for a couple of weeks in hopes the hawk will move to another neighborhood for take-out chicken.

 

[cree57i]

I'm not overly impressed with the flock protection capabilities of my SFH cockerel, who just turned 9 months old. I've lost 2 pullets and 1 hen over the past month to a Coopers hawk while the flock of 13 (now 10) hens and pullets have been under his charge. I've kept a free-ranging flock since 2011, and have never lost more than 1 hen per year until now. This is the first year I've had a rooster in the flock, and the losses to hawks have been higher than in the past when the flock lacked a rooster. It doesn't make sense. Are SFH cockerels/roosters more likely to run or take cover than protect the flock? Will his skills improve over time? Anyway, the flock is now confined to the coop and run for a couple of weeks in hopes the hawk will move to another neighborhood for take-out chicken.

Mine have free ranged since they were 2 months old. There is one rooster who oversees everybody. They seem to be sticklers for pecking order. Mine seem very good at hiding when danger is around. I think their spots help camouflage. So sorry for your losses. Maybe I've just been lucky.

 

[Spiritjewelz]

Hey,
Maybe it is a really smart hunting hawk. He just has more experience than your Roo... ?? Maybe??

 

[Spiritjewelz]

That's hilarious about them liking cars. Maybe we can leash train them, get a convertible and go to a parade!!

Thanks for the nestbox placement cues. Good to know. And good on knowing run needs to be covered. I use a chicken tractor previously also. Might rebuild one. Pretty simple.

 

[song of joy]

Hey,
Maybe it is a really smart hunting hawk. He just has more experience than your Roo... ?? Maybe??

That's probably an accurate assessment of the situation. It's probably a combination of an experienced hawk and an inexperienced roo. In the flock of 13 hens, I had 5 black hens, 5 barred hens, and 3 earth-tone hens. The hawk has killed 3 of the black hens. They must be easier targets due to the solid color. The barred hens (barred rocks, dominique) are almost invisible in the brush when they're not moving.

 

[THeelChickinKY]

I feel like the SFHs are quite bold. That is endearing but can also get them into trouble. We had terrible predation issues last year (2014/15) but it was almost exclusively the SFHs we kept losing rather than our other breeds. My husband and I believe it was because the Swedes kept leaving the rest of the flock and going farther and farther from the house. Losses were from hawks and neighbor (far off, not close by, neighbor dogs). They're a great breed, though - best of luck with your situation!

 

[Raven625]

My Swedes are very aware of everything around them. They aren't flighty about it, but they even tell me when air planes and squirrels are around. Funny how flock dynamics are so different from one flock to another.

 

[THeelChickinKY]

It really us, isn't it? So much variation. Mine were clearly smart guys in many senses - skilled at foraging, for example, and as chicks were quite clever at figuring out ways to get out of the brooder at earlier ages than our other breeds - but they seemed naive, if I can put it that way. We still have two and they are great. We especially love the mutt babies we have that are Swede/Dominique crosses - excellent mix of the best traits from both sides!

 

[song of joy]

I feel like the SFHs are quite bold. That is endearing but can also get them into trouble. We had terrible predation issues last year (2014/15) but it was almost exclusively the SFHs we kept losing rather than our other breeds. My husband and I believe it was because the Swedes kept leaving the rest of the flock and going farther and farther from the house. Losses were from hawks and neighbor (far off, not close by, neighbor dogs). They're a great breed, though - best of luck with your situation!

Sorry to hear about your loss of SFH last year. At least I've only lost "regular" chickens so far. If I had lost either of my two SFH, I would have been really upset. They do seem more bold, intelligent, and wild than the other breeds I have. They love to forage, and the hen would much rather lay eggs in the secluded corner of the horse stall than in the elevated nest boxes in the coop.

 

[THeelChickinKY]

Thank you for that. It was not a good winter for us last year! And yes, with the Swedes it was particularly hard because, as you know, each one looks different and so every loss is a loss of an individual. Not that that's not the case with other breeds, but it's so physically obvious with the Swedes, even from a distance, when a particular one is gone.