The birds are using my yard as hunting grounds?! (photo)

[aart]

Not allways the best way. If you kill everything that eats rodents on your property, suddenly you'll find an awful lot of mice & etc. living with you and in your chicken feed-

I've got 2" snow rated mesh over a 30'x60' run. The chickens eat the mice inside, the hawks and owls eat the ones outside- I haven't seen an indoor mouse all winter. There is a great grey owl hanging around that dives right into snow banks to grab mice from their tunnels, it's amazing. Took me a while to figure out what all the strange marks on the snow were from- I hope it stays around!

What cool thing to see! Do you have a pic of your netted run...preferably with 2 feet of snow on the ground and none on the netting?

 

[Bert2368]

Do you have a pic of your netted run...preferably with 2 feet of snow on the ground and none on the netting?

Well, no problem to show with over 2' of snow on the ground this winter!

Here's the door- The door is 8' tall.



Here's from the side, my orchard enclosure with 8' deer fence is between point of view and chicken run-

 

[cmom]

Here is an owl just after a kill.

 

[subhanalah]

Oh noes! Is that one of your birds?

 

[cmom]

Oh noes! Is that one of your birds?

Yes, I had several birds killed by it. I had set traps for a fox that had also killed some birds and caught the fox and the owl both at the same time. I sat up all night hiding and waiting for the owl not knowing it was in a trap.

 

[aart]

Well, no problem to show with over 2' of snow on the ground this winter!

Here's the door- The door is 8' tall.

WOW amazing that it doesn't hold the snow!
Yeah I figured pics with snow wouldn't be a problem.

 

[ll]

Only guaranteed way to protect your chickens from hawks is a covered run.
Dogs can help, as you know.
If you're lucky enough to have a lot of crows around, they will drive off hawks.

This is what I did...and it works as you can see.

I never ever see crows, but if I do I'll throw a treat to them!

I started with one crow, and I threw an egg out in the yard and he ate it and now I have a good size flock of crows that hawks don't come around,

Nice covered area Bert! Really truly nice. Wow at it holding thru the season.
We have 8ft deer netting around our small garden, I'm going to show your pics to my DH.

Well, no problem to show with over 2' of snow on the ground this winter!

Here's the door- The door is 8' tall.



Here's from the side, my orchard enclosure with 8' deer fence is between point of view and chicken run-

Congrats on catching the predators!

Yes, I had several birds killed by it. I had set traps for a fox that had also killed some birds and caught the fox and the owl both at the same time. I sat up all night hiding and waiting for the owl not knowing it was in a trap.

The current plan is to build a chicken tunnel (chunnel!)
My hens just might be locked in their run until all of our snow thaws and it's completed.

But we have had SOOOO many smaller birds hunted & eaten in our yard, multiple piles of feathers found, I want it to stop.