The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[Leahs Mom]

A Livestock Guardian Owl.

I'll feed it all the mice I catch in the rat zapper.

 

[SallyinIndiana]

A Livestock Guardian Owl.

I'll feed it all the mice I catch in the rat zapper.

I ordered one today ~ the zapper, not an owl. I had an owl (fake) here last year. I'm waiting till after the spring rains to set up our flapping fake owl again. I just don't think it is sturdy enough to last the wind.
We did get visited a several times by a real owl too last summer and fall. Up close and personal, they are not the cute wise owl from Mr Rogers.

 

[chick rookie]

I need an interpreter. I see the pop cans and the tarp and it looks like some netting.

But what are the dark things hanging... reminds me of when the giant spider in Lord of the Rings wrapped the folks up and saved them for future eating

lol that's Awesome but no its Walmart bags wit old plastic lids in them for just enough weight to keep them from wrapping around things but still moving.. its the movement that keeps the Starlings out..

 

[chick rookie]

I ordered one today ~ the zapper, not an owl. I had an owl (fake) here last year. I'm waiting till after the spring rains to set up our flapping fake owl again. I just don't think it is sturdy enough to last the wind.
We did get visited a several times by a real owl too last summer and fall. Up close and personal, they are not the cute wise owl from Mr Rogers.

where can I find a fake flapping Owl???

Originally Posted by chick rookie

I never thought about rubber snakes!!! now I remember my grandmother used to have them on top of all her hen houses and just different places!!!! thank you for bringing that memory back!!!! WOW




I was wondering about hawks too.

IS THERE ANYTHING THAT A HAWK FEARS?

Wow I didn't think about Hawks... I know I will get DH's Owl ( don't move ) and Sally's fake flapping Owl and the snakes and just scatter them all over... something has got to give in that scene... lol

 

[Leahs Mom]

Okay. Here I go again. But..

Doesn't the fake flapping owls desensitize the chickens to the real thing? I know that "Mister" sounds the alarm when he hears wings flapping nearby (even if it's another chicken behind him that he can't see...he alarms to the sound).

If the chickens are smart enough to tell the difference between the fakes and a real threat, wouldn't the hawks be smart enough to tell the difference too?

 

[Leahs Mom]

Oh. And Sally, could you post a photo and link of your owl again, please.

 

[misbhaven]

something is bound to work....we have eagles in this area nothing is safe that is less than 30lb but they eat most other bothersome chicken eating things...

 

[Scott H]

I have the lubing cup from down under.....they work really good!

 

[Leahs Mom]

I have the lubing cup from down under.....they work really good!

They look like they'll work well. I'm looking forward to warmer weather to try them out. I have the 2 of them sitting here waiting.

What they DIDN'T state was what size hole to drill.

 

[SallyinIndiana]

http://www.amazon.com/Bird-X-OWL-Pr...qid=1391995710&sr=8-1&keywords=fake+owl+wings

it took a while for our chickens to adapt to the owl. We did not move it as much as we should have. But just for sport and because boys will be boys, when we did move it around the yard, our oldest and sometime my DH would chase the chickens with the flying owl on a stick. I'm sure there will be those who find it wrong, but it was funny as all get out to watch and it made herding the chickens so much faster. The owl is more plastic head and semi sturdy kite material. Up close a spunky rooster would take it on. It would not fool a hawk who had enough spunk to get closer to it. But from a distance when the wings move it creates an illusion that seems to work most of the time.

Editing to add, the fake owl did not come with its own pole or stick. We use some older metal piping we had in the garage and attached that pipe to a corner of our run.