I don’t know if this is any good but here’s a list of stuff I’ve heard and tried...
I’ve been told always use 1/2 inch square hardware cloth, not chicken wire as anything can rip right through the chicken wire. Chicken wire is to keep chickens in a place, but doesn’t keep predators out. If you have a run, skirt it with that same hardware cloth...out about at least 2 feet. Have a covered run. Vermin create holes that other creatures (such as weasels) will also venture into, so try to secure your coop from vermin too.
If you free range have plenty of bushes and trees and foliage the flock can run to and under within seconds if they spot a predator. Obviously you don’t want foliage that will help hide a predator either, but having manicured beds with moderately tall bushes, one here and there that a few chickens can hide underneath will help them hide from hawks. Most birds of prey attack when prey is out in the open. They want an easy kill- a fast fall and heavy pounce on the prey. So if they see your birds, even if they are under bushes or trees with lots of branches, it’s somewhat of a deterrent for them. They don’t want to have a face to face attack...but like any hungry animal, they will if they are hungry enough.
If you free range, ...and I can’t say whether or not this really works, (and pardon me, as this will sound very crass) but you can have a male member of the family urinate in a bucket, then sprinkle the pee around the perimeter of your lawn/field...wherever you don‘t want predators coming past. You’d have to do this frequently, like maybe up to two three times a week. (I’ve heard female urine could contain seasonal pheromones that could actually attract..so ladies, don’t try this!
). I’ve also heard you can do this with a product that is sold online that is wolf pee! This I heard works great, it’s somewhat expensive, but if you live in an area where there are wolves this might bring more in. I think I found it on
amazon.com. Just search “wolf pee” or “wolf urine”.
Another deterrent is human hair clippings which you can ask your local beauty salon owner if you can have the remnants of cut hair collected. You can then spread the hair along the perimeter of your lawn/field. Again, this should be done frequently, probably at least once a month and depending on how much hair you can get to sprinkle about. This is what I do. I put it around everything, even under and around the coops, in the field near the woods. The scent of humans will help deter the predators from coming near.
Others here mention livestock guardian dogs, geese, ducks, donkeys. I’ve heard of using red eyes...a product that looks like glowing eyes at night. Having an electric wire around fencing I’ve heard works well. My neighbors have goats with this electric fencing and even though we have bears, foxes and coyotes around here I don‘t think they’ve ever lost any livestock. They use the type that utilizes solar energy.
Out of my 10 years of chicken keeping (and free-ranging my flock ) the #1 predator/killer was cars.
. I don’t even have a blind curve or anything, just rude people aiming to hit in combination of having all-too-friendly people-trusting (stupid?) chickens. (A family acquaintance even witnessed it). So, be aware, other PEOPLE are predators too. There are news accounts of coops being raided and whole flocks stolen. So, a lock on the coop door might be wise as well as keeping them away from roads.
