What you need to know about Vultures(evil things!)

[missnu01]

I know vultures and especially buzzards will go after live animals because I grew up on a lake...I got to see all manner of wildlife happenings.

 

[centrarchid]

Thanks, Now if I could only convince centrarchid!

Get to it! I want to learn something new.

 

[Megan Amber]

I am glad to hear it. Thanks for your support too. I am still trying to find good deterrents. The fake owl decoy we bought has worked pretty well.

 

[Megan Amber]

Greetings Centrarchid. Have you gone and read any of the links that people have posted?

 

[littleoak]

We have turkey vultures (buzzards) here and they are very good a cleaning up messes. I have never had a problem with them being around. One year we had "black vultures", some of the older timers called them Black Hawks. They were aggresive and I'm glad they didn't stay. I never had a problem with them but they were only around for a few weeks. The turkey vultures come around here often to feed on deceased predators, and are great fun to watch land and take off. My chickens and bantam ducks free range a lot and have never been even looked at by turkey buzzards. So possibly the black vultures are the same as we had once and I wouldn't doubt them attacking but not the turkey buzzards.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

In the final analysis it may not matter a lot even though I would like to know if it does happen and I can imagine it could..
There are so many predators afoot that the small percentage taken by rats, eagles, snakes, vultures or any of the infrequent predators is insignificant unless you only have 3 or 4 chickens. Then any loss is significant.

 

[Megan Amber]

We have lived here in S.C for a few years and they never behaved like this before! I really think they were driven to it by hunger. Already am but am risking my reputation to say that we began feeding them a ways off to keep them off our birds and it actually worked pretty well!

 

[Shellz]

From what I've heard, its the black vultures that are more apt to eat living things than the turkey variety. I suppose there will be exceptions. I would think there might be some kind of imbalance in nature for vultures to act this way. Very interesting articles. Thanks for posting them - will keep an open mind!

 

[centrarchid]

OK. Someting new. Possibly the black vultures in your area are suffering as from a crash in available forage. Adult chickens with cover would be much harder to catch than newborn calf or labor weary cow. If vultures are that bad, then it is dog time, otherwise pen birds up. My dog would make quick work of a couple vultures before balance would say lets go find easier pickings.

 

[Megan Amber]

Finally, Thanks. That's what Iv'e been saying- driven to that point by hunger! I'm embarrassed to say they didnt have much cover and I had way to many out. I have locked most of them up and have not had as much of a problem since taking preventative actions. What kind of dog do you have?