would not have believed it if I didn't see it!

[beachchickie]

Go Tweety. Big ain't always bad. Good things come in small packages. I wish my girls had some gall.

 

[TomG]

Tweeternator! I love it. Go girl

 

[7L Farm]

Who needs a roo when you have tweety. How much for tweety?

 

[tuesdays chicks]

a hawk just discovered my flock the other day, can you send tweety here. I need a hawk chicken.

 

[D'Angelo N Va.]

It has always amazed me how spunky the bantams are. Go Tweety!

 

[centrarchid]

Quote:
RL,

Tweety won round one because hawk was already on ground and she was highly motivated and possibly hawk was not. For your flocks sake, precautions should be taken to ensure adequate cover. The business of chickens, especially the rooster (in your case Tweety the bantam hen) being able to fight back is simply something that might enable flock to persist longer under pressure from hawks giving you more time to excersize other management options.

 

[Dixieangeln]

GOOO Tweety!!! That is awesome!

 

[sourland]

If you've ever seen a Cooper's hawk being chased by a mockingbird or flock of grackles, you know they are not real gutsy. Their eyes are their key to survival, and they will avoid being attacked. Understand, that given the advantage, (an attack from above) this hawk will not hesitate about killing Tweety. Hawks definately know when to "hold 'em and when to fold 'em." Neat story. I've actually seen game hens fly after Cooper's hawks that have snatched one of their chicks.

 

[centrarchid]

Quote:
Same observation on hen chasing hawk and I agree with most above. When grackles and other flocking birds flying above and behind an acciptor like Coopers or Sharpshinned, it is safest place to be besides being out of sight. I have seen prolonged chases involving such hawks after flocking birds many times around our silos and trees out in hayfields. What appears to be agressive songbirds is actually a bunch trying to escape being lunch.

 

[RL]

Centrarchid, thanks for the advice, its always good to be reminded of that fact.

My chickens have the run of about 1/2 an acre that has a lot of cover for the birds and the coop is very secure - well at least at night when it is all closed up. I did have a Red Tail hawk get into the coop through the pop door a few days back, I don't know how long it was in there. When I got home from work I heard a strange sound comming from the coop and when I opened the door I had a hawk in my face. The hawk was trying to get out, but could not find a way and was just flying around in the coop. My coop is 8x12x8 soon to be 12x16x8. There were 3 girls in the nest boxes, Tweety and her babies were in a little cage I setup on the floor of the coop and another one of the hens had got in there with her to hide from the hawk. I have never seen my chicken so still and big eyed as that.

I did not lose any then either and I know the chickens were lucky. I have a plastic bag tied to the pop door now so the wind kind of moves it around and that seems to keep the hawks away from the door. I need to get some ScareHawks put out as soon as I have time. I have not lost a chicken to a hawk or any other chicken eating critter for two years now so I must be doing something right and the chickens are very good at duck and cover.

7L Farm, I could never sell Tweety. She's my babie raiser. She has hatched and raise 14 chicks this year. She's just about 1 1/2 years old so she will be with me for a long time. Well back to work.