Hawks! How can I keep the hawks away from my chickens?

[Fire Ant Farm]

During my 5 years of keeping chickens, I've heard a lot of tips on how to deter hawks. Here's a few.

1) Buy birds that are dark-colored. I have heard that the darker the bird, the less likely a hawk will attack it (this doesn't mean that it won't get attacked, but it does mean it's chances will be lower). This may be a myth, but it's something I've heard.

2) Don't free-range your birds, and put poultry netting over their run. This is something I've never done (though sometimes, when a hawk is prowling about, I lock them in the coop for a day or two until the hawk leaves), but it is something others have done with great success.

3) Buy a rooster that you know will beat off hawks. There are literally roosters out there that will kill hawks that mess with them or their ladies. Gamecocks are probably a great choice...just don't keep more than one, or they'll kill each other before either of them kills a hawk.

4) If you have a gun, fire into the dirt (do NOT fire into the air, as this is very dangerous because the bullet will land somewhere) to scare off a hawk that is eyeing your birds. Some hawks are spooked by this and leave...others aren't.

4) Shoot any bird of prey that is eyeing your birds. This is something I have never done (though I have longed to do it more than once), and this is against the law of Big Brother, and environmentalists love to persecute flock owners who are trying to defend their flocks, so this is a last resort and should only be done if you live in a rural area where no one will see you do it. But even then, some avian enthusiast may have put a tracking device in the bird, and when they follow the signal to a hole in your backyard and find a bullet in the animal, you're as dead as one of your birds. So really, it's not a good idea.

The fifth suggestion is one of my own that nobody has suggested to me. I have found that it works very well.

5) Fly a flag or two at your house. Awhile ago, I was having some serious problems with hawks attacking my birds. Two or three times, I literally had to whack a hawk off the back of my birds with a stick. It was getting bad. Well, around that time, I put up an American flag and a battle flag to show my patriotism. I haven't had a hawk attack since. It could be coincidence, but I think the constantly-waving large objects (combined with the proliferation of red in both of the flags) spooks the hawks enough to deter them.

Thank you for tip number 5. Always lots of hawks here - busy day for them here today, in fact. My chickens have good cover and I run surveyor tape over their paddocks, which moves around a lot in the wind - though it's not perfect, I have yet to see a hawk that is willing to try to get through it. I bought some aviary netting but have yet to hang it up (but I plan to).

I like the idea of the flags - there are two flight paths that I can put them in that may deter them.

- Ant Farm

 

[Pork Pie]

Deleted post

 

[Eps32]

During my 5 years of keeping chickens, I've heard a lot of tips on how to deter hawks. Here's a few.

1) Buy birds that are dark-colored. I have heard that the darker the bird, the less likely a hawk will attack it (this doesn't mean that it won't get attacked, but it does mean it's chances will be lower). This may be a myth, but it's something I've heard.

2) Don't free-range your birds, and put poultry netting over their run. This is something I've never done (though sometimes, when a hawk is prowling about, I lock them in the coop for a day or two until the hawk leaves), but it is something others have done with great success.

3) Buy a rooster that you know will beat off hawks. There are literally roosters out there that will kill hawks that mess with them or their ladies. Gamecocks are probably a great choice...just don't keep more than one, or they'll kill each other before either of them kills a hawk.

4) If you have a gun, fire into the dirt (do NOT fire into the air, as this is very dangerous because the bullet will land somewhere) to scare off a hawk that is eyeing your birds. Some hawks are spooked by this and leave...others aren't.

4) Shoot any bird of prey that is eyeing your birds. This is something I have never done (though I have longed to do it more than once), and this is against the law of Big Brother, and environmentalists love to persecute flock owners who are trying to defend their flocks, so this is a last resort and should only be done if you live in a rural area where no one will see you do it. But even then, some avian enthusiast may have put a tracking device in the bird, and when they follow the signal to a hole in your backyard and find a bullet in the animal, you're as dead as one of your birds. So really, it's not a good idea.

The fifth suggestion is one of my own that nobody has suggested to me. I have found that it works very well.

5) Fly a flag or two at your house. Awhile ago, I was having some serious problems with hawks attacking my birds. Two or three times, I literally had to whack a hawk off the back of my birds with a stick. It was getting bad. Well, around that time, I put up an American flag and a battle flag to show my patriotism. I haven't had a hawk attack since. It could be coincidence, but I think the constantly-waving large objects (combined with the proliferation of red in both of the flags) spooks the hawks enough to deter them.

There's a old timer iv bought chickens from. And he shoots Hawks no questions asked. I asked him the same thing aren't you worried about a fine a lot of these Hawks have tracking devices. He said they go right into the burn barrel after he eliminates them. I told him I can't afford to take the chance of getting fined and arrested so I'll take other methods. He said he's tried all those methods nothing works. He's in his late 60s so I think he's set in his ways. He's giving me a lot of good tips on my chickens he's been doing it for thirty years. A lot of good tips. But his method I do not recommend unless you don't care about fines and being arrested. I just can't see getting in trouble with the law for a few hens. If you free range you just have to understand that you occasionally lose birds to predators. It's just the circle of life I guess.

 

[enola]

A lot of people shoot hawks. And a lot of them never get caught. They are the lucky ones. Fines for shooting a hawk can mount to thousands of dollars. And many times includes jail/prison time.

Shooting a raptor of any type is a FEDERAL offense.

 

[centrarchid]

A lot of people shoot hawks. And a lot of them never get caught. They are the lucky ones. Fines for shooting a hawk can mount to thousands of dollars. And many times includes jail/prison time.

Shooting a raptor of any type is a FEDERAL offense.

The shooting of hawks to protect chickens appears to be rather rare. What may be more common is shooting hawks perched along roadways in rural areas. A witness or carcass in possession of offender needed to convict. I am in a position to speak with some parties that at least claim to shoot raptors. For the most part not a lot of powerful thinking is involved on the part of the shooters.

 

[Eps32]

The shooting of hawks to protect chickens appears to be rather rare. What may be more common is shooting hawks perched along roadways in rural areas. A witness or carcass in possession of offender needed to convict. I am in a position to speak with some parties that at least claim to shoot raptors. For the most part not a lot of powerful thinking is involved on the part of the shooters.

I look at it like. Yes if I did shoot a hawk I probably wouldn't get caught but is it worth the risk. I say NO it's not. Even if there's a slim chance of getting caught it's just not worth it to me. I can buy more chickens. I can't pay that kind of fine and go to jail. My family needs me to support them. The risk is just to big for me at least. I try to stay out with the flock when there free ranging. That and firecrackers are my deterrent. I have some black cats when I see one I light them off on the ground. They usually fly away. But there's really no 100% way of protection unless you don't free range. I have the fake owls and all. Thankfully iv only lost one chicken to a hawk. I saw him eating her on the ground. I chased him yelling as loud as I could and he took off. Kept the girls locked up for the next couple days. And haven't had a problem since. Fingers crossed!

 

[Gresh]

Shooting a hawk is not morally wrong when you're protecting your birds, but it is legally wrong in the eyes of the national government. I personally would never do it because I would hate to be locked away for 10 years and be labeled as a felon for the rest of my life.

Environmentalists make farmers out to be villains when they shoot to protect their livestock. Plain and simple. Too bad that a person who shoots a hawk to protect their chickens gets imprisoned, and folks who do a lot worse get off with fines or never get caught.

 

[centrarchid]

Shooting a hawk is not morally wrong when you're protecting your birds, but it is legally wrong in the eyes of the national government. I personally would never do it because I would hate to be locked away for 10 years and be labeled as a felon for the rest of my life.

Environmentalists make farmers out to be villains when they shoot to protect their livestock. Plain and simple. Too bad that a person who shoots a hawk to protect their chickens gets imprisoned, and folks who do a lot worse get off with fines or never get caught. :/  

I am a farmer. Killing wildlife can most certainly be morally wrong. It is not farmers versus environmentalist, never has been.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

I am a farmer. Killing wildlife can most certainly be morally wrong. It is not farmers versus environmentalist, never has been.

I agree that it is not a farmer verse the environmentalist issue but I do think that it is a farmer verses the environment issue. I would never advise that you shoot a raptor. A ball bat or leftover chunk of 2X4 is more deadly as well as quiter.

 

[Sylvester017]

Over the last 6 months i have lost 8 of my girls to hawks never a Red Tail its always the small hawks that get them, so I did some research and found someone on amazon who sells a UV resistant nylon netting that is 100 ft x 50ft I have bought 2 of these nets which run about 80 to 100 bucks and come in various sizes now i can put a top on my backyard to keep those pesky #$%^# out of my yard.

Aviary Netting on Amazon

Netting will be troublesome to keep secured from forming gaps or openings when raccoons or other night critters walk on it, but any deterrent that gives a chicken a chance to hide before a hawk enters the yard will be well worth it. Any $$$ investment that will deter aerial predators in one's particular area/environment is always worth it. My DD doesn't keep chickens or even a pet cat because of her yard butting against a nature preserve with all sorts of aerial and pesky wild critters to fight off - various raptors, coyotes, deer, bobcats, stray dogs, mountain lion, bear, skunk, possum, rabbit, fox, raccoon, moles, rats, rattlesnakes, mice, and the list goes on. And these are just some of the critters they caught on night vision camera! In the city I have less predator problems but still there are the hawks, rats, mice, city raccoons, and possums to contend with! Raccoons are nocturnal yet we see them scampering around the golf course in broad daylight or sometimes coming out of the city street drains. Chickens are never safe so we take any precautions we think will help for our area - shelters for hiding, canopies, doghouses, securely-built coop and run, bushes/plants, predator eyes nightlights, patio lights at night, replace chainlink with blockwall, paver stones around the coop/run foundation, etc etc etc. My neighbor attached a fake owl statue on top of her roof but it is so old, faded, and dusty, the little birds just perch on it unafraid! Gotta keep security fresh and new as critters will soon discover ways around established security measures. Good luck with the netting and let us know how it goes.