Roosters vs hawks?

[big bouncer]

I have 2 roosters now. One jersey giant (Bouncer) and jester a white leghorn. Bouncer is bigger than all but one of the hawks i have seen circling above my chickens. Will he fight them? Also, does the stand your ground law apply to hawks? There are over 13 cooper's hawks. There are 2 red tails. One red tail is giant tho. We had coyotes until we shot one and then let it rot in the field

 

[aart]

I have 2 roosters now. One jersey giant (Bouncer) and jester a white leghorn. Bouncer is bigger than all but one of the hawks i have seen circling above my chickens. Will he fight them? Also, does the stand your ground law apply to hawks? There are over 13 cooper's hawks. There are 2 red tails. One red tail is giant tho. We had coyotes until we shot one and then let it rot in the field

No, it does not. It is illegal to harass or kill any bird of prey....
.....search on migratory bird law(my googler is broken at the moment).

Whether your cock/erels will 'fight' a hawk remains to be seen.
Some run and hide calling alarm for the flock to take cover.
Some will stand up and try to attack BOP.
Some will succeed, some will become the first victim...
...a speed bump, or appetizer to the chicken buffet.

 

[big bouncer]

No, it does not. It is illegal to harass or kill any bird of prey....
.....search on migratory bird law(my googler is broken at the

i know it is illegal but i say it is illegal to kill my pets so i have harassed them on multiple occasions. Not killed. They do fear me now and fly away whenever they see me. Especially with my harassment canon

 

[CluckerCottage]

Agree w/ aart.
The best thing you can do is cover the top of your run. Netting or wire will do.
And may I say that Bouncer is a very handsome fella! Best wishes!

 

[dekel18042]

I have 2 roosters now. One jersey giant (Bouncer) and jester a white leghorn. Bouncer is bigger than all but one of the hawks i have seen circling above my chickens. Will he fight them? Also, does the stand your ground law apply to hawks? There are over 13 cooper's hawks. There are 2 red tails. One red tail is giant tho. We had coyotes until we shot one and then let it rot in the field

I've found that roosters are usually the first to sound the alarm call so the hens can seek safety, and I've had them stand out in the open while doing it, perhaps trying to call attention to themselves so their hens can get away. If anyone in our family hears the alarm cry, we rush out, taking a dog with us.
Other than the bantams, my roosters are large, and I've never had a hawk attack one. I've found that hawks try to go after the smaller birds, usually the juveniles if there are any.

 

[big bouncer]

Agree w/ aart.
The best thing you can do is cover the top of your run. Netting or wire will do.
And may I say that Bouncer is a very handsome fella! Best wishes!

Thanks . Yes the roosters do make calls and we have not had anymore incidents since the first one. I assume our chickens thought it was a new rooster hahaha. Natural selection :/. We have them free range, there is plenty of cover and they do know that as they run to it if the hawks get too low

 

[big bouncer]

    I've found that roosters are usually the first to sound the alarm call so the hens can seek safety, and I've had them stand out in the open while doing it, perhaps trying to call attention to themselves so their hens can get away.  If anyone in our family hears the alarm cry, we rush out, taking a dog with us.
     Other than the bantams, my roosters are large, and I've never had a hawk attack one.  I've found that hawks try to go after the smaller birds, usually the juveniles if there are any.

Yes my roosters do the same. Very weird. They stay in open until the hawk is very close and all the hens are in cover. Then they run under the bushes/coop/deck

 

[centrarchid]

People on this entire site need to quit using the word hawk. It is being miss used. I talking to most so be offended. Hawk species and sometimes sex is everything in terms of the type of threat posed. A hawk, regardless of species, is selective. Coopers in particular are selective and go after immature chickens first, followed by hens. The latter they do not kill out, nor can they fly with. Most adult standard sized roosters, (note exception of bantams), will engage a Coopers Hawk on the ground. Jersey Giants are a bit more than standard. Coopers on ground grappling a juvenile or hen will not fare well. I have been watching such interactions for years.

Red-tailed Hawks are tougher but even then the very larger Jersey Giant will come across as to dangerous to take on, even if it is the first target. Shift the balance of power more to the chickens by providing cover so hawk must approach on the ground.

There are also other species out there and couple are tougher than Red-tailed Hawks but we do not even take time in most instances to look close enough at bird to get an ID.


Yes, you can even loose a rooster to a hawk but it is far from a guarantee. Someday we need to stop thinking that you have only ONE way or a BEST way to protect the birds. Open your minds.

Do a little research to see how others that do loose multiple birds are setup. You can find them even on this site. Do yours differently.

 

[big bouncer]

People on this entire site need to quit using the word hawk. It is being miss used. I talking to most so be offended. Hawk species and sometimes sex is everything in terms of the type of threat posed.


Yes, you can even loose a rooster to a hawk but it is far from a guarantee. Someday we need to stop thinking that you have only ONE way or a BEST way to protect the birds. Open your minds.

Do a little research to see how others that do loose multiple birds are setup. You can find them even on this site. Do yours differently.

i have done plenty of research

. I am giving my chickens more of a chance by scaring the hawks away. Ive used all the reflective crap and such. If anything that attracted them. So because we have over 13 in 13 acres of land i do believe that i am equalizing the ecosystem and allowing mice a better chance at life. Also rabbits. I understand your concern, but I was asking only if my rooster would fight them and i would like to thank you for the parts you talked about that. They were very helpful. But im not going to risk losing another chicken. I spend on average over an hour a day with my chickens. I know each one. I know their personalities and everything. I like my chickens more than most of my friends. I wouldnt let my friends die. I wont let my chickens die. But i am afraid of the big red tailer. It is BIG. Near vulture size. It could eat a turkey. Therefore it needs to learn to eat rabbits elsewhere. Your methods may work for you and your area and if they do, that is absolutely great. Honestly. Id rather not have to scare away hawks. They are very beautiful birds. Is there a particular device that you would recommend to deter them? Ive tried shiny things and such

 

[Zoomie]

Red Tail hawks weigh about 2.4 pounds. They have very powerful feet and talons and that is normally how they kill their prey: by driving in those razor-sharp talons, sort of like the prey being stabbed by many long knives. However they are not as big as people think, weighing less than 3 pounds.

What works at my place is my fences are very high, about 6', and they are close together in a series of small pens where I raise goats, keep horses etc. The high fences close together make it difficult for a bird of prey to go after the chickens because they need space to be able to get lift to fly away. Not that they couldn't learn to do it, but they are wary of tight quarters like that since they need some space to swoop down and then get into full flight.

I never lost any chickens to hawks but sure did to raccoons. I'm in the process of building a new coop/run and the new run will have netting over the top. This is more to keep the chickens in than to keep hawks out but it will work for that too. This will give me peace of mind and the ability to get along with my neighbors the hawks, owls, eagles, falcons and so on, and hopefully also keep out the raccoons which are the worst in my experience..