Predator Spotted

I was outside getting water for the birds and heard a lot of squawking only to find some kind of bird of prey on top of one of my chickens trying to kill/eat it. It flew off as soon as I got near, but now I'm perplexed how to stop the loss of my birds, I've lost something like 25 birds in the last few months. I think my best bet is a strong rooster, but would like any thoughts on the matter.

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This fellow may need to be trapped and relocated...some states will even allow their destruction...check your local laws (I don't like this, yet understand that sometimes folks just can't find a way around it.) All in all, once a bird of prey gets a "hankering" for poultry...they can be difficult without some serious "hands on" intervention...They can also be tamed rather easy (it is illegal to keep them as pets) but once they learn that you don't want to hurt them...and you feed them well on morsels...quite often they just become fat and lazy fence post decorations that like to watch you work and eat the occasional mouse you scare up for them...soon forgetting about that "chicken wrestling that got them there...

A few roosters are not a match for a big bird of prey. Your best bet is to get some cover readily available: wire or net top, trees and bushes, or for a large area just a web of strings and reflective stuff to make them afraid to dive through.
Good luck! This worked for our bald eagle problems here..

A rooster is actually very helpful against aerial predators. Not because they can fight them off, but because roosters tend to be much more watchful and alert than hens. They spot predators at a distance, giving the girls time to take cover. Of course, you need to provide cover. Trees are great, but a good size shrub works too, and even a slash pile will do in a pinch.

Decoy chickens with an unpleasant surprise. That would be a fun DIY creativity project! Might be too time consuming to be practical. Well, if you can look into alternative flock guards.......



http://poultrykeeper.com/pests-and-predators/llamas-as-guardians-for-chickens