Small Flock Poultry

Predator Protection

- Sharon Biggs Waller

Your chickens are being watched. Whether you know it or not, critters around your farm are waiting for their chance at an easy chicken dinner; all it takes is a coop door left open after dusk or a damaged hole in the fence. Because our chickens are so prone to predation, we have to think like a predator in order to convince them that invading our coop isn't worth their time.

AN UNFRIENDLY ENVIRONMENT

Make your coop and surrounding yard and pasture distasteful and inaccessible to predators. Employ a stock companion, such as a well-trained dog or an older child looking for extra pocket money, to deter hawks from landing and frighten off ground predators.

Geese are also good guard companions with their loud warning honks. A gander's hiss and threatening wings can chase off stubborn wildlife. A rooster is very helpful in free-range and contained flocks. A rooster will hustle his girls inside or under cover as soon as a threat appears. One guy for 10 girls is a good ratio. Interestingly, roosters have different calls for predators approaching from the sky or the ground.

Hang bright ornaments around the coop, such as CDs, bird-scare ribbons, wind chimes, bells or plastic owls. Place solar-powered night animal predator lights around the coop. Read instructions carefully as you'll need to hang the light at the right level for certain animals.

Take away any food, such as birdseed, suet and food scraps. Don't leave out pet food, and secure the lids on garbage cans.

HUNTERS BY SKY

The beautiful hawk, soaring majestically, is a sight to behold, but it's one that makes our chickens nervous. Your freerange chickens are particularly in danger from hawks that can land on them, kill them and eat them right then and there.