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lindaskyview

Can You Scare a Hawk Away?

lindaskyview
18 years ago

A friend of mine who lives surrounded by vast pastures and wooded areas is concerned about her small dogs. She has six Papillons, which weigh between 4 and 7 lbs. each. Recently she has seen a large hawk, possibly a juvenile redtail, frequently perch on her chainlink fence. That in itself doesn't bother her, as it is pretty far from the Papillon yard. But this morning the hawk swooped right over her dog yard. Luckily, none of the Paps were outside at the time.

She asked me if a cutout or statue of a large owl mounted on the fence near the dog yard might scare the hawk away from that area. Since I have no experience with raptors, but am on several GardenWeb/Nature.net forums, I thought I'd ask for any suggestions from you folks who are much more familiar with hawk behavior. (I have an idea there's not much one can really do, but would like to know. Recently I've considered having a few chickens - which I'd love to have free-range during the day - but my property is also very open and has a lot of hawk activity.)

Thanks. (I see a lot of familiar names here from bluebirds and hummingbirds!)

LindaSkyview

Mountains of Western NC

Comments (178)

  • room_650
    6 years ago

    Yes, if the prey is too heavy, or fighting, the hawk will just hold it down on the ground with its talons as long as necessary, then feed on place when the struggle is over.

  • 2gocubsgoohyeah
    6 years ago

    Threre was one in the tree a few minutes ago. I heard squeelin! I think it attacted a rabbit and then the new baby bird's. I went back there and it took off. I Don't understand why it attacts little birds

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  • room_650
    6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    Often hawks bring baby birds, or small inoffensive mammals to their nests, so the young baby hawks can feed and learn how to prey

    I know it sounds cruel....but that's just what happens

  • 2gocubsgoohyeah
    6 years ago

    Of course it is cruel! The rabbits are so scared today since a hawk is attacking every few minutes. I know it makes them more easier to attack and is wrong to feed them putting them in a vulneral place. The few that come stand like cement statues when they hear any odd or frightening sound. I tried saved a few robins in a nest a month ago during a bad storm. Their mother had a lot of trust in me to have the nest was next to my window. I just put them onto the ground and let them go. 2 disappeared and one that I noticed was around I think was injured. He had extreme protection from anything harmful and from me as well. Which is ok as long as he is safe. But today I only hear some calling for help too far from me to help. And I just heard the hawk squawking. I am not very young but protective of them in need. Thank you!

  • room_650
    6 years ago

    Two red-tailed hawks have built one of their multiple nests right at the corner where I live in a busy section of Manhattan . I called them Horus and Osiris. They're mates. I respect them, but I feed several flocks of pigeons, and always wish they don't bring harm to the pigeons. Fortunately red-tailed are a little slow, compared to Coopers or other smaller species of hawks.

  • 2gocubsgoohyeah
    6 years ago

    Can't change Mother nature! ...right?

  • 2gocubsgoohyeah
    6 years ago

    Do bird bombs that shoot and make noise keep the hawk's away?

  • mrdiscover
    6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    I agree with some of the previous posters who say the GHO is a predator to be more concerned with and they are likely in the area as well. A fully grown adult can carry 60 lbs., which is far more than a hawk can. While hawks typically do not target small dogs or cats, they have been known to attack and kill them, probably out of a case of mistaken identity. A small pet crouched down and facing a predator on a fence or in a tree far away will have a smaller profile and look more like a rabbit to them. Goshawks, Red Tails, Coopers, and Harris Hawks all look pretty similar when perched. Harris Hawks are particularly dangerous because they often hunt in pairs or groups of 3-4. Hawks and GHO's have attacked dogs and cats on many occasions, even humans if they feel their nest is threatened. I know of nothing that would scare them away without scaring everything else away at the same time. To protect your pets, keep them closely supervised and make sure you are as visible to raptors as the pets are. Another solution is to shield them with anything that would fully obstruct them from view. Good luck!

    Photo: Harris Hawk

  • 2gocubsgoohyeah
    6 years ago

    Hi there! Since I last left comments there have been many Hawk's around. 2 were very close near me. 1 swooped down toward my head from being on the roof. One was sitting on my hedge bush about 7 ft. away from me when I was walking out the door in clear view and not moving. I went close to it and yelled "get out of here" And It took off. The latest thing I tried was to get a false owl from the hardware store. I put it on my garbage can with wheels and move it around the yard. It seems to be helping. I had it on the ground for a week but I think being perched it makes a difference. It has very real life scary eyes. I also called my local police station to see what type of noise I could legally use to scare them with. The only one that they suggested was trying an air horn. The bird's don't have a chance in the trees. And the rabbits hide in the branches of bushes all day and night. Now we have Coyotes coming in my neighborhood. We never had Hawk's or Coyotes here in the 65 years we lived here. I appreciate everyone's comments. Thank You, Dorothy


  • njcpers
    6 years ago

    We have 4 long haired chihuahuas. We just moved & have seen Coopers Hawks in our yard which have a wingspan of 29"-36"! They are huge & beautiful, but scary when my dogs are out! We've also spotted a Red Tail Hawk & a Barred Owl in our yard! My mom had a chihuahua picked up, then dropped, by a hawk. We had a 15 pound cat picked up & carried off by a Great Horned Owl! I am a bird & butterfly fan, so don't want to take my feeders down. We have a fenced area, about 20' x 20' for our pups & put a bird net over it. We put a tall shepherd's hook in the middle, a few shorter ones halfway between the tall one & the fence, then tie it to the fence every 4' or so with zip ties. Walmart & Lowes have 14' x 14' bird net, sometimes it comes in a roll. We got 2 & cut & pieced it with zip ties. It may not look gorgeous, but the protection from above brings peace of mind! We still go out with them because we have coyotes & foxes, too!

  • 2gocubsgoohyeah
    6 years ago

    I have an acre open yard. The hawk's I believe have come from a golf course that is 2 blocks from me. They make their rounds everyday at 7:00am and 4:00 pm you can hear them. They must live in their trees. I called and told them about the hawk's circling the golf course and asked if they could do anything. They said set something off to get rid of ducks and they would that night. Nothing changed. There is a small Forrest preserve next to it. We have So So Many Loud Airplanes flying right here that never did. But that doesn't scare them. I just heard a hawk when the bird's were in my bird bath. I ran out and banged a stick on a piece of cement. I think he got a dove. They are beautiful looking. But this is a Residential area and not open field. So I feel it is wrong for them to be allowed close to it. How to keep wildlife away is the answer.

  • room_650
    6 years ago

    How to keep wildlife away ?? That would mean change the surroundings, no trees for nests , no rocks to hide, no water. Nature works as a whole. Humans are supposed to be part of it . Even in the desert or on icy grounds, some creatures know how to live. We should adapt to the surroundings, not the other way around. Predators won't attack without a reason. We must protect our pets, and let wildlife protect itself.

    to njcpers . Usually Coopers hawks go after other birds, they're very fast. Almost like falcons. Occasionally they feed on reptiles or small mammals.

    Red tailed and other large birds of prey definitely prefer mammals. That's nature.... we just have to protect our pets from being attacked.

  • 2gocubsgoohyeah
    6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    room_650

    I agree with you. I can't change this residential area that I live in.

    We called it "farm" when we moved here 65 years ago. It was all wild grassy land. There were no Hawk's or Coyotes near us then at all. Now it is mainly all fenced in yards with pesticides sprayed on their grass. But still the few rabbits, squirrels or little creatures are surviving. There is a small Forrest preserve close to my neighborhood and I feel if possible they should be guided there some way. They will be running threw the streets of Chicago soon. How it Can be done I don't know. We not only have to take care of animals we have to Protect people and children from being attacted by hawk's as I came close 3 times to be. And coyotees also have attacted little baby infants in their strollers or sitting in a sand box out in surburban yards. So something needs to be done. This isn't wildlife land. People are not seeing reality as it truly is now.

  • room_650
    6 years ago

    I see 2gocubs, yes I understand., We have wildlife in the middle of the city too, n NYC. So many hawks. I find it fascinating.....but at the same time they'd fit better in a more natural environment . And we have to be careful, as they do attack occasionally little dogs on the leash .

  • ellaboobella
    6 years ago

    Hawks don't hunt or take pet dogs etc., and they don't attack people unless the people are very close to their nest. Once the fledglings leave they really don't care where we are. Hawks always give a warning when you're too close to their nest, so heed the warning and give them space until their babies fledge. They only want to be left alone. Also, research which hawk eats what. Coopers Hawks, for example, eat small birds, maybe a little rodent. Even bald eagles won't go after a live cat or dog and only get them when they're roadkill. A bald eagle is pretty large and can only lift a few pounds, usually nothing over 4lbs, and usually only a female can do that (they're about 30% larger).


    People are seeing a lot of hawks in cities now because PEOPLE are destroying the animal's natural habitat. Basically, they don't have much choice on where to go, and that's not the hawk's fault.


    One more thing...just because you're seeing a hawk 'now' doesn't mean they weren't around before. They are beautifully camouflaged for the trees etc they perch in. Owls are the same. Destruction of habitat means less cover for them, too. They've always been there. Trust me.


    Someone mentioned farmland and not having hawks when the farms were there. Actually, farmland is the hawk's most favored place to hunt. All sorts of rodents, crows etc. are in those fields, and the hawks know this. They're often seen perched (if they're where you can see them) and watching those fields. Believe it or not, they're a farmer's best friend as they hunt those things that often damage crops.


    Nature has a balance, an agenda, and a plan, and... it's simple. It's called "Survival." Every living thing has a purpose and place, and every single one has a role to play in keeping things in check, keeping our ecosystem healthy.


    But the hawks... aren't interested in dogs or cats.

  • ellaboobella
    6 years ago

    2gocubsgoohyeah I'm sorry, but you're very misguided on wildlife and what hawks do. Firstly, hawks don't just 'attack' people for no reason, and if they're warning and flying in close it's because the people are too close to their nest. Also, you can't 'guide' a bird of ANY kind to go to somewhere where man hasn't taken over. That's ridiculous. They are WILDLIFE, and before those houses etc were there the land belonged to wildlife.


    I live on a bluff and we have about everything you could imagine, wildlife wise, here, hawks, eagles, vultures, you name it. They don't randomly ever attack humans. I stood 10-12 feet from a Coopers Hawk as he/she perched one of our bird baths (mostly a planter). That hawk calmly sat there while I took a video with my phone. I've taken close photos of red-tailed hawks (very large hawk) that flew overhead, calling for its mate and hunting, sometimes they perch in the trees above the house. In the years we've been here we've never had an incident with wildlife. Ever. People's dogs run the street (private drive with little traffic) here, and none of them has ever been attacked by anything either.


    BTW, all birds protect their nests. Mockingbirds will dive-bomb you if you get too close to their nest, and like all birds.. they will give a clear warning to let you know you're too close.


    It's not rocket science but plain ole common sense. Man is destroying natural habitat. How would you feel if someone ran you out of your home and tore it down?

  • 2gocubsgoohyeah
    6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    I agree this isn't the wildlife that was in the past. And that is a problem. How would you feel if you were a hawk living in a city life. I would not hurt a fly. As a matter of fact I dont kill them. If they are being irritating to me I put them on a piece of cardboard and push them out the window. You can believe what ever you would like to. But there are no trees for hawk's to have a nest near my house. So the one who almost attacted me wasn't protecting a nest. Neither was the second one I believe. Yesterday I went shopping. Came home and there was large feathers all over My yard and the bird's were crying. It looked like it was a duck from what I could tell. One spot that was dirt had a few feathers laying there and it looked like there were many holes poked in the dirt. I

    My opinion is that is where a hawk attacted the large animal. So as I said you can believe whatever you would like. It is just very sad hearing a rabbit fleeing and squealing when he is attacted. Now we have problems with Coyotes. Wild life is coming where it doesn't belong.

  • tickledpinkintxs
    6 years ago

    Interesting comments from folks about hawks never attacking around them. I happen to be a country girl born and bred and know for a fact from years of personal experience that a hawk will "take" prey whether a human's around or not. And sometimes "taking" that prey involves just eating it right there on the spot. This is a fact that we just deal with mainly because it's illegal to do anything else. You have to have a permit to even trap and relocate a hawk. They are a federally protected bird of prey. I always have a large dog and the presence of the dogs keeps the coyotes away. However, being in the country, we regularly get cats dumped out here. And I can tell you for a fact that rarely do they last more than 6 months. I've had 3 taken since November; 2 were barn cats and one was my house pet who was out in the yard by the porch. I've lost two chickens in the past week and I can't even count how many in the last couple years. You can tell when it's been a hawk if they feed in place, which they frequently do, because the thing they kills fur or feathers will be left in a circle around the carcass. The last chicken that the hawk got was directly beside the step on my back porch, the carcass was left there, took place just before dusk Saturday. I found the hens body after dark and left it there. Same time next day I heard a ruckus from my goats and when I went outside to check the red-tail was back feeding on the chicken. This is not unusual behavior; I live here and I see it. And yes, a Hawk will attempt to pick up a dog even if it's not successful. An approximately 6lb puppy was let out of the vehicle at the Country Convenience Store to go potty in the grassy area with people all around pumping gas and in the parking lot. The hawk swooped, grabbed it, as soon as people saw it everyone started running towards it screaming and waving their hands around. I don't know if that freaked the hawk out or if it didn't have a great grip to start with but it dropped the puppy from treetop height. The dog had a broken leg but other than that it was fine and its skin was only pierced. They don't kill the animals around my house because anyone's destroyed their habitat... I live in the middle of nowhere surrounded by woods and empty pasture. They do kill around my house for the same reason so many people go to McDonald's; guaranteed fast and easy meal. The only solution that I have found is to keep everything here penned for a couple weeks after an attack. That usually buys me 3 to 4 months of them staying away. Then I'll have a rash of attacks and have to go through the whole process again. I actually came across this thread on a Google search hoping some genius had come up with a more permanent solution.

  • room_650
    6 years ago

    Pigeon breeders, or fanciers, or poultry owners, often use 'holographic tape' , ( sold on Amazon ) , or any shiny object. The reflections bothers the sensitive eyesight of raptors . I agree with all that you say Tickledpin, as I witnessed similar situations in the middle of the city.

  • marylandmojo
    6 years ago

    tickledpink and room_650, et al:

    I also agree with tickledpink, and I too was raised in the country, miles from nowhere. Moreover, I'm old enough to remember when hawks and other raptors COULD be legally killed, and I believe a federal law made it illegal and went into effect about July, 1961. Easy enough to google, for those who want to know the exact date. Years ago, farmers routinely shot and killed hawks and other raptors, when they could, since most family farms had laying hens (for eggs).

    Tickledpink: There is no genius who has come up with a permanent solution to stop predators from killing prey. I've posted previously on this thread that the ONLY permanent way to avoid it happening at your house or on any given property is to use a small-diameter wire and fence-in an enclosed area where you want your (prey) animals to remain safe--covering the TOP, as well as the sides of the enclosure.

    I mentioned previously my father and my uncles raised game birds in Virginia many years ago, and they soon learned they had to do EXACTLY that--specifically to deter AIRBORNE predators, as well as ground-dwelling predators that could CLIMB any fence to enter and kill their pheasants and quail. And of course it was completely necessary to keep the pheasants and quail from flying OUT.

    They even used 1/2-inch hardware cloth for fencing, so SNAKES could not enter (a quite expensive proposition--but necessary for their project).

    I have a friend who fenced his hen-yard, and uses white plastic clothes-line stretched back and forth across the top, about 1 foot apart, that keeps raptors from flying in. Most any winged predator isn't dumb enough to swoop in and strike the clothes-line, which would injure or kill them. BUT, I've told him any number of times, that contraption does nothing at all to deter racoons, o'possums, mink, etc., from climbing in at night (or any other time) and killing his chickens.

    (BTW, on our farm, many years ago, a mink got in and killed 19 grown Rhode Island Red hens, all in one night, when they were on the roost in a henhouse. My uncle took a lantern and a shotgun with him to the henhouse when he heard all the night-time ruckus, and actually shot and killed the mink. He told me the hens were eaten only a little around the head and neck. Why so many? I don't know. Maybe that's just the MO for a mink--which is the only time I've ever heard of a mink entering a henhouse and killing chickens. There were approximately 100 hens roosting in the henhouse. ALL farm women in that area of Virginia kept about 100 laying hens, and sold the eggs in their small town to an egg buyer who came on Saturday to grade and buy their eggs. That's the way it was done in the old days. They also sold cream that they had skimmed off milk, at the same time, to another buyer. Every farm also had at least one milk cow that needed to be milked, morning and night. The farm women used the cream and egg money to buy grocery items in town that could not be produced on the farm--and kept any excess for a "rainy day".)

    Also, BTW: I think this may be the longest-running thread I've ever seen on a subject. Kudos to houzz for sending emails when someone posts, and kudos to posters for offering their input. Some are funny, some are astounding, but all offer information (and isn't life a search for truth and knowledge??)






  • 2gocubsgoohyeah
    6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    Hello

    I tried so many different things to scare them away. And believe it or not the only thing I have used that helps are fake owls. I have two in different spots and they still come and attack the bird's nests, the rabbits and the squirrels too but not as much. And when I see them or hear the bird's screaming when they a hawk is there I make noise. Constant noise for a minute or two. I either take a hard stick and pound it on a brick or slam the door shut whitch makes a loud sound here. Of course I can't guard the animals all the time. But it does help. I want to know if a certain color or a bright light scares them or causes any reaction to them If anyone knows?

    I have learned a lot about this subject here as Well which I do appreciate

    Dorothy

  • room_650
    6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    Dorothy yes, as I said before, people who have coops hang shiny, silver objects, or tapes , often CDs ! The movement creates a glare which bothers somehow the vision of birds of prey. Or scares them. There are videos on,YouTube

  • marylandmojo
    6 years ago

    2gocubs...I've been in the country (on a farm) where hawks are prevalent (and plentiful) most of my life, and I've seen NOTHING that will permanently keep hawks away--period. The owl cutouts (or fake owls) you mention work just like NOISE or bright light works--it's fine, until the hawks get used to it and find that it is no threat to them--and then it's worthless.

    Years ago, a friend in Virginia constructed a LARGE owl cutout from plywood, and did an expert job of painting it to look so real it was surreal--especially the EYES, which are said to scare prey animals. Then he put it high in the air, on a 12-foot steel post, to try and protect his poultry (even the chickens were scared of it--for about a week or 10 days). And the hawks stayed away for about the same period of time, until they discovered it was no threat at all to them (just as the chickens discovered).

    About 2 months after he placed it, he emailed a picture to me of a Red-tailed Hawk perched on the owl cutout, 12 feet up in the air, where the hawk could get an excellent view of his poultry, below.

    --------------------------------------

    Want another example--this one about NOISE? They have a Dove (hunting) season in Virginia, which used to begin September 1 , (if memory serves), and it lasts for a month. (Also, easy enough to google, as the Dove season has been in place for 100 years, or so, and still exists.) A large tobacco-growing farmer in the area had a Dove hunt for about 50 of his friends every year (and probabably still does), and he invited me to come take a look, one year. So I went, one day--mainly because he told me they had killed 1,000 Doves the previous day, and I did not believe it.

    To attract Doves, he planted grain (Barley, in this instance) so that it would mature at the beginning of the Dove season, then he bush-hogged it (cut it down), a week before the Dove season began, and let it lie on the ground where it was visible to Doves flying above. The planted field was directly below POWER LINES that ran through his property--and Doves ROUTINELY fly power lines (because they're open, and kept cut by the power company (or the property owner), so no trees grow into the power lines). The field was about 40 acres, and probably 100 yards wide, with pine woods on both sides of the field where the hunters hid out and waited for the Doves to fly the power line. It was the PERFECT scenario for a Dove hunt (and I learned afterwards that the SAME scenario is practiced annually in thousands of farm fields in the South). Again, that day. the hunters killed 1,000 Doves, or more.

    So, to my point: In the beginning of the 30-day Dove season, no hawk in his right mind came around the area, because it sounded like a WAR ZONE with 50 people blasting away at the Doves, who came in bunches, and flocks, flying the power line, to get to the grain on the ground.

    Periodically, hunters would run out into the open field and get the birds they had killed (or wounded). It was not unusual to see Doves with broken wings hopping about in the field, and they would pick them all up about every half-hour.

    BUT, as the season progressed, hawks started coming around as they saw the wounded Doves flopping around on the ground, and BEFORE THE 30-DAY SEASON HAD ENDED, HAWKS WERE (ACTUALLY) FLYING DOWN TO THE GROUND AND PICKING UP WOUNDED DOVES AND FLYING OFF WITH THEM.

    And, THIS, with 50 hunters shooting shotguns, sounding like a war zone, and shot flying every which-a-way. I found it unvelievable! But it is totally true, and anyone reading this post who has ever Dove-hunted in the South will verify everything I've written here.

    So much for owl cutouts and loud noises. The hawks just got used to all those hunters making all that racket (over that 30-day period) because it posed no threat to them--just like the Red Tailed Hawk that sat on the owl cutout realized (over time) that it did not pose any threat, either.

    -------------------------------------------






  • Dorothy Patone
    6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    Room_650

    I have cd's hanging all over my Yard. I nailed them all over the front of my shed. My question was if light meaning electrical light or 1 main color effects them. Not reflection. The cd's did nothing to help.

    Marylandmojo

    I didn't mean that the noise i make or the owls that i had put out will keep them away permanently. When they are attacking the birds in the trees or chasing the rabbits into the hedges near me and i pound a rock or bang the tree they take off. This is only one at a time and it isnt flying. Also i move the fake owls around so they don't get used to them. I have only been dealing with them for a short time. I have no idea how long it will last.

    I am trying to get information and learn about this and nothing else.

  • 2gocubsgoohyeah
    6 years ago

    And please understand that this is not farmland or a wildlife area where I live. It is a busy residential area. The houses are all close together. Mine is one of the few biggest properties with houses surrounding me.

    My family lived here for 65 years. When we moved here from Chicago we called it farmland then. I spoke to My older brother about the hawks recently. He said to me that we never saw a hawk around this here. And he was surprised. He lives in Sheridan, Illinois. It is mainly farmland there and is also a Hunter. So he knows about hawks and similar animals. Says there are many by him too.



  • marylandmojo
    6 years ago

    To 2gocubs and room_650

    Not trying to discredit your input--I NEVER intentionally do that. I find all input to be pertinent. Just responding to tickledpink's query about a PERMANENT solution to keep hawks away:

    ------------------------------

    "I actually came across this thread on a Google search hoping some genius had come up with a more permanent solution."

    ------------------------------

    My point was that there is no PERMANENT solution that I know of, because any bird or animal loses fear of anything that is put in place, and over time, they become aware that it poses no real threat to them.

    And I agree that temporary solutions are best if switched around and moved and changed up to look DIFFERENT.

    Example: I have a photo in my files of 2 Crows--one perched on each shoulder of a scarecrow, in the middle of a corn field in Virginia. I believe if the scarecrow had been moved around a bit, instead of being left in the same place for an extended period of time, it would have appeared more real and probably would have offered more protection (or maybe give him a different shirt or hat every now and then :-)











  • sherylmb35
    6 years ago

    The reason I am on this thread is because a hawk swooped down and tried to take my 9 lb. chihuahua yesterday in my front yard. I was there and shocked to witness it. My dog yelped and wiggled free, but for those that have posted that hawks won't attack small dogs, that is not true. Now, can the hawk lift and fly away with my dog, I don't know. But I do know that their talons can severely hurt the animal.

  • 2gocubsgoohyeah
    6 years ago

    Sherylmb35

    A hawk destroyed the last rabbit that came here regularly for the last 2 years for food last week. There was a circle of fur and a very little blood. The rabbit was a blind animal. It really hurts me when you warn owners of small pets to be more protective because of this and they ignore you. I tell people all the time. Not only about Hawk's but Coyotes as well.

  • ellaboobella
    6 years ago

    Sherylmb35 So sorry that you went through that. Hawks are wild animals, so they have to hunt for their food. They don't typically go after 'pets' for food, especially ones near humans. It's not a 'common' thing, but it 'can' happen. It just normally doesn't. Hawks are wild animals, and they can't go to the local grocer and pick up their meals---they have to hunt for every single one. Everything they do is ultimately about survival. Mankind continues to destroy their natural habitat, which means they are left to hunt in neighborhoods, cities, etc. The hawk is simply doing what comes natural---fighting for survival---and it's up to pet owners to make sure their pets are safe. And honestly, you'd be surprised at what your little dog would kill and eat if he/she was on its own and starving. TRUE hunger is a wicked-strong motivator.


    2gocubsgoohyeah At least the rabbit was a wild animal. The food chain is what it is. Hell, there are humans that hunt and kill wild animals for food when they don't HAVE to, and too many hunt for the 'fun' of it. In the wild the hunt, the kill... is about survival, be it a meal so they live another day, or in defense of itself or young. That's nature.

  • 2gocubsgoohyeah
    6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    Very hurtful for me say this but I am glad he doesn't have to run without seeing the path he must take to survive.

  • marylandmojo
    6 years ago

    There's been a cool (and brief--about a minute) video on the internet for many months, and the caption says, "Guess what unlikely animal saves a chicken's life?" Video shows a chicken (grown hen, to be exact) walking nonchalantly across someone's back yard, and a large hawk diving on it (not seen by the hen) from above.

    (Can't believe someone captured this fast-moving action in a video; doubt I could.)

    All of a sudden, out of nowhere it appears, comes a BLUR, from the right side, running toward the hen. It's a CAT, running at warp speed, and it leaps up and knocks the hawk out of the air, when the hawk is about 3-4 feet above the hen.

    So, the hawk is on the ground, the cat keeps on running across the yard, and the hen also runs for cover. Then the hawk slowly gets to its feet, straightens itself out, and manages to gingerly fly away.






  • tickledpinkintxs
    6 years ago

    How cool is that! Is it on YouTube?

  • ellaboobella
    6 years ago

    marylandmojo "A cat's instinct to hunt is independent of hunger." The cat's intention wasn't to save the hen, but humans tend to project human traits onto animals so would naturally want to THINK that is the case. It's not. Cats kill 3.7 BILLION birds and 20.7 BILLION small animals every year, many of the birds they kill are nestlings and fledglings. Domestic house cats are predators unlike any other---they do not kill to eat and will kill with a full stomach, hence the quote.

  • Dorothy Patone
    6 years ago

    Maylandmojo

    Yes!

  • marylandmojo
    6 years ago

    *****tickled pink: I googled "Cat saves chicken from hawk", and the first post is this:

    A Very Unlikely Hero Saves Chicken From Hawk Attack

    Pretty much the same as I wrote in my initial post, above. (Isn't the internet great?! You can find anything, the second time around.)

    *****Ellaboobella: I welcome your input, but I'll have to disagree with you THIS TIME. And if you watch the video, you may very well agree with me. Why??

    In the video, the cat is obviously NOT hunting, and it IS coming to the aid of the chicken--and I can offer a very good reason WHY that is happening. Note that the cat knocks the hawk down and CONTINUES running at warp speed to get the hail out of the area and AWAY from the hawk. I think the cat may very well know the hawk is lethal, either from past experience, or just from thousands of years of it being bred into their DNA. (Just guessing at the latter.)

    Now let me tell you the reasoning: A member of my family raises livestock guard dogs, and the way he makes them guard dogs is quite simple. He places young puppies in with poultry, and raises them AMONG poultry. The dogs bond with the chickens--maybe even IMPRINT on them--and as the puppies become mature dogs, Lord help anybody who tries to harm the chickens, man or beast. Their kennel is in the hen lot--he feeds them when he feeds the poultry, they SLEEP with the poultry, and when the poultry free-ranges, the dog is in the pasture with them. He employs breeds that are protective, by their breeding, and what do they have to protect EXCEPT poultry--their constant companions (and the only family they have ever known, since puppy hood)?

    Further, to bolster my point of view, google what I googled above, and you'll actually see a post where a DUCK saves a chicken from a hawk (and we all know DUCKS are not born (hawk) hunters). So I'm telling you that OTHER animals raised with poultry will try and protect them from harm by predators.

    My cousin sells his poultry guard dogs to people who raise poultry for quite a bit of money, and he sells SHEEP guard dogs to people who raise sheep for quite a bit of money, also. And these puppies are ALL placed with the animals they will later protect at a very eary age, and they IMPRINT on them.

    I know poultry have natural natural enemies, either from experience or from DNA. Another example: when I was a teenager I raised poultry. They roosted in a henhouse at night, and I secured the henhouse once they were on the roost. I propped the henhouse door open and let them out to free range in a fenced area (of about an acre), each morning, and around noon or 1 o'clock, when they all had gone to the henhouse and laid eggs, I would gather the eggs. At one point, I noticed a number of the eggs had broken shells and were partly eaten. Since this was happening in the daytime, I first suspected a rat, or some other vermin. It went on for awhile, and I was baffled--until one day I say a crow WALKING out of the open henhouse door, and flying up in a nearby tree. I went and looked, and eggs were eaten, again.


    I had an air rifle (BB gun) in the house and I eased into the house and got it, and when I came back, the crow was still up in the tall tree. Extremely difficult to kill a crow with a BB gun at a distance, but I shot at it, and lo, and behold, when it started to fly from its high perch, it came tumbling and thrashing to the ground, with a broken wing. It righted itself, and began trying to fly, and when it realized it could not, it began hopping across the hen yard.

    I had a rooster and about 40 hens, and in a flock of hens, there is always an established "pecking order", with the rooster at top, and the most dominant hen next--and so on, down the line. They establish that pecking order fighting among themselves as they mature.

    As the crow began hopping away, it attracted the attention of the entire flock of hens, and first the rooster ran to the crow and attacked it with its bill and its spurs. Then the dominant hen ran to the crow, and the NEXT dominant hen, and they also attacked it with bills and feet. Then they backed off, and the NEXT dominant hen attacked it, and so-on down the line until ALL had pecked the crow until they tired of it, and it lay dying.

    I watched in disbelief. These docile hens that I had cared for since they were chicks became KILLERS when confronted by a natural enemy.

    Read the posts under, "Video of cat saving chicken from hawk", and you'll find a NUMBER of animals that are not natural hunters that have come to the aid of animals with whom they were raised. Then you'll understand why a duck--or a cat--would attack a hawk who was attacking a chicken companion.

    Sorry about the length of this post--but a story is a story, and some are lengthy.

    wt







  • marylandmojo
    6 years ago

    https://search.aol.com/aol/search?s_it=webmail-searchbox&q=video%3A%20cat%20saves%20chicken%20from%20hawk

    Obviously, I haven't found the right link yet. One with the lengthy post is the DUCK saving the chicken. This link IS a cat saving chicken from hawk but not the original video I saw--which was more awesome. I'll continue looking.

  • 2gocubsgoohyeah
    6 years ago

    What made me curious as to why I might post this question initially was a picture of a Squirrel fighting a hawk in mid air. And the caption was " he never gave up fighting for his life". I knew nothing about a hawk at that time. Since then I have learned so much. And I would bet that squirrel never survived. But I believe that life can be scary for all at one time or another.

  • marylandmojo
    6 years ago

    gocubs:

    10-4, on that. As I looked through videos last night, trying to find the one where the cat comes like a blur to the aid of his chicken companion, leaps in the air and knocks a hawk to the ground, and runs off, I found numerous other hawk videos that I also found amazing.

    Many hawks were doing all the things that numerous posters here said they do not do; no doubt the conclusion should be that nearly ANYTHING can happen in the animal world, under a given set of circumstances.

    There were videos of hawks attacking DOGS ON LEASHES, with the dog's owner trying to fight them off. Who would believe that could ever happen?? There was a picture of a Red Tail Hawk chasing a Wild Turkey that weighed about 10-12 pounds, all over a park, swooping at it again and again. (Reminds me of a dog chasing a car; what's he going to do with it after he catches it?)

    For those who think that hawks conform to a certain set of standards about the size of the animal they'll attack and/or WHERE they'll attack them, they should google, "hawk attacks on various other animals", or something similar.

    Funny video was a little dog, no more than 5-6 pounds, with 2 or 3 hawks hovering and swooping at him as he ran--unleashed--around a large field in a park (it appeared). The funny part was that the dog did not consider himself PREY; he was jumping at the hawks, and trying to catch them in mid-air, as though he were the predator, and THEY were the prey, and he seemed determined to CATCH one of them. Made me LOL.

    Regarding your hawk/squirrel post: I was standing in a yard talking to a friend in a very rural area of Virginia, years ago. As we talked, I saw a blur in the air about 50 feet behind my friend, and a Red Tail hawk CRASHED into a large oak tree that was behind my friend. A gray squirrel chattered and ran further up the tree, and into a hollow. We both were amazed. Who would think a hawk would risk injury (or death) by hurling itself, headlong, at great speed, into the limbs of huge oak tree to catch a squirrel, right in front of two humans standing there (in an area so rural that people still SHOOT hawks, there, because they eat their chickens)??

    Then the hawk, realizing it MISSED, perched on a limb of the tree, took a few minutes to gather itself together, straighten out its wing feathers, and it flew off.

    wt


  • 2gocubsgoohyeah
    6 years ago

    marylandmojo

    How interesting and meaningful all of that was to read. Thank you for sharing all of it.

  • tickledpinkintxs
    6 years ago

    Sherylmb35 marylandmojo

    So when I was Googling it I was Googling ways to keep Hawks away. Now thanks to Marylandmojo I've been watching unlikely Critters rescue other Critters. Very entertaining! Thank you for that suggestion.


    Sherylmb35... the folks below we're not as lucky as you. So glad your pup is safe.

    http://abc11.com/pets/apex-family-can-only-watch-as-hawk-kills-their-tiny-dog/1183673/

  • cheryllynn744
    5 years ago

    What can I do to scare away hawks away from my yard? I have a two small dogs. One only weighing 3lbs.

  • becwall
    5 years ago

    I live in Ohio and we have 4 hawks now, two of them are babies. The babies are still very large. We watch our 8 lb. Chihuahua very close because the one swooped down to grab him and we yelled and screamed at it until he flew away. A hawk rescue owner told me if the dog weighs less then the hawk the hawk will carry it away but if the dog weighs more then the hawk it will sink its talons in the dog and try to lift it but then drop it. I watch our hawks grab large squirrels like they are nothing. My sister works with a gentleman that "owned" a Chihuahua and took it out to potty...when he turned around the dog was attached to the hawk, the hawk took it away never to see the poor dog again. I talked to DNR and they say they wont bother a dog but I can tell you for a fact that they will. Owls in Ohio are another issue. An owl took a full size yorkie away right out of a neighbors yard. When he decided to buy another one we put a net over the dog area.

  • HU-120122693
    5 years ago

    I was on the 44th floor if a building in Miami. 100% witnessed a hawk swoop down into a balcony of another building and flew off with a cat.


    This is not hearsay. This isn't some hawk being confused with prey. A hawk flew into a balcony and took off with a cat. Owner probably thought its cat fell off the balcony.


    If anyone is reading this and is slightly concern that a hawk will one day swoop down and pick up their pet: yep, you are right.


    Hawks are so fast that witnessing them attack any prey is uncommon. They are in and out. This is especially true for witnessing them attack a pet as most often a pet is near a human which hawks stay away from.


    I also have on video camera a hawk swooping down and taking a dove on the ground. I saw a bunch of feathers everywhere so reviewed security cam to witness how fast they attack. It's incredible. This area is filled with cats that walk past the exact spot the hawk killed the dove. I can assume cats are prey here as well.


    No doubt hawks kill pets. 100%.

  • room_650
    5 years ago

    Hawks , at least in the city, are not at all intimidated by human presence.

    Maybe the cat was of small size ? As hawks have to ground their prey .



    these photos I took on the deck where I live. A couple of, red tailed nested at my corner, 3rd floor fire escape of an empty building. This is the female, she raised 3 chicks on her own, after her mate died, in the mids of crowded central Manhattan.

  • becwall
    4 years ago
    a rescued hawk owner said if the dog weighs less than the hawk it will carry it away....if the dog weighs more than the hawk it will attempt to pick the dog up and by then its talons are dug deep in the dog so a big chance the dog will dye. We have 3 hawks where we live and I severely broke my ankle in September saving my 8 lbs chihuahua from a red tail hawk in Ohio.
  • becwall
    4 years ago
    I did witness a hawk picking up a full grown fat squirrel, killed it and flew away with it.
  • HU-938043795
    4 years ago

    The hawk that has caused so much harm to animals here in Chicago suburbs is pretty much under control. At least for the moment. He would sit on the top of My swing or on top of the hedges. When I would him or hear him I would go outside and get very close to him and chase him away.

    What I have found to be the best help is that I put 2 vinyl owls in my yard to scare him. It works for me. One day I actually him squawking right near my window where one of the fake owls is at. I went to see what the noise was. The hawk was about 3 feet away from the fake owl. I screamed at him and he took off.

    Also I tried making so many different noises to scare him off. The best sound that worked quickest was clapping my hands as hard as I could. He takes off when I do that.

    I am trying to do somsome spring yard work at this . I have a bird bath close to my house. The hawk swoops down and grabs the birds and flys off with them. So this year I am going to put an arbor covering the sides and top of the bird bath. Hawks do not like anything closed in. So there is no way he would be able to grab them. They are very quiet andand sneaky when the make their plans to attack. Little animals are at very harmful risk around them.

  • marylandmojo
    4 years ago

    cheryllynn744: (The thread that will never end :-)


    Your question is what started this thread, lo, those many years ago.


    Best thing I've been able to do is to use one of those New Year's noise-makers that you crank that makes an ungodly noise--something the hawk has not previously heard that will freak him/her out. I have a stuffed owl up in my back yard, and it might as well not be there. For me, it worked fine for a week, and every bird in the vicinity was stressed out and came to squawk at it from a safe distance, and some were bold enough to get quite close. Couple of Bluebirds flew right above it, and hovered (as Bluebirds will) for a few moments, checking it out.


    But unless you move the decoy almost daily, songbirds soon learn that it is no threat to them, and they won't pay any more attention to it. Been there for about a year, and most of its feathers are gone, but it still has the silouhette of an owl--to no avail.

    --------------------------------------------------------

    Recent hawk episode for me involved a dove nesting in my window sill. Doves--like pigeons--are "ledge nesters", and sometimes only place a few sticks on a ledge to keep the (2) eggs from rolling away. My dove built a little more elaborate nest, with lots of sticks forming a nest between my double-hung window and double-hung storm window, about 4 inches apart.


    I had the storm window raised about 10 inches, quite by mistake, and a dove nested there last year (between the 2 windows) and fledged 2 baby doves. Success!


    Another dove used the same nest this year, and added sticks to it. Unfortunately, the dove began setting on eggs about March 4th, where there were no leaves on the trees (yet) in my area, and the dove was more visible than last year.


    One morning about 2 weeks ago, I heard a THUMP on the window about daylight, and I opened the curtain and looked out. The dove was gone, the 2 white eggs were exposed in the nest, and a Peregrine Falcon was sitting on a tree limb outside the window, no more than 3 or 4 feet away.


    The Falcon saw me through the window pane, and flew off. The dove stayed away the rest of the day, and did not come back and begin setting on the eggs (again) until the next day. I thought it was rather remarkable that it even returned, after being attacked by a hawk (falcon).
    I had no idea how it survived the attack, since it seemed more-or-less trapped there, inside the two windows. But the THUMP sounded like the falcon hitting the window, so somehow, it slipped away. Maybe the falcon tried to attack from above, and hit the glass above the dove.


    I had an idea the falcon would come back and try again and sure enough, about 4 days later, another WHUMP on the window. Same result--I looked out, the dove was gone, the eggs were exposed, and the Peregrine Falcon was 3 or 4 feet away on a tree branch.


    But this time, I had gotten my crank, New Year's noise-maker out of the closet and had it on my dresser. I grabbed it, and ran up the hall and opened the front door as quietly as I could. The falcon was still sitting in the tree, and I eased out and cranked-out a bunch of raucous noise while running toward the tree, and the falcon freaked out and flew out of the tree.


    Unbelievable that the dove returned AGAIN, only a few hours later, and began setting on its eggs again, the very same day, after (somehow) surviving the second strike by the Peregrine Falcon!!


    Again, it sounded like the falcon hit the glass above the dove.


    The falcon did not return, and the dove continued setting for about 3 or 4 more days. Then one morning I heard noise in the window, and I peeped out to see the dove turning the eggs over beneath it, and it appeared to be examining them. Soon after, it flew away, and left the nest and the eggs, and did not return.


    After the dove did not come back many days later, it was obvious the dove had abandoned the nest, and I raised the window and got the 2 eggs out, and put them in my basement. I have an idea what I will find when I crack them open; I think I'll find 2 babies that were nearly ready to hatch until the dove flew away after the first falcon strike and stayed away for more than a day.


    I believe the eggs may have got too cold that night she was away, and the babies inside probably froze--or otherwise died wiithout their mother there to keep them warm.


    Shame that she spent weeks there, only to have it end that way. But amazing that she had the resolve to return after 2 falcon attacks and continue to TRY and hatch the eggs. And more amazing that she escaped with her own life.


    wt









  • HU-276056713
    4 years ago
    last modified: 4 years ago

    Hum? Sounds so similar to my posts. Reading may have helped

  • HU-93863919
    2 years ago
    last modified: 2 years ago

    After reading a lot of these posts, glad I didn't buy the fake owl. I have a 6 lb kitten I let out in my cat-fenced-in yard that I want to protect. BTW, OP, nice post. It hadn't been mentioned up to the point where I stopped reading replies, but I've read that loud noise may deter, so I'm going to try a whistle in addition to me waving my arms, yelling and running around like an idiot. If that doesn't work, an air horn is next. I think someone did mention noisemakers, so I'll be on the lookout for those next time I'm in a place like Michael's. The ones on Amazon don't get consistently good reviews.

    In my experience, coyotes and owls are usually only out and about, whether country or city, early morning, dusk, or at night. My cats are not allowed out during those times, and my little dogs only go out with me -- but my yard is small and has a 7 ft fence. Otherwise, my little dogs would be on a leash at those times.

    I love the crows for alerting me to a hawk or an owl in the area.

    I read a lot about whether hawks would be a threat to my grown cats, and concluded that unless it were an unusual situation, i.e., a nest nearby or a starving hawk in Winter, it was highly unlikely. My cats are 10 and 15 lbs each. The kitten, tho, I worry about. I had a smaller cat previously, and a hawk did dive down after her, but didn't attack, thank God.

    P.S. I feel sorry for you, Elly. Whatever it is that makes you so pathetically nasty to people concerned about their beloved pets, I hope it goes away and you can find happiness.

    .

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