Unsecure chicken perches

[Atilla-the-hen]

When I let my chickens out the other day for their afternoon free-ranging, they all went back into the hen coup after 10 minutes which is most unusual, and they looked rather anxious. I then noticed a couple of buzzards circling overhead and wondered if anyone has had any injuries or fatalities to their chickens due to buzzards or other birds of prey

[Olly]

I'm not aware of anyone losing a full-size hen to a bird of prey, but there's no doubt the would take chicks if they saw them, and possibly bantams? Your hens will recognise the shape of a raptor overhead, and that's why they ran to hide themselves, it's an instinctive reaction.

[chickanne]

Chickens certainly recognise their cries. Although buzzards will eat small birds (rooks, pigeons), voles and rabbits they are unlikely to go for your chooks in a smallish garden. They like big spaces and room to manouvre. At the end of summer they will be very common in the fields eating worms as they are ploughed up. I suspect you would have to be very unlucky to lose a chicne to them

[hazard]

i had a chick 10 weeks old snatched by a red kite last week it was my only pure white one too

[Sammiboo]

I was going to post this last week. I have never known of chickens being taken by Buzzards but I had one swoop down by the back garden up again and just miss the house roof and sat in a tree. We have lots of them around here and not been bothered by them, last weeks incident did cause me concern though. We also have peregrines but they just go after the pigeons.

[Atilla-the-hen]

Thanks everyone for advice, I can relax now when buzzy buzzard flies over

[Atilla-the-hen]

i had a chick 10 weeks old snatched by a red kite last week it was my only pure white one too

Aww sorry to hear that.