Damm Owl is Killing my Chickens

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I usually don't post in this department, but I figure you guys would have the best ideas. Last night my wife went out to lock up the birds for the night and walked into an active crime scene. Two of her best hens and our favorite duck were dead. A hen and the duck were dead in the coupe and we caught the owl eating the head off of a hen behind the coupe.
The f-ing owl wouldn't leave. We shoo him away and it just goes into a tree and waits for us to leave. We went into the house and the f-er was standing on a feed barrel looking at the hens thru a window.
How do we get rid of it?
 
I usually don't post in this department, but I figure you guys would have the best ideas. Last night my wife went out to lock up the birds for the night and walked into an active crime scene. Two of her best hens and our favorite duck were dead. A hen and the duck were dead in the coupe and we caught the owl eating the head off of a hen behind the coupe.
The f-ing owl wouldn't leave. We shoo him away and it just goes into a tree and waits for us to leave. We went into the house and the f-er was standing on a feed barrel looking at the hens thru a window.
How do we get rid of it?

It depends, but an owl will often leave on its own accord after it's finished killing off your hens and ducks. How many of each do you have left? ;)
 
When I was younger a owl or hawk around someone's coop recieved a quick death sentence . I guess things are different now . I would do what's needed to protect your birds and not say anything about it . And as said have a shovel
 
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Then follow this advice

View: https://youtu.be/uqo5RYOp4nQ?t=25
 
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, being feds, provide a slow and expensive ($50 non-refundable application fee) process to apply for a depredation permit. Or you can do what everybody else does, and SSS.

ICWDM said:
All hawks and owls are federally protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (16 USC, 703-711). These laws strictly prohibit the capture, killing, or possession of hawks or owls without special permit. No permits are required to scare depredating migratory birds except for endangered or threatened species (see Table 1), including bald and golden eagles.
. . .
Pyrotechnics include a variety of exploding or noise-making devices. The most commonly used are shell crackers, which are 12-gauge shotgun shells containing a firecracker that is projected 50 to 100 yards (45 to 90 m) before it explodes. Fire shell crackers in the direction of hawks or owls that are found within the threatened area. An inexpensive open-choke shotgun is recommended.
Sounds like an excuse to go shopping for ammo! [grenade]
 
So let me get it straight. You didn't properly secure your chickens and an owl killed them and you are mad at all owls?

Get yourself a hawk. Owls hate them.
Right. Just like we don't secure our borders. The OP has his chickens and ducks killed by a predator and he is pissed. The chickens and ducks are his property and he has the right to protect them any way he can. Jack.
 
I understand the chickens have a right to piss off of the porch as they please, still, if it isn't the owl it will be another predator next time.

I wasn't joking about the hawk. Maybe try to find a fake hawk instead of the fake owls that people use.

Sorry about your loss, I know they can be like family.
 
Folks, That is why my chickens are in a pen with a netted cover. I had a Goss hawk get one of my hens before I was able to get the netting over the pen. I have not lost a bird since. You "Free Range your birds and predators are going to get them, That is what they do.

This^^^^^^^

Netting is cheap and the owl isn't going away until ALL the food runs out.
 
Sadly, We've lost a few hens while they were out free ranging in the yard. It sucks.

The feeling Cowgirlup and I had was = we're their protectors, and we failed them...

It happened once when we were at church for a few hours and came back to find a hen we had raised (just getting to egg laying age), err, shall I say it was more like what was left of her. The others were hiding and a little traumatized.

Then we lost one of our favorites that we had raised. We really Don't know exactly what got her. Again, it happened while they were out free ranging.

Now: we NEVER let them out if no one is home. One of us is always around. We arrange our work schedules that way (essentially, we are both self employed so .... ).

When I work from my office (usually about 3 days out if the work week), I have 21 CCTV cameras on just about every area that the hens are roaming around at. Otherwise, I could not see them from the office.

I keep a suppressed 10/22 and a Remington TAC-14 with brace by the back door (this is NH and we don't have to worry about locking them up....)

I also keep a 11.5" AR with a brace in the home office.

I'll be damned if another hen gets attacked on our property (we do have fox, fisher cats, coyote, and a lot of other threats here).

Of course, as law abiding gun owners, we (I am sure everyone on this site) is very much concerned with making sure we follow all state and federal laws. No question about that ....
 
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