Protecting chickens from predators
Lock the flock in a secure coop every night, since many predators hunt from dusk to dawn. Use wire with openings smaller than 1 inch, seal small holes, bury the wire at least a foot deep, and cover the run where hawks or owls are a problem. Keep feed, eggs and garbage cleaned up so predators aren't drawn in.
Predators take chickens by day and by night, but many are most active from dusk to dawn. Most losses can be prevented with a solid coop, the right wire and shutting the flock in every night.
Lock them in every night
UNH Extension calls keeping birds inside at night "easily the most important and effective way" to protect free-range chickens. Once the flock goes in at dusk, close and fasten every door until morning. Feeding and watering inside the coop at dusk teaches birds to head in on their own. If you can't be home at dusk every night, an automatic coop door closes on schedule. Pick one that locks: raccoons can open simple latches.
Build the coop and run to keep them out
- Wire: use wire with openings smaller than 1 inch, so raccoons and opossums can't reach through and grab a bird.
- Small gaps: seal every hole. Minks and weasels fit through small openings, and the smallest weasels can squeeze through holes as small as 1/4 inch.
- Digging: bury the wire at least 1 foot deep, then bend it outward for another 8 to 10 inches. A digging animal hits the corner and can't get further.
- Windows: cover open windows with wire. Window screen doesn't stop most predators.
- From above: where hawks or owls are a problem, cover the run with wire or mesh, or string thin wire or fishing line across it. Hawks and owls are federally protected, so keeping them out is the legal route.
- Moveable coops: keep the edges in contact with the ground.
Don't invite them in
- Store feed in airtight containers and clean up spills. Spilled feed draws rats.
- Collect eggs often.
- Keep compost and garbage away from the coop, in secure bins.
- Clear brush and tall grass near the coop, and avoid placing it near trees that give hawks and owls a perch.
Who's out there, and the signs they leave
| Predator | When | Signs |
|---|---|---|
| Raccoon | Night | Climbs fences and coops, opens simple latches, and reaches through wire. Heads or legs pulled off birds near the mesh. |
| Fox | Mostly night | Often just footprints and scattered feathers. Carries birds away, and can take several in one raid. |
| Coyote | Night and day, more at night in towns | Often tunnels under the pen or forces its way in. Can jump fences up to 5 feet high. |
| Dog | Any time | Birds chased, mauled and left lying around the yard, often not eaten. |
| Hawk | Day | Feathers under a tree. Head and neck often eaten, with deep cuts from talons. |
| Owl | Night, early morning and late evening | Like a hawk. Owls have been known to enter coops at night. |
| Weasel or mink | Mostly night | Bites at the back of the head or neck. Sometimes kills birds without eating them. |
| Opossum | Night | Reaches through wire to grab birds. Messy kills of adult birds, and eggshells left behind. |
| Skunk | Not stated in sources | Eggs opened at one end, heads eaten off chicks, and a strong smell. |
| Bobcat | Mainly dawn and dusk, but any time | Takes birds of any size and leaves only a few feathers. Scratch marks on the side and back of a bird left behind. |
| Snake | Not stated in sources | Eggs missing, chicks swallowed. Keep chicks in pens with very small openings. |
| Rat | Not stated in sources | Drawn by spilled feed and untidy coops. Eggs and chicks at risk. |
A trail camera can show you which predator is visiting, though it won't stop it. Motion lights, noise and moving objects like flags or pinwheels are short-term fixes. Trapping is legal only in some cases, so check with your state wildlife agency or a wildlife professional first.
Guardian animals
Livestock guardian dogs, such as the Great Pyrenees, Anatolian Sheepdog and Maremma Sheepdog, have protected coops and free-range flocks, but only when trained for the job. Extension services suggest a dog raised with poultry. Llamas, alpacas and donkeys are also used as guardians.
Sources
- UNH Extension: protecting chickens from predators (night confinement, wire openings, burying, attractants, which predators hunt when)
- University of Maryland Extension: identifying and preventing poultry predators (signs, buried apron, windows, raptors, deterrents, guardian animals)
- Ohio State University Extension: predators of poultry (signs, bobcat timing, trapping)
- University of Kentucky: predator management for small poultry flocks (weasels)
Questions people ask
What is the most important way to protect chickens from predators?
Shutting them in a secure coop every night. UNH Extension calls it easily the most important and effective step.
Will chicken wire keep predators out?
Not reliably. Raccoons and opossums reach through larger openings, and the smallest weasels can squeeze through holes as small as 1/4 inch. Extension services recommend wire with openings smaller than 1 inch, buried at least a foot deep.
Can I trap or shoot a hawk that is taking my chickens?
No. Hawks and owls are federally protected. Cover the run with wire, mesh or fishing line to keep them out.