I had secured my barn and yard well and did not allow any predators such as foxes, raccoons, weasels, coyotes, and others. However, I still lose some of my ducks from time to time.
When I did research, I found that the matter is not limited to terrestrial predators, but rather there are predatory birds that pose a threat to my ducks from the air, such as hawks and owls! Specifically, I found that the reason my ducks were missing was owls! So I had to find a way to protect my ducks from owls.
Owls pose a great threat to your duck coop, especially horned owls, they can wipe out your flock in no time.
We have researched the most important techniques that can be used to deter owls from your ducks, and fortunately, we have collected some important tips with which you can keep your ducks safe. Keep reading to learn more.
7 Tips To Protect Your Ducks From Owls
There is a point that must be taken into consideration before we delve into the tips for protecting ducks, which is that these measures must aim only to frighten and keep owls away from your ducks only without causing any harm to them in any way.
Owls are among the forbidden birds to kill or harm them, and whoever does so exposes himself to the issue Legal that ends with a fine or imprisonment!
Here are our top tips that will help protect your ducks from owls:
- Lock Your Ducks At Night
- Place A Scary Decoy Around The Duck Coop
- Mix Ducks With Hens And Roosters
- Do Not Leave Places For Owls
- Light Around Your Farm
- Cover The Duck Track
- Use Compact Discs
Let’s explain each one of them:
Lock Your Ducks At Night
Owls are predators that are active at night. It starts from dusk to dawn, so letting your ducks roam the yard at night without shelter is like offering them a free hearty meal to the owls. So locking the ducks at night and keeping them in a closed and secure barn is a must-have to protect the ducks at night.
Do not worry, this is the best for your ducks, as they need to rest and sleep at night, and they will not miss anything from food or water, because they often do not touch them during the night hours.
So get the chickens into the barn at night, for more precaution. Get them in by dusk, as owls do not require the darkness of the night to hunt owls. They will also hunt when there is a little flash of light either at dusk or early in the morning. So lock your duck uptight all night until the sun starts to come out just right.
Once your ducks are inside and the owls give up getting to them, any owls from your area will automatically leave.
Place A Scary Decoy Around The Duck Coop
Although owls are very smart and can distinguish a real decoy from a fake one, you can still use it to deter owls. The decoy will give good results in deterring owls if used properly. You can design a scarecrow yourself or buy it from an online store.
You can make scarecrows very easily, create a frame in the shape of a cross made of a wooden stick attached to another stick with measures of 1.8-2.4 meters. Then dress her in any old clothes you have and stuff her with hay.
Scout the area around your barn and place decoys in potential landing areas for owls. You can use more than one decoy if necessary.
The key point here is for the decoy to be effective and for the owl not to discover that it is fake, to move it and change its location constantly two to three times a week in order to deceive the owl and to ensure that it does not discover that it is not a real person.
You can also buy a ready-made electric scarecrow, whether from an online or local store. it can make the task easier for you and do it for you. As there are decoy devices equipped with sensors that shoot water at any owl that their motion sensor detects.
It also does not use water pressure too strong so as not to kill the owls, you have to check for yourself at this point to make sure because if the water pressure is too high, and kills any of the owls. This could result in a fine or imprisonment because killing owls is illegal.
You can also use a decoy in the form of a hawk or an owl, as owls are territorial and if they see that there are owls in the area, they will not approach them and will search for another area.
Mix Ducks With Hens And Roosters
Ducks are weak creatures compared to chickens and roosters. So they can be combined with some use of their ability to protect ducks. Roosters are keen assessors and protectors who predict danger and tell their flock to prepare.
So you can use a chicken rooster as inexpensive means of defense Until he issues a sharp and disturbing warning whistle to tell the ducks that there is a danger and that they must take cover until they pass. And at the same time confuse the owl and makes her run away.
You must bear in mind to provide sufficient amounts of eating and drinking for the ducks and chickens so that the chickens do not control the food and oppress the ducks. Or you can take the ducks to a separate place at mealtime.
Do Not Leave Places For Owls
Owls often perch on high tree branches, gutters, or any type of structure they can perch on.[1]
Therefore, you will need to remove any possible landing surfaces for the owls, such as trees, poles, or other observatories.
Also, you can install nails on any areas where owls may land. You can use screws like the ones on power poles. So that the owls can’t land the owls to keep an eye on your ducks and know the weaknesses of your coop to pounce on them in time.
Light Around Your Farm
Owls are predators that prefer to hunt in the dark. Therefore, using bright lights and flashes at night outside your coop will confuse owls and keep them away from your coop. Only use flashlights and lights outside of your coop, as bright indoor lighting can disrupt ducks’ sleeping patterns at night.
Cover The Duck Track
Owls are predatory birds that attack chickens from above, as owls descend from the top of the barn or yard. Therefore, securing the owl’s path during its wandering in the yard or barn will be important in confronting owls.
You can cover the chicken path with the secure wire that will protect the ducks and at the same time, it won’t make much difference to ventilation for free-range ducks.
Nylon netting or poultry wire is inexpensive and you can easily find it at most hardware and garden supply stores, both local and online. They will be easy to hang and will be effective in preventing owls from making any attempts to approach or dive into your enclosure.
Use Compact Discs
The bright reflections from the CDs confuse and scare the owls into scurrying away from your enclosure. The sun’s reflection on the CDs will flash and act as a visual deterrent. The clicking sounds of each other are also an audio deterrent for owls.
It’s completely inexpensive to find any old CDs you have and connect them close to each other in thread through the inside holes of the CDs and hang them around common owl locations.
