[joe8756438]

i have a simple system for keep my birds safe from land predators.

so the birds get a point for each level of protection they receive. each group needs two points to be safe.

i mainly raise geese, which are tough, not going to be bothered by a hawk. geese (turkeys similar) start with one point. an electric fence is one point, a fully enclosed coop is one point, night light (.5?), guard animal (.5?). chickens are always inventing ways to die, so they start with 0 (should probably be -1).

fingers crossed i haven’t lost any geese to land predators in three years and only one chicken that flew the enclosure. hawks have taken a few chickens, but never when the geese are around.

[declan_roberts]

I know people here who specifically add a "guard goose" to their hen flock for protection. They swear it helps against predators.

We have a very reinforced coop and an automatic coop door so we've never had any issues.

[joe8756438]

yeah, they deter aerial predators, but you can’t have too much room for them to roam away from the geese. in my experience you need to have the geese and chickens together within about 200sq feet.