A hawk just slammed into my door

[carmen in nj]

Scary!! we have them here in NJ too, I live in the suburbs, the bundacks for my family..LOL we have black bears, foxes and all the good stuff..NOT funny when they get too close for comfort...
glad everyone is ok...
hugs,

[Yorkiemom1]

I had called the bird sanctuary at the Houston Zoo after my first encounter with a hawk....I wanted to know if birds see color...that woman told me they DID see color...so I had brite orange vests made for all mine so they did not look like rabbits or rats. Then I went to ace Hardware store and bought these large plastic owls that are about 2 feet tall....I got about 8 of them and I hung them in trees all over my yard, sitting some on the fence, some around in flower beds, some under my patio, one out by the little pond, etc....that cut down on them for about 8 months...then I got laz moving them all around the yard, repositioning them so the hawks wouldnt catch on...and then they realized they were not rel and came back.....

[yorkiemini]

Golly, this must be a big year for hawks !
Aroung here we have mostly Cooper and Redtails, but there are many other kinds. All have talons and beaks, so are a potential problem.

Please don't under estimate them. Even if they just pounce and can't carry, their talons and beaks can rip our babies to bits !

The Fish & Wildlife officer told me that sometimes they swoop and pounce in order to test the size and weight of the prey.

[jadabug]

Shelly I just saw this on your FB and OMG I would have fainted. I am so thankful that he didn't get his talons in either girl.

[LoALAnna]

Sounds to me like its time for the "crafty" folks on YT to get busy! I think a trip to JoAnn's or Hobby Lobby for some "blingy" material and some vest patterns are in my future! Maybe these pesky birds of prey would be turned off if our furbabys were parading around the yard looking like Liberace or Elton in spangly vests, lol. Definitely worth a try, anyway.

[LoALAnna]

Sounds to me like its time for the "crafty" folks on YT to get busy! I think a trip to JoAnn's or Hobby Lobby for some "blingy" material and some vest patterns are in my future! Maybe these pesky birds of prey would be turned off if our furbabys were parading around the yard looking like Liberace or Elton in spangly vests, lol. Definitely worth a try, anyway.

[Joyce Adams]

So glad your babies are ok, it seems no place is truly safe.

[BabyGirl Rosie]

It seems like there are more and more predators starting to appear. I know they are protected but maybe it has caused an over population of them? I know we need them and all but it seems we are seeing way more of them.

[Cha Cha]

Everyone is so right you can't ever let your guard down. Here they still have plenty of prey in their natural habitat that attacks in the suburban areas are rare but I am sure they'd love an easy target if the opportunity presented itself.

[MandiesMom]

I asked in a thread about hawks (about 2 or 3 weeks ago) if putting clothes on my Mandie would deter a hawk. The answers I got were that it wasn't likely. Now, in this thread, I'm reading orange vests and reflective clothing might help.

I think anything is better than nothing, so my new game plan (along with always being vigilant) is to always have some bright color clothing on Mandie when we go out. I will look into hanging old CDs, as mentioned above, too. Can't hurt..may help eh?

[mamaj]

OMG that is so scary. We have a Red Tailed Hawk that sits on the fence everyday watching the yard and house. I hear thumps all the time outside our house. Wonder if it is hitting the house.
My little 3 pound Trinket is pee pad trained so don`t have her out to potty, but I do take her out for walks. This makes me want to just take her in her stroller with the top zipped.
Red tails are all over the continent. Gosh watch out everyone.

[yorkiemini]

Now you guys have got me thinking more like Back Armor - too strong for talons and can't get a grip.
Will have to give this more thought.

Originally Posted by MandiesMom

I asked in a thread about hawks (about 2 or 3 weeks ago) if putting clothes on my Mandie would deter a hawk. The answers I got were that it wasn't likely. Now, in this thread, I'm reading orange vests and reflective clothing might help.

I think anything is better than nothing, so my new game plan (along with always being vigilant) is to always have some bright color clothing on Mandie when we go out. I will look into hanging old CDs, as mentioned above, too. Can't hurt..may help eh?

[teeneythebetta]

Wow that is soooo scary!
I'm glad everyone is okay, but if there's anything good coming from this, I'd say its a real eye opener!

[jeane]

How scary

[MandiesMom]

Originally Posted by yorkiemini

Now you guys have got me thinking more like Back Armor - too strong for talons and can't get a grip.
Will have to give this more thought.

You know..my 67 year old mother suggested tying a helium balloon to her back everytime we go out.

To the OP - I'm sorry that I forgot to address you in my original reply. I'm so glad you all got inside in just the nick of time. I bet that hawk is scared of your house now, though. lol