UK members - birds of prey again

[RWAF]

A few weeks ago, a First Alert was sent out to advise rabbit owners of the dangers from birds of prey. Following this we were advised that 2 nesting pairs of buzzards had been spotted in Redhill Park and Strouden Park (Bournemouth) An Essex member from Billericay reported that a sparrow hawk had been spotted taking pigeons and another member found her rabbit surrounded by magpies and has since been terrified of going outside. Also a resident crow tried to attack my own Continental Giant a few days later..

A few minutes ago this came in

"Hi could you let members know that their are red kites in the hertford area. they have been spotted sweeping into gardens taking pigeons etc and i am sure that small animals will be on their shopping list."

If your rabbits are outside, please ensure that they are in a secure run, but also be aware that being approached by predators and birds of prey, even when they aren't able to touch your pets, can leave them very traumatised.

 

[GorbyJobRabbits]

LOL, some of those birds on your list are a joke. They're scavengers and nothing more. Wont harm even the flies that sit on their food.

 

[RWAF]

Really? Then let me quote to you from another forum where I also posted the message today. I believe that people (quite wrongly) believe that crows too are exlusively scavengers.



http://goldenbunnies.org.uk/showthread.php?22234-Birds-of-prey-again-several-areas-of-the-UK&p=245713#post245713

Can I add a warning about crows?

My brother has about 6 around his garden and they are very aggressive. Last night they attacked his dogs (a lurcher and a collie cross, so not exactly small dogs) and they have been known to go for my niece before - I imagine they'd have no qualms about a rabbit or guinea pig or similar!

​

 

[Azerane]

Large birds, including crows and ravens can be a threat, although they may not kill a rabbit, they may injure one, all it takes is one good peck to the eye.

My bun had a secure outdoor hutch, and I used to let him out on a run on the lawn for his exercise. It didn't have a roof so I made sure that I was ALWAYS out there with him, keeping an eye because I know that we get hawks, eagles, kestrels etc around here, and although my rabbit had places he could run to to hide, I'm not sure his instincts would have been good enough to avoid a hawk. Plus it's just good to avoid the risk if you can. So I used to keep an eye on the sky from time to time, and simply always made sure I was out there with him, neighbours cats etc too.

 

[GorbyJobRabbits]

I just work with and study Birds of prey, among other birds. ALSO when someone feels afraid of the bird, yes then whatever that bird does will be preceived as a thread.

I still stand firmly with my first post. part of the mentioned birds ARE scavengers nothing more, and are not equipted to kill a rabbit.... and I HIGHLY doubt a crow will come up just to poke your rabbit in the eye.

I would question the hawk, eagle, falcon, exc families. And a hawk or falcon taking pigeons from the air, is what they do. There are plenty of pigeons all around to keep their dinners coming.

 

[Kipcha]

I would have to agree with most of what GorbyJobRabbits, I find it hard to believe that crows and such would go out of their way to attack a rabbit minding its own buisiness (In the message about the "attack", it was a dog and a kid, who are known for instigating this sort of aggression. I've seen kids attacked by countless Canadian Geese because they chase them around, but does that mean the animal is a dangerous threat?) and I doubt scavengers would just randomly come down and attack.

I'm a little more cautious of the hawks and such, though. I've never seen a hawk attack a smaller bird, but I have seen plenty of ground squirrels get caught and generally, animals around rabbit size are more common of a meal then any birds, not to mention our larger birds of prey like owls are commonly around here and have been known to carry off cats. However, I have no idea what sort of wildlife you guys really have over there.

That isn't to say that I don't think caution should be taken appropriately as thinking that something most likely isn't going to happen still leaves that small chance that it could. I agree with being sure that their run is completely secure and keeping a watchful eye. I'm sure this warning is something that some people don't even consider so it's great to get the information out.

 

[Lapereau]

I don't know about the other birds but I just wanted to say that I have seen for myself that magpies will attack a rabbit. This was a tame wild rabbit in my garden so he had all the instincts to flee but a group of 5 magpies surrounded him and attacked him, pecking and chasing him around the garden. I don't normally see magpies in my garden. They are well fed by my neighbours but I don't leave food out and there are no nesting sites in my garden so they really had no reason to be here. I chased them away and the rabbit was in shock but wasn't badly injured, just some missing fur and a graze on his face.

 

[golfdiva]

LOL, some of those birds on your list are a joke. They're scavengers and nothing more. Wont harm even the flies that sit on their food.

I made that mistake when s/he posted the first warning. Here we call vultures, buzzards. Buzzards in UK are birds of prey.