[kanisha]

Have had a few crows around the place over the last few years ( as well as quite a few buzzards)  never had any trouble from either.
Last year I caught a crow sneak up on a ewe and pull a tuft of wool from her fleece. No doubt off to line the nest with it.  This afternoon I caught a crow riding the back of one of my ewes who appeared quite unconcerned about it. I was more concerned!

Can't shoot them, trap them ( wouldn't know how to. ) Bearing in mind my ewes lamb out and the lambs are small  but up on their legs fast) what risk to ewes and or lambs?

[Yeoman]

I saw a magpie sitting on one of my Wilt ewes this week!  The ewe didn't seem fussed at all...

[waterbuffalofarmer]

I have had problems with crows/magpies over the years. Really dangerous if a sheep is on its side as they go for the eye. Also had lambs attacked and savaged by them when the ewe is in the middle of lambing, a sorry site I can say. I say shoot the damn things, I have a neighbour who shoots them for me around lambing time. They also pick on your nest boxes and steal the eggs, I hate crows I know they have a place for cleaning up which is fine, it's only when they attack live stuff i really hate them (and yet very clever birds).

[TheSmilingSheep]

I've only read horrid things about crows too..... gruesome tales of carnage....
But, we have a rookery on our smallholding, and albeit they're noisy, and they do hang around the pigs and the sheep, they've not yet caused us any problems when lambing (outside) or at any other time.... 
But maybe rooks have better manners?

[bazzais]

I saw a lamb born, take its first feed and was stumbling about, strong lamb.

Went to get lambing bucket and trailer for 20 minutes - came back and two magpies had eaten its tongue and anus. Poor little blighter still running around.

I bought 3 of those whirly things - £20 a pop mind and you have to glue them together.  Wouldnt trust them though really as they still come visiting, crows as well.

I am very vigilant at dawn now as this appears to be the busy time both lambing and for birds.  I carry a BB gun - for the noise effect - gets them flying off.

Have to keep the afterbirth off the lambing fields as they flock for this.


Any other time of year wouldnt worry - often see birds pecking mites and stuff off my sheep.  But anything weak or unable to move they peck more than mites. - flesh.


Once the birds get to know a feed area they tend to stick around - after the incident with the birds - we moved fields to out the front of the house in the yard rather than out the field behind.

It will always be a worry now - but what can you do, just the best you can.

[pharnorth]

I had a rather paranoid neighbour once asking if I had seen anyone near his vans as the rubber seals had been vandalised. I think he had upset one or two people....but he hadn't upset me and the only way in was through my plot...after ccTV installed and much vigilance ....turned out to be crows.   We did have a quiet snigger that even the crows didn't like him.

[Beeducked]

Our neighbour had lambs with their eyes and tongue pecked out while they were being given birth too. Horrible creatures.

[kanisha]

that is scary !  thanks for the replies looks like I need to investigate bird scarers or find the bloke that deals with crows!

[CarolineJ]

Neighbours lost their first lamb this year to hooded crows - pecked most of its tongue out.  They have traps out now.

[Marches Farmer]

All the corvids - ravens, rooks, crows, magpies, jackdaws, jays - will grab anything they can.  Ravens are the  worst, picking out anus, tongue, navel and eyes in a few minutes whilst the ewe is under the hedge producing the second of twins.  Crows go for the eyes of any ewe that's cast.  Used to be the gamekeepers shot them whenever they saw one but it doesn't happen now.  Magpies and jackdaws are major predators of wild birds eggs in tree or hedge nests.