[Bruced]

Hi all, I have an egg thief (thieves), which I suspect to be magpies. Chicks are enclosed on one side by a brick wall and the other three by a galvanised mesh fence - all 6' or so. I keep finding eggs on the lawn outside the run, sometimes being eaten by the little black and white treasures. Never caught one red-handed but I can't see anything else doing it - can they fly with the eggs in their claws? Anyway, the main question is, best way to get rid. I have tried covering the pop hole with plastic strips - can't remember where I read it but it doesn't work and just makes the coop look like a corner shop circa 1978. Next options are mustard-filled eggs or an air rifle. That said, I am in an urban area, so the latter would be naughty. Any other good suggestions?

[joyfull]

Sounds like you need a larsen trap 

[themagicaltoad1]

I had my chicks in an open top run for a while when they were little and was worried about them being taken by magpies & crows. I bought some of that green netting from a garden centre and fixed it across the top of the run. Unfortunately I did find a dead pidgeon tangled in it one day but at least it kept the magpies out.

[twissle]

Sounds like you need a larsen trap 

Yep or you can alway's borrow our jrt he sort's all the vermin out for us, Trouble is he'd like to get in with the chicken's as well . hope you get it sorted. And yes they can fly with something in thier claw's, They won't go far though.

[twissle]

Sounds like you need a larsen trap 

[Bruced]

Sounds like you need a larsen trap 

Yep or you can alway's borrow our jrt he sort's all the vermin out for us, Trouble is he'd like to get in with the chicken's as well . hope you get it sorted. And yes they can fly with something in thier claw's, They won't go far though.

Thanks Toad - that might be a better solution than £80 on a Larsen trap or getting a talking to from the local magistrate for firearms offences! What sort of mesh size did you use? We have superfluous pigeons here and I wouldn't miss one but we have blue tits that regularly nest in the area and I'd not want to injure them.

Thanks for all your suggestions, including jrt - I'd love a rooster but too many neighbours...

[Carla]

Magpies are super intelligent for birds, so quickly learn that most scare tactics are purely that.
They are most vunerable while coming in to land, once they have their feet down, nothing much will phase them, so you need to try and put things in place to worry them too much to land. They dislike flowing materials, long strips of rag will un-nerve tham as they have a constantly changing shape that the magpie cant learn, rubbish if there's no wind though. They also really hate balloons, they just cant figure them out, but your garden could look like a childrens party
Short sharp noises scare them away, but again, they learn the pattern so they have to be random. Owls...you can buy scare owls that move thier heads at random times, one of those on top of your coop should help.
On the whole, they fear the new, the unexpected and the unknown. Whatever you choose to do, you have to change, pattern and placement every few days because they'll watch and realise there's no real threat and be straight back down.
I've got loads of them by me, as I'm typing I can hear one shouting at my dog. Beautiful creatures, but I'd rather they went to play elsewhere.

[3Bluebelles]

We had a holiday a couple of years ago in Skopelos, Greece. On the walk from our apartment to the beach, we walked past an enclosure of chickens. There were crows lined up on the walls nearby, and everytime a chicken crowed as they do when they lay eggs, a crow would fly into the enclosure, even into the shelter, and fly off with an egg. We were amazed to watch! The farmer must have wondered why his chickens weren't laying many eggs. I know magpies are smaller, but they are the same family, and just as clever. I wouldn't put anything past them.

Regards,
Jacky.

[8doubles]

We had a holiday a couple of years ago in Skopelos, Greece. On the walk from our apartment to the beach, we walked past an enclosure of chickens. There were crows lined up on the walls nearby, and everytime a chicken crowed as they do when they lay eggs, a crow would fly into the enclosure, even into the shelter, and fly off with an egg. We were amazed to watch! The farmer must have wondered why his chickens weren't laying many eggs. I know magpies are smaller, but they are the same family, and just as clever. I wouldn't put anything past them.

Regards,
Jacky.

Real clever birds !

[carolbriar]

We had a real problem with jackdaws, crows, etc getting into the run and eating all the food.  They would fight in there which got the poor hens going.  Anyway, the only option for us was to cover the whole of the top of the run which we did using 1" chicken wire.  This has given us three benefits.  One, after a couple of days all the jackdaws, crows etc gave up trying to get into the run and have disappeared which means it is lovely and peaceful again.  Two, all the small birds have come back which we hadn't really appreciated how few we had for a time.  Three, we now use less than half the amount of food we were using when half the population of large birds were coming in for breakfast, a quick snack, lunch, another quick snack or three and then food before bedtime.  I know they weren't eating the eggs but it not only stressed out the hens but us as well with all the noise and it meant I was always going out to shoo them away! 
Anyway, problem now solved

[death of rats]

providing you have a solid backstop to prevent the pellet from the air rifle leaving your garden it is perfectly in order to use an air rifle.
I would recommend one with a moderator so that the noise is limited.many a rat has met its end in my garden due to a well placed .22 pellet.

[Spana]

They pick up and move eggs with their beaks.

We have made Larsen traps from weld mesh and an old bicycle inner tube as the spring.  They work best if you have a call bird but  baited up with eggs, if thats what they are stealing, might work.
Remember if you use a Larsen trap and catch any you then have to deal with the bird in a humane manner. Also when using a call bird in must be fed and watered every day and given some sort of shelter from rain .

[scabs]

There's a dealer on eBay that I got my rat traps off who does Larson traps for 40-odd quid, if you don't fancy making one...  a quick search should bring them up pretty quickly.

[Carla]

dont ike all this trap business, just enclose the run so they cant get in, and that call bird thingie just sounds awful

[8doubles]

dont ike all this trap business, just enclose the run so they cant get in, and that call bird thingie just sounds awful

You might change your mind if you saw the magpies eating newly hatched blackbird fledglings.
This may be natural but so is typhoid.

There are too many magpies about and the Larsen trap is the best way to thin the numbers in residential areas.