Looking at my free range chickens, the most frequent question asked is "how do you keep them from being eaten"?
There is no short answer to that, as it involves sound coop construction, good structure placement on the landscape away from tree lines and other areas frequented by predators. My most vulnerable poultry at night would be ducks, as they tend to remain on the pond or seek tiny islands or brush for nesting.
Many people will write about the effectiveness of flashing light technology as a deterrent to night predators. My Honey Bee Apiary is among my most vulnerable to night raids as I do live in black bear country. I can say that these flashing light systems do appear to deter black bear visits... I have noticed their tracks in range of smelling honey emitting from the bee colonies... If "I" can smell it, then the bears must be VERY interested and yet, they pass...
Back in 2005 I began by using the Nite Guard units... they worked remarkably well on open range and I attached them to my portable chicken coop. With a light on every side, the chickens avoided attack from Raccoons, Fox, Bear, Coyote and other night predators that would have honestly had little problem breaking into a portable coop structure.
Those units by Nite Guard worked for years and some even continue to blink faintly for a few minutes after sunset, even with their solar panels nearly white and opaque from weathering. Nite Guard had a great idea and it worked! I have free range chickens that survived more than 6 years.
Later, a few years ago, another flashing light unit hit the market... Solar Nite Eyes... I immediately loved those new units as they brought new features such as Two flashing led lights (apparently to appear as the eyes of another animal) and have a larger solar panel than the Nite Guard units had. My favorite change was the addition of a magnet so I could just park them on any steel surface such as T-Posts or Metal Doors, even worked on gate hinges. I loved those units and have been using them for a few years now.
And this year, I found yet another version of solar powered flashing light units called Predator Guard.
When I saw them, I just thought to myself, isn't this just a repeat of Solar Nite Eyes and Nite Guard? So, I got my hands on several of them and was impressed with the changes that have been made, improving on the two predecessors...
Bigger Solar Panel, charges in less time
Angled Solar Surface so snow doesn't build up as quickly as it does with Nite Guard and Nite Eyes.
A ON/OFF switch! YES!! I was excited about that, as this allows me to charge and store them without having the units run down. If you want to have one in your glove compartment to use as FAKE security system for your car, or a LOCATOR in a large parking lot, it remains charged until you are ready. None of the other units do this... that is, allow you to turn them off if not needed.
Predator Guard has a Magnet...
Predator Guard has an enlarged screw/nail hole so you can slip it on and off without unscrewing.
Bigger Face... so it appears more imposing if it's used on your house or doors for security blinkers...
It has the lowest profile of all four unit designs.
Then came yet "another" flashing light unit called Yard Sentinel Predator Eye...
Out of the package, it appears to me, exactly like the Nite Guard unit that has been out for many years. With no improvement at all on the original design... in fact, based on my measurements, there is no difference between Nite Guard and yard Sentinel... I even phoned Nite Guard to ask if they were making units under two company and design names and they are NOT.
HEAD TO HEAD, UNIT TO UNIT Comparison...
Now I am a nut about being fair and accurate if I plan to compare anything... so rather than use single units, I obtained six of each design. The following are my observations regarding individual unit performance.
All units from each manufacturer were removed from their packaging within 15 minutes of each other.
All units were put on the same east facing window sill and allowed to charge from sunrise to sunset.
Even though, I could have turned off the Predator Guard units, I did not in order to see them perform with equal charging time.
All four units began flashing at or around the same time, Nite Guard, Nite Eyes and Predator Guard all came on virtually together with Yard Sentinel starting a little later.
In the morning, each of the units continued flashing with pretty equal intensity, though Yard Sentinel seemed a tad dimmer than the others and flashed at a lower rate.
I left all of the units in the same location through our past week of winter (low light) weather.
Nite Guard- Flashing Faithfully
Predator Guard- Nice and bright
Nite Eyes- right on que with the others.
Yard Sentinel Predator Eye.... I'm sorry to say... DEAD, not flashing at all... (all six of them)
I would also like to point out that if the rechargeable batteries in these units ever go completely caput, only one unit allows you to take it apart and that would be Predator Guard.
So, my final personal observations have left me with TWO FAVORITES-
Solar Nite Eyes - magnetic and versatility in placement
Predator Guard- ability to switch on/off, magnetic, replaceable battery.
Assuming flashing light technology works and does indeed repel those night freeloaders, then two units outperform the others.
As a side note... it is easier to START with these units before wildlife discovers the buffet than it is to deter them AFTER they add your animals to the menu. I'm sure if a bear had already visited my honey bees, he/she would be back no matter what, but I put the flashing lights out at the same time I began my bee research.
So, I am posting this review on my favorite unit/design, Predator Guard, even though it's about all of them.
Get them, they work and work well... please read my review of Solar Nite Eyes to see how I have found many ways to use them...
UPDATE 1/30/2018 I have been using the new "variable frequency" flashing versions for over a year and they seem better as the flashing is varied instead of the hypnotic consistent blinking... they are still working and I'm still very happy with them. The neighbor's cat isn't going to care, nor is a dog, but those animals aren't going to eat my chickens or goats at night. Black Bears have been deterred on more than one occasion. I'm back for more!