seagull parents attacking us!

[crisgal]

help!
We have a family of seagulls on our bungalow's roof. The chick is about a week old and the mum and dad have attacked several of our visitors. My dad has a bald head and was pecked badly.
I am really concerned that they'll attack the kids in the garden and they are reluctant to play out.
I have rang the council who say they can't do anything as they are protected but (off the record) they said if it was their roof they'd shoot them!
My husband does have an air rifle and is willing to try but is worried that he'll get attacked by all the other gulls that are constantly circling and watching.
Also, the pellets won't kill them outright will they? I HATE them, but can't see any creature suffer.

[Milvus]

It is illegal to disturb nesting birds or to kill or injure a wild bird. The maximum fine is £5,000 and/or 6 months imprisonment.
The air rifle isn't a toy. It will kill or injure the gull

[hc4361]

What sort of gull is it?

Under certain conditions, shooting seagulls is not illegal. All wild birds are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act. However, every year the Government issues a general licence for people to kill herring gulls, to protect human health and safety.

[shaneystar2]

Thing is with seagulls they come further and further in land nowadays .No fishing fleets to follow .
I live on the coast and they are a perpetual nuisance but such lovely birds .It's a shame really .Catch 22 situation .
I wouldn't go and start shooting at them with an air gun.
You could just wound them and then what would happen to poor things .
The chicks grow pretty quickly and they'll soon be off .
It's us humans at fault really ,we leave rubbish and the gulls are up for it .
I would live and let live until they clear off and then gull proof the roof with spikes .

[carmalee]

when or if you shoot the parents are you also willing to let the chicks starve to death? it's a terrible way to go. they will fledge soon so can't you make a plan for a short while?

[crisgal]

i'm not prepared to say which council - that would be unfair, and may only be the opinion of the paricular employee i spoke to.
milvus, sorry but what sort of reply is that? Not at all helpful and just stating the obvious. I am quite aware that the rifle is not a bl00dy toy.
shaneystar - my aunt tried spikes (six inch) but they just built their nest anyway!
carmalee, i have already said that i don't want to see them suffer, so no, i wouldn't let the chick starve, i would shoot that too.

[Milvus]

My answer Chrisgal is in reply to "Also, the pellets won't kill them outright will they? I HATE them, but can't see any creature suffer" What on earth do you expect a rifle pellet to do to a bird. It's going to hurt or kill it, it will die or suffer. As Carmalee points out this will likely be followed by the chicks starving

[crisgal]

that won't happen to the chick, 'cus we'd kill that too. It's cute and fluffy now but won't be in a few weeks. My point was that i wanted them to be killed immediately and not suffer. I don't know if we need a more powerful gun in order to do it properly. I don't really understand why i'm the bad guy!
If any creature attacked my children, i would most certainly want rid of it, wouldn't you?

[mdenning]

As soon as the chick is old enough they will go then you can make your roof seagull proof next year - don't shoot them what would happen to the chick?

[mdenning]

I am also disgusted that someone in the Council said "off the record" to shoot them - what sort of advice is that, and what sort of example to the children to maim animals - please just wait until the chick leaves. Gulls are protected because they are now endangered - as people have said we are the ones to blame not the birds, poor things they are just acting as nature intended.

[askyourgran]

On a visit to the coast I noticed some housholders and hoteliers paid some men (council?) to up in a mechanical bucket machine and onto their roofs taking the gulls eggs out of the nests. An annual cull. I hate them too, noisy smelly crappy birds.

[mdenning]

why do people hate birds and certain animals so much - we really are becoming a nasty nation as far as that is concerned and it worries me because we have encroached on their territories and caused the problems

[askyourgran]

No mdenning they are starting to encroach more on ours. I had never seen a gull attacking someone until a couple of years ago, it is quite frightening to see. Now the fishing industry is almost finished the gulls have come further inland to eat what they can find, and there is plenty of rubbish thrown about for them by tourists. Foxes and badgers are now becoming commonplace in our gardens too.

[classylady60]

Because we are forcing more animals out of their natural habitat by any means (cutting back on fishing or taking more space) it is us who are causing their unnatural behaviour. It's been a well known thing that most animals can live side by side but it's always been difficult for man to live with animals because they want the space that often belongs to the animal. Sorry but we do have to take responsibility for a lot of our woes and with the way animals react to us it quite often through our own doing imo.

[ladyalex]

I'm afraid I cannot help you this year, but next year keep an eye out as they are very likely to return to nest again in the same spot.
It is my understanding that you can legally destroy their attempts at nest-building as long as no eggs have been laid. As soon as there are eggs in the nest it is illegal to disturb them.

[shaneystar2]

I've spent the afternoon in my garden .Lots of gulls wheeling around .They were here long before we were .
Noisy smelly and crappy ?
You could apply that to the human race .
I can see your point of view though crisgal if they're attacking especially with littlies around .
How about one of those klaxon things ? They sure make the cats jump that come and poop in my garden .
Completely harmless but make a very loud noise .

[mdenning]

sorry Askyourgran I completely disagree with you, we are definitely encroaching on their land and as for rubbish being thrown out by tourists - I can assure you it is not just tourists who throw rubbish out - I catch the bus every day to work and there is always rubbish around the bus stop right below the bin and that is not tourists.

We as humans think we have the almight right to take over everything, with no responsibility for what we do - we have slowly taken their living space away and in doing so have forced the animals into our gardens. I am sure they would rather be in their own environment away from cruel man.

[RATTER15]

As a pest controller I would shoot Gulls regularly on roofs but only if they were dive bombing people or a risk to safety.

If you are brave just face them, in 13 years of being on roofs being dive bombed by these gulls, only one ever touched me, and that is only because I stood up at the wrong time. Its a bit scary until you get used to them though, they wont make contact, they do get close though.

[welshlibranr]

have lots of gulls here, they don't cause a problem in the main!.......please just allow them to raise the chick, they well then be gone, don't shoot them!......so cruel!.............they are just doing what comes natural to them, raising young!........and protecting them from threat!........

[Barmaid]

I think you are stuck with them until the chick has fledged. Thereafter, try some of these hints

http://www.howtogetri...-get-rid-of-seagulls/