I understand what you are saying. When my oldest son was a little boy, we had a hawk steal his cat when it was but a few feet from me. Also, Edwin (our cat) is never allowed to be outside as it is much too dangerous. But.... I have to admire their beauty and strength, too. Where I live now, there are a pair of Red-tailed hawks who have made their main home in a tree in the back. I have spent countless hours admiring them and watching them raise offspring. What I cannot stand are the crows who harass them every time they have a new chick. Crows I could do without.
One of the most amazing things things I have ever witnessed was a hawk that caught an extremely large snake (at least 6 feet long but I suspect it was much longer than that as it came close to dwarfing the bird). The snake was so heavy that the hawk could not get any lift. It took 10 minutes or so of circling low on the ground, gaining but inches of altitude each pass before it finally gained enough height to catch an air current. The entire time, the snake was twisting and trying to get itself up over the hawk. It really was fascinating to watch the hawk shift the snake from one predominate foot to the other and to dodge its mouth. Quite the sight!
We do suffer from an over-abundance of cottontails that have done significant damage over the years. So, as sad as it may be to hear the screams, I actually appreciate the hawks for doing their part in keeping the population down to more manageable numbers. Heartbreaking? yes, at times... but they are also an important member of the great circle. Even as I am typing this, I can hear the two hawks calling to one another from across the hill.
I should mention that both our chickens and goose are kept in covered runs.
