A year ago I got chickens from my daughter for Mother’s Day.
On Friday, just before Mother’s Day, the local fox took 10 of my 21 chickens home for dinner.
Bummer! We knew that letting the chickens free range would increase the odds that we would loose a few to predators, but we had no idea that we could loose half the flock at one time. The chickens love being out of the barn, wander all over the pasture, co mingle with the dogs and the sheep and have developed a taste for worms in wet weather. Hence they were out in the barnyard feasting on worms in the rain when the fox came through looking for food for his kits.
Today Sam (my youngest son) and Kenny (my youngest brother) spent the whole day converting the old playhouse into a new chicken coop.
What a wonderful surprise to come home from working today to see this tidy new home for my chickens!
In a few days we’ll have food and water installed with a secure lock and the chickens will have free roam of the
fenced in yard at my mom’s house with Kenny’s sweet dog Hannah as their protector.
She’s a pyranese/lab mix and needs a job. I think she’ll be a great chicken herder.
In the meantime we’ve ordered some new chicks and are searching Craig’s list for chickens needing a good home.
Happy Mother’s Day!
So sorry about the loss of your hens, glad you’ve got a wonderful family to make a fox proof hen house. meta
thanks meta! Kenny’s already ordered 25 little hatchlings so they should be here soon and we’re searching Craig’s list for chickens needing a new home.