Last Monday, I drove from our RV in eastern New Hampshire up to Maine and picked up our two packages of bees. Then on Tuesday, I came home and installed them in the hives. Still need to move four brooder boxes to temporary storage and extract the honey.
We had three hens taken by a fox last week, so I brushed around the pen and extended the electric fence to encompass the pen and bog filter as well as the garden and bees. That night, I heard a suspicious “yelp” in the back of the pen. Life is tough when you are not on the top of the food chain and lack opposeable thumbs!
Need to continue work on the garden watering system. Need to run a hose bib and one last line for trees and planters. Then, build the manifold system and connect the timer. Of course, then, I need to put in the individual emitters to each plant!
Bees are busy and we have humming birds again this year!
“We had three hens taken by a fox last week, so I brushed around the pen and extended the electric fence
to encompass the pen and bog filter as well as the garden and bees.
That night, I heard a suspicious “yelp” in the back of the pen.”
I had a similar problem one cold Fall, and lost 4 hens myself, but to an opposum.
Since we had power to the barn where the hens wintered, we had already left a brooder lamp near the roosts for heat,
but after 9:00PM usually, we manually turned the lights off.
Due to the hen loss, we left the light on overnight, and put a ‘baby monitor’(sound) in the barn.
About midnight, I was awakened by the sound of fluttering wings, and all the hens were squawking furiously.
I went to the house back door along with my 12 gauge, and saw the possum atop the steel milk can next to the hen pen.
I steadied my stance, the possum was about 60-70 yards away, and fired, and ended up hitting the steel milk can (5 inches low), and the possum ran away thru a small hole in the barn door.
I returned to bed, and then was reawakened at 2:00A.M. by the same fluttering wings, and furious cackling by the hens.
I went out the back door with the shotgun and saw the possum had returned.
I braced my stance to the back of the house, took aim, and fired - solidly hitting the possum; but since possum are known to play ‘possum’,
I waited and checked the following morning to retrieve the celestiallized possum, and dispose of it.
About 4 days later, the hens began to lay eggs again.
Prior to this incident, I had no knowledge that possum ate chickens; at no point did the rooster attempt to defend the flock.
Learning lesson : any critter who covets your flock will try to find another avenue to get in, especially a fox (dig, jump, etc.).
Lights left on, even a nite light, helps the hens to see.
The ‘baby monitor’ alerted me to a potential catastrophe.
A 12 gauge allows you to reach out, when you care enough to ‘send the very best’(Hallmark cards motto).
P.S.: Also, skunks and porcupines will try to get into your hives; frequently defeated by a roll of hardwire fence in front of the landing board.
Good luck with “the birds and the bees” ! Lol !!
Life is all a ‘learning experience’, and a journey to be enjoyed each and every day.
T I K
I have only seen one fox ever - came through early one morning right about sun rise. We’ve had trouble with opossums mostly. A few ground hogs, suspected coons, and loads of squirrels.
Hubby planted fig trees today, and started another garden patch. Right where I thought we wanted to build a basement with a storage shed on top. He said that it was the only place with enough sun - too many trees - ( I guess he didn’t want to take time to clear them away).