Oh, I’m sending that to my SIL! Funny/not funny.
One of the hens was not a “high” roosting bird. Four of them were not on the roosting pole, but actually in the rafters, waaaay up there, in the Chicken Palace. The old shed previously had a flat/slanted top that rotted out, so when repaired, a regular pointed metal roof was put on with rafters & that is where 4 of the 5 would go.
So “low” hen was in a corner (3 walls are wood about 4 feet up, then wire - back wall, with nesting boxes, is solid wood all the way up) for a long time. She finally moved to the roosting pole - big step forward. Maybe she was afraid of heights? LOL. Anyway, when I would go to shut the coop doors at night & collect the last eggs for the day, I would spend time with this low hen. I stroked her feathers & talked to her - we were sort of ‘buddies’. She would do her little chicken purr/growl when I messed with her. I always enjoyed seeing her. The last 2-3 months or so, she finally was getting up in the rafters & I was glad to see it - much safer at night. Unfortunately, she is not the hen who survived. That stinkin’ fox was raiding during the day when the hens were in the run, not up in the rafters.
Oh boy .... sent this pic to my SIL. She said the fox actually came in the YARD yesterday while she was on the screened porch with some company! That is BOLD!! The fox knows there are more chickens to be had ... the small coop, where the two hens (massacre survivor & the retired old hen) are residing is just inside the line between what is ‘yard’ & what is not. My guess is that fox is pregnant .... and very hungry!
The old hunting dog usually goes nuts around the barn’s old ground hog holes that the mama foxes use to den, if there are actually kits in them. So far, he sniffs and moves on .... no kits yet.
I am still laughing at that picture & it’s SO not funny ... LOL!
Two days ago, I visited the neighbors - the back end of their property touches our side property line briefly. When I walk the dog, I can see their whole property behind their house.
They raise bunnies (not sure why ... I don’t think they eat them - too many for just pets), garden extensively (his parents - they are Chinese & do not speak English), and have a large flock of chickens. I sent them a “fox alert” & that put us back in touch/talking again (I met them at another neighbor’s last summer).
Anyway, they gave me 2 dozen eggs & I gave them two pairs of knitted mittens. I will have to talk them into letting me pay for eggs next time. He said if we want adult laying hens, “we can talk” so we could buy some laying hens to replace the ones killed. My SIL is interested, just not right now. I am researching chicken tractors (DIY plans) because now I have a source for adult laying hens!
We had quite the talks about predators - their daughter ran into a fox last Thursday on the way to the bus stop. They’ve had raccoons, possums, & foxes killing hens. He said they finally took a count and were 20 hens down, which was quite the shocker for them .... they started paying more attention to security. They’ve also had snakes in the hen house.
Anyway, it was fun talking to them and it’s nice to have egg/chicken (maybe even bunny) resources next door.