Looking for Hens & Advice in Southern Wisconsin

Hi and welcome to BYC.

You may wish to consider protecting your flock to be, not just from predators out in the woods, but i would have thought your dog wouldn't mind the odd drumstick now and again also?

Good luck

CT

All of my family is from southern Wisconsin - Rock County and a few in Richland Center as well .... I'm new to the site as well so welcome
Kamela

Hello, Welcome to BYC! I am also in southern Wisconsin Also.
Honesty I get mail order hatchery chicks. They fit my budget, have a variety, and plus there is less issues with diseases and vaccines are available. I love looking at all the beautiful breeder chicks, but they are just out of my price range. Craigslist and auctions can be source of birds, but then there are issues with sick birds and illness being spread.

Hello!

Welcome to BYC and the coop! There's a lot of great peeps here! Feel free to ask lots of questions. But most of all, make yourself at home. I'm so glad you decided to join the BYC family. I look forward to seeing you around BYC.

Welcome to BYC! I'm glad you joined us!

I'm feeling very discouraged. This morning I had 5- 7 week old girls and one 1 roo. This evening I have only the rooster.

One of my hens disappeared in the morning. They were free ranging in my yard and I went to check on them and they were nowhere to be found. Then I heard one all alone. This was strange; the 6 of them always stayed together. Minutes later a second appeared from another area and 10 mins later the roo and two hens came from somewhere else but my Easter egger was gone. I looked and looked. She disappeared without a trace.

Then tonight as I got into bed I heard a chicken. I thought perhaps the missing one finally came home. I went out in the rain to check for her and heard banging noises from the coop. Not normal. I left a window open!!! :0 the other 4 were dead. The roo survived because he perched higher. Their bodies still warm I searched for the killer but it was gone back through the opened window.

I'm so sad. I have 5 more week old chicks and my rooster but I'm feeling very discouraged. I am dreading telling my kids!

Any words of wisdom?

I don't have anything to make that conversation easier. Especially if they were not going to be food for your family at some point. Depending on the ages I would show them the area and have them help with the work that lies ahead. But I would probably be honest and straight forward so they can move passed the situation.. We had one of our hens attack a couple of our chicks this year and my daughter was pretty broken up. However, we kept her involved in the whole process and she went from feeling sad for the loss of life and began to see the loss of revenue (from eggs), and food both eggs and meat. As we moved her perspective she did well.

vmlocks said:

I don't have anything to make that conversation easier. Especially if they were not going to be food for your family at some point. Depending on the ages I would show them the area and have them help with the work that lies ahead. But I would probably be honest and straight forward so they can move passed the situation.. We had one of our hens attack a couple of our chicks this year and my daughter was pretty broken up. However, we kept her involved in the whole process and she went from feeling sad for the loss of life and began to see the loss of revenue (from eggs), and food both eggs and meat. As we moved her perspective she did well.

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Thank you. I agree with you. I've been straight forward with them since the beginning telling them we will likely lose a couple now and again. The one that went missing was hard already. This is going to be a lot for them to handle.