Surviving Minnesota!

[lmatvey]

I also have been bringing in the almost ripe. I think birds, not chickens, are getting them or mice. With plenty of farm cats running about that really shouldn’t be a problem but even exposed potatoes have been nibbles on. While the chickens love a ripe tomato I have them fenced in while the garden is coming to fruition.
Twins you say! Too bad my actual twins don’t enjoy helping me as much as the enjoy eating what I preserve.

lol, I understand and about the kids helping, my oldest is 13 and asking them to snap beans is like giving them a “life sentence”
I had to learn about penning the chickens the hard way, when they ate every last hot pepper, plant and all, when I first started gardening

If that was happening here, I would say it was voles.

Like r2elk, Voles get my potatoes too

I loose a few here and there to small furry things that scurry, but this was tomato carnage! My German giants were nothing but a shell, and I have something like 75 plants, and I was turning my yard colors with all the half eaten bits I threw out. The DH put out a baited raccoon live trap, and it has suddenly stopped.......we haven’t even caught the neighborhood stray cats

 

[Bogtown Chick]

My lovely remaining 7 hens did not come to greet me from their nooks and crannies on my property. They are Gone Girl. Gone. No feather piles. Just a few of Sunnie Two’s from molting. No vicious attack noted like the other three. I’ve walked the loop I live on. (Found two mushrooms—chanterelles) but no 7 laying hens. My son did take video of two turkey hens and a large brood of wild poults in the yard Sunday. Do you suppose those silly girls followed? I am just sick. When I said I wanted to be done I thought my 1 year old hens would be my last two that would be with me for another 3 years.
What am I to do with myself for cripes sake?!
Ralphie you have quite the collection of lucky roosters. I’m going to wallow in my first chickenlessness in 8 years and 5 months. What a great ride.
I’ll keep you posted on mushrooms I guess. And if any slightly smaller funny looking Eastern turkeys trot back in for a home visit. Jeesh.

 

[Momof3plustwins]

My lovely remaining 7 hens did not come to greet me from their nooks and crannies on my property. They are Gone Girl. Gone. No feather piles. Just a few of Sunnie Two’s from molting. No vicious attack noted like the other three. I’ve walked the loop I live on. (Found two mushrooms—chanterelles) but no 7 laying hens. My son did take video of two turkey hens and a large brood of wild poults in the yard Sunday. Do you suppose those silly girls followed? I am just sick. When I said I wanted to be done I thought my 1 year old hens would be my last two that would be with me for another 3 years.
What am I to do with myself for cripes sake?!
Ralphie you have quite the collection of lucky roosters. I’m going to wallow in my first chickenlessness in 8 years and 5 months. What a great ride.
I’ll keep you posted on mushrooms I guess. And if any slightly smaller funny looking Eastern turkeys trot back in for a home visit. Jeesh.

Oh that is not good news. I think not knowing is the hardest part. It
Really bothers me when I don’t know for sure what happened.

 

[Bogtown Chick]

About two hours after I posted this is Pearl out of hiding. I ran down to see who was in
the coop as it was roost time. Just Loretta. I looked through the woods found Tilly’s lavender feather pile between the house and coop. I walked around lawn toward shed and there on my hill was Freya and Sunny’s feathers. New in the 3 hours I had walked it before. We are being watched. 3 dead hens. 2 missing yet. 2 roosting.

I talked to some other local chicken folks. We think coyotes. Wolves seem to be gone right now.

 

[lmatvey]

About two hours after I posted this is Pearl out of hiding. I ran down to see who was in
the coop as it was roost time. Just Loretta. I looked through the woods found Tilly’s lavender feather pile between the house and coop. I walked around lawn toward shed and there on my hill was Freya and Sunny’s feathers. New in the 3 hours I had walked it before. We are being watched. 3 dead hens. 2 missing yet. 2 roosting.

I talked to some other local chicken folks. We think coyotes. Wolves seem to be gone right now.

I’m so sorry, it’s a terrible thing to discover.

 

[ejb3810]

View attachment 2298009
About two hours after I posted this is Pearl out of hiding. I ran down to see who was in
the coop as it was roost time. Just Loretta. I looked through the woods found Tilly’s lavender feather pile between the house and coop. I walked around lawn toward shed and there on my hill was Freya and Sunny’s feathers. New in the 3 hours I had walked it before. We are being watched. 3 dead hens. 2 missing yet. 2 roosting.

I talked to some other local chicken folks. We think coyotes. Wolves seem to be gone right now.

From what you describe here I would guess coyote is correct. They have no problem coming in during the middle of the day, and generally there are some feathers left where they catch the bird prior to taking off with it.

 

[shawluvsbirds]

View attachment 2298009
About two hours after I posted this is Pearl out of hiding. I ran down to see who was in
the coop as it was roost time. Just Loretta. I looked through the woods found Tilly’s lavender feather pile between the house and coop. I walked around lawn toward shed and there on my hill was Freya and Sunny’s feathers. New in the 3 hours I had walked it before. We are being watched. 3 dead hens. 2 missing yet. 2 roosting.

I talked to some other local chicken folks. We think coyotes. Wolves seem to be gone right now.

Did any more come in to roost?

 

[Momof3plustwins]

Spent the day at the lake and will head back tomorrow. Brought down 3 of my kids 2 nieces and 2 nephews. It was a good day and the kids all had fun!

 

[Bogtown Chick]

Did any more come in to roost?

Oh gosh I wish. I got up and out there early. Nada for Patsy and Cosette. The MIAs.
Feather piles belonged to Tilly, Freya and Sunny Two.
To have only two birds sounds pathetic. 3 or 4 wouldn’t be bad. Like one of those suburbia situations. But “I’ve got two chickens.” Is a chuckle. They are both skiddish as can be. I took down tuna fish and Boss. If they could give a middle wing feather from the highest roost in the run I think they would have given it today.
I freshened up shavings. Put lavender and chamomile in the shavings.
so I’ve got Pearl the lavender Ameraucana screamer I got from Jerry. She’s in my avatar. Had slow crop for over a year. No eggs. She’s in henopause I think. She’s yard eye candy though. And Loretta Lynn. A lightweight barnevelder. She’s flighty and quick on her toes. She’ll be laying nice brown eggs again I’m sure at 1 years old.
I’m thinking of rehoming them if anybody is interested. I don’t know... maybe I keep em through fall. They do make good company in the garden if I’m out there working on stuff over the weekend. I may dwell on it a bit.
everybody I talk to says ‘yotes.

Here’s my two survivors in the front there.

 

[shawluvsbirds]

Oh gosh I wish. I got up and out there early. Nada for Patsy and Cosette. The MIAs.
Feather piles belonged to Tilly, Freya and Sunny Two.
To have only two birds sounds pathetic. 3 or 4 wouldn’t be bad. Like one of those suburbia situations. But “I’ve got two chickens.” Is a chuckle. They are both skiddish as can be. I took down tuna fish and Boss. If they could give a middle wing feather from the highest roost in the run I think they would have given it today.
I freshened up shavings. Put lavender and chamomile in the shavings.
so I’ve got Pearl the lavender Ameraucana screamer I got from Jerry. She’s in my avatar. Had slow crop for over a year. No eggs. She’s in henopause I think. She’s yard eye candy though. And Loretta Lynn. A lightweight barnevelder. She’s flighty and quick on her toes. She’ll be laying nice brown eggs again I’m sure at 1 years old.
I’m thinking of rehoming them if anybody is interested. I don’t know... maybe I keep em through fall. They do make good company in the garden if I’m out there working on stuff over the weekend. I may dwell on it a bit.
everybody I talk to says ‘yotes.View attachment 2299418
Here’s my two survivors in the front there.

Darn. I was hoping maybe one or two more were just scared and hiding out.