- Apr 11, 2013
- 34
- 0
- 34
Okay, I'm putting this out here right up front. If you can not play nice then do not post here. My last thread, "Absolutely furious - neighbor's dogs killed my birds" got locked down because of it. I posted that thread here because at the time I needed to have a sympathetic ear to listen to my frustration at what happened and to get advice on what to do to resolve the issue. I had just attended my grandfather's funeral the day before and my uncle's funeral was scheduled for the following day so emotions were already raw at my house. I would have liked to keep those individuals that had posted updated in the original thread and since I cannot I am starting this one to do that.
For those who care, my neighbor said she would pay me for the birds that I lost. It hasn't even been a week since we talked and I really don't plan on seeing any money from her until next month some time, and that's okay with me. At least she is trying to make things better. She no longer has either of the dogs that were involved in the incident. One is dead and the other has been re-homed. The two dogs that she does have are not allowed to roam when she is not at home. Good arrangement for everyone involved as far as I am concerned.
For those that want pictures of my coop and such, I will get those on Tuesday. I am taking some much needed vacation time from work and will have time to take the pictures. I can also take pictures of my fencing materials and try to explain my plan for more secure fencing. My goal is to keep wanted critters in and unwanted critters out.
I would also like to explain a couple of things that I may not have been very clear on in my last thread.
If there is anything I missed please ask and I will try to explain the best I can. I am willing to take suggestions, that is why i am starting this thread. Anything I can do to help protect my flock is well worth the time it takes to listen to, or in this case, read. Just remember, play nice!
And last but not least, here is an update on my flock. I did lose a total of five hens. My two roosters were also a little tore up. My Cochin Bantam rooster is doing really good with the exception of some missing tail feathers. He was supposed to be headed to a new home when this all went down and that was delayed until I felt like he could go (or maybe until I could let him go). I think he will be going later this week. My Black Japanese Bantam rooster looks a little worse for ware but his attitude is great. It took him a few days until I heard him start crowing again. He lost a lot of saddle feathers, a few tail feathers, and a little bit of skin but I think he will be fine. The remainder of my flock is doing great and egg production is coming back up again and I even got a green egg out of my other EE hen. One of the BSL went broody but other than that everything is good. I found a lady here locally that breeds and sells various types of fowl. Her birds look really nice and I got 2 Blue Orpington pullets from her. Here in a few weeks she will have some really pretty EE pullets (She called them blue eggers?) ready to go and I am going to get a few of those from her as well. I am going to wait until next spring to replace my two Australorps that I lost but that's okay. I'm going to do it in stages. I will take some pictures of my flock while I'm taking pictures of everything else so that you guys can see how they are doing.
And please, one last time, play nice with the other children so that this thread can remain open?
Thank you!
For those who care, my neighbor said she would pay me for the birds that I lost. It hasn't even been a week since we talked and I really don't plan on seeing any money from her until next month some time, and that's okay with me. At least she is trying to make things better. She no longer has either of the dogs that were involved in the incident. One is dead and the other has been re-homed. The two dogs that she does have are not allowed to roam when she is not at home. Good arrangement for everyone involved as far as I am concerned.
For those that want pictures of my coop and such, I will get those on Tuesday. I am taking some much needed vacation time from work and will have time to take the pictures. I can also take pictures of my fencing materials and try to explain my plan for more secure fencing. My goal is to keep wanted critters in and unwanted critters out.
I would also like to explain a couple of things that I may not have been very clear on in my last thread.
- I am not new to all of the joys of raising animals/livestock, I have been doing my entire life. I am just new to laying hens and raising birds that I am NOT going to eat.
- ALL of the birds lost were a direct result of the dogs, not other critters. I do have skunks, fox, coyotes, feral cats, feral dogs, and various birds of prey in my area. That is why I do not free range my birds at this time. I house them in a completely enclosed coop and run. The locking mechanism on my window in the coop failed and so the dogs were able to break through the screen and get the window up enough (I had it open about 4 inches or so for air circulation) to get into the coop. Nothing else on the coop or run failed. My husband and I have come up with a solution for the window (that remains closed until further notice) so that no more outsiders can get in but that we can still open it for air. I will take pictures of that Tuesday because I may call stuff something different than what someone else calls it.
- The fencing on the run is all done in chicken wire. The fencing around the coop and run is being done in what I call "welded wire" used for fencing in/out livestock. The coop is located inside my back yard so I am trying to layer my defenses. The plan is to run 2 strands hot wire around the outside of the yard AND 1 strand around the outside of my chicken run (as someone suggested in my other thread).
- My dog, a 1 1/2 year old Boxer, also lives in this back yard but not in direct contact with my birds. He is actually the one that alerted me the other day that there were other dogs in his yard. He was locked in the dog run at the time but having him able to run loose inside his yard (once the fence is finished) will help with some of the critter issues.
If there is anything I missed please ask and I will try to explain the best I can. I am willing to take suggestions, that is why i am starting this thread. Anything I can do to help protect my flock is well worth the time it takes to listen to, or in this case, read. Just remember, play nice!
And last but not least, here is an update on my flock. I did lose a total of five hens. My two roosters were also a little tore up. My Cochin Bantam rooster is doing really good with the exception of some missing tail feathers. He was supposed to be headed to a new home when this all went down and that was delayed until I felt like he could go (or maybe until I could let him go). I think he will be going later this week. My Black Japanese Bantam rooster looks a little worse for ware but his attitude is great. It took him a few days until I heard him start crowing again. He lost a lot of saddle feathers, a few tail feathers, and a little bit of skin but I think he will be fine. The remainder of my flock is doing great and egg production is coming back up again and I even got a green egg out of my other EE hen. One of the BSL went broody but other than that everything is good. I found a lady here locally that breeds and sells various types of fowl. Her birds look really nice and I got 2 Blue Orpington pullets from her. Here in a few weeks she will have some really pretty EE pullets (She called them blue eggers?) ready to go and I am going to get a few of those from her as well. I am going to wait until next spring to replace my two Australorps that I lost but that's okay. I'm going to do it in stages. I will take some pictures of my flock while I'm taking pictures of everything else so that you guys can see how they are doing.
And please, one last time, play nice with the other children so that this thread can remain open?
