Grieving after losing my 8 to a fox

[sourland]

Welcome to BYC - sorry for your loss.

 

[Knobby]

Ouch...sorry to hear about your loss. We have foxes, coyotes, eagles, hawks, falcons, possums, among other things, that we constantly have to up our game in order to protect our flocks. Please feel free to ask how others have dealt with their loss and what actions they've taken to better protect everyone.

 

[Jener8or]

Hello! I know how hard that must be to experience. You really cared about your chickens, so don't be too hard on yourself; it sounds like they had a good life. I hope you can get some new chickens that bring you just as much happiness.

Thanks for joining and welcome to BYC!

 

[Jcho131]

Thank you everyone for your kind words and the welcome. I couldn't stand the sight of the empty coop so I rushed out and got 3 new chicks to start building the flock again. They are distracting me a little but they have big boots to fill...it will take time to heal. I'm glad I've found some people here who know what I'm going through.

 

[1stflockMama]

My heart goes out to you and your family. I am terribly sorry for your loss, you never truly realize the impact these tiny raptors have on you until its too late.
Please know you are not at fault. We lost a girl to heat stroke and I beat myself up for weeks. I was so heart broken I didnt feel fit enough to care for my flock, it caused depression deeper than I realized.
As chicken tenders we tend to take on the guilt when mother nature does its thing.
Please, learn from the experience, find peace away from the what ifs, and open your heart and home back up for a new flock.
The world needs more lovers in it.

 

[centralcaligirl]

I am so sorry for your loss. I can only imagine how devastated you must feel.

I lost one of my favorite hens last year to an oppossum when my daughter accidentally left one coop doors open and I didn't check it before bed like I normally do. I beat myself up for a days over it...I felt incredibly guilty because I could see in retrospect how it could have been prevented. However, I eventually came to see it as a learning experience and I made some changes to the coop and run design so that such an accident couldn't happen again.

I want to encourage you to begin again. I bet your eight hens had a far better life with you than they would have had otherwise and that you will be able to do the same for a new group of girls.

 

[Debbie292d]

Hiya, and welcome to BYC!

I am so very sorry for your loss!

Your story was sounding eerily familiar. Last week I was contacted by a lady vet with three kids who had several silkies they were ready to show in 4H in a couple of weeks. They, too, were gone on vacation, and the mother-in-law didn't shut the coop correctly, and they, too, had a fox take them all.

I am glad to hear you have new chicks to try take that pain away. They all drove two hours to see pretty silkies again. They bought three that they would be able to show in 4H. The mom wrote me to say this doesn't replace what they've lost or the pain of losing their pets, but the kids cried on the way home as they were so happy again. I hope you can find peace and happiness with your new chicks and get past what you've lost too.

 

[PrettyBirdRocky]

Heart goes out to you. I'm sorry for your loss, it's never easy. My hubby found our Mama dead this afternoon, and I'm kicking myself bc I didn't check the cameras last night or this morning. I get it. It sucks. Would I have been able to help or not? Was it meant to be this way?

Hugs

 

[007Sean]

Howdy, and Welcome to Backyard Chickens.

Happy to have you here with us. Enjoy your time here at BYC!

Sorry to hear of your loss!

Thanks for joining our community!

 

[Jcho131]

Hiya, and welcome to BYC!

I am so very sorry for your loss!

Your story was sounding eerily familiar. Last week I was contacted by a lady vet with three kids who had several silkies they were ready to show in 4H in a couple of weeks. They, too, were gone on vacation, and the mother-in-law didn't shut the coop correctly, and they, too, had a fox take them all.

I am glad to hear you have new chicks to try take that pain away. They all drove two hours to see pretty silkies again. They bought three that they would be able to show in 4H. The mom wrote me to say this doesn't replace what they've lost or the pain of losing their pets, but the kids cried on the way home as they were so happy again. I hope you can find peace and happiness with your new chicks and get past what you've lost too.

Thank you so much for sharing this story. To know we're not alone is really comforting