Life With The Flock: Lacy Duckwing's Flock Thread

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Update on the flock:

They just moved to a different coop! It's an 8x8 coop that's already attached to their run. Most of the coop's floor was redone, including a couple of floorboards. My amazing Mom did all that work. I put in the perches and got the rest setted up.

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For the first time in a long time, the flock actually gots a waterer in their coop, because the coop is it enough for one. Not only that, the flock now has comfortable place to be for when I go camping soon.

Beth and Shiloh seemed to like the coop right away, but the chicks were confused. They wanted to go back into their old coop. Not to mention, I put up a little bit of netting at their favorite escape spot to discourage them from escaping.

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Tonight, surprisingly, I had three of the pullets on the perches. That was: Amber the Crossbeak, Lilac the Thief, and Sarah my favorite. There was a few trying to roost on the nesting box, and a few outside getting tangled up in the new netting. Those outside ended up finding their way to the coop once the light was there, except for Macy and Victoria, who was perching outside on the gate in the netting. :rolleyes:

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I got them all arranged on the perches as I saw fit. The top perch birds (including Beth) all crowded to one side trying to escape Shiloh and her nighttime weirdness. She bothered everyone with her loud complaining that I think will eventually turn into crowing if she keeps it up, and her mindless violent pecking (she drew blood with that on Beth's back a couple of nights ago). This mindless violent pecking is the reason why everyone was crowding to one side trying to get away from her.

(The mindless violent pecking and her loud and constant complaining is all new behavior since the rehoming of the Originals, which included Aundria, a Blue Rock whom Shiloh had gotten very close to. The mindless violent pecking is only while Shiloh is half asleep, thankfully, so she doesn't do it during the day. But at night, she'll actually peck me, or the air, thinking it's some bird that isn't there.)
 
There was a big scare.... Phoebe had gone missing!

Last night when we had gotten back home, the neighbor across the street told us that he had seen a black chicken on my corner. He said his cats went after it, but he chased them down and got them back. I went outback to the chicken run, and Blair was on the gate roosting, and Victoria was walking around. I assumed that it was one of them that the cats had gone after, but counting the flock, I discovered Phoebe was nowhere to be found.

A search party for Phoebe of maybe 8 or so people (including the neighbor and his friend) went all around, but no signs of her anywhere. Then to make matters worse, after most of the search party had given up, a gray fox was spotted not too far from my coop.

After searching everything to be searched after 2-3 hours, the search had to be ended for the night. Me and my Mom started the search up again at 5:00 a.m. this morning. Again, no signs. Then the gray fox was again spotted. With a night outside with that gray fox out there, and not to mention cats out there, things looked hopeless. I even searched a few nearby fox dens, but nothing was too be found.

In the early 1:00 p.m.'s of this afternoon, I spotted Phoebe walking in the neighbor's across the street's driveway! I ran over in excitement and quickly caught her as fast as I could. She was perfectly fine, though a little hot. She got served treats and got to hang out with the A.C. for a few minutes. I'm so happy that Phoebe is perfectly fine! Definitely a miracle! :wee :wee


A picture taken of Phoebe shortly after she was found:

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Today my flock got a new run. The chicks coop had to be torn down and moved first. There is netting on top of this new run, so no birds will be flying out of there. There's some work that still needs to be done to the netting, which I'm hoping to finish tomorrow if I have the time to do it. The run is approximately 20ft x 14ft. (Sorry no picture of the new run. Forgot to take one.)
 
The work was finished on the netting this morning. To hold up the netting, my Mom suggested my umbrella that wasn't getting any use. It works perfectly, plus it gives extra shade and protection from rain. It's hammered down, so it should stay. The flock loves their new run. :)

Pictures:

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That looks AWESOME!
So you completely re-newed your setup??
Thank you!
Yep! The coop's floor got redone, and the old original run for that coop has been replaced, and with different materials. :D If you noticed the netting appears to be one piece. It's several pieces that was sewn together for the two original runs that was in front of that coop. This new run is about the same space as the original two, just a little bit shorter on the front, and no run dividers.
 
R.I.P. to some Barred Rock. Earlier today I found a trail of Barred Rock feathers on my front lawn where I had seen that gray fox a few mornings ago. We followed the trail to find it leading to one of my neighbors down the road. We knocked on the door to let them know, but nobody seemed to be home. There was feathers in their driveway where it looks like the chicken was attacked, so I'm assuming they already know what had happened. They had other Barred Rocks free-ranging, so that's obviously where the Barred Rock had lived. Poor Barred Rock. :(
 
Valerie and a Cuckoo Maran (I think it's Macy) is always the last ones in the coop at night. This evening, before the two was in, I spotted that Grey Fox going towards their run! It was a few feet next to the coop, which was in sights of the run, but probably hadn't seen the pullets yet. I chased it off, but a few minutes later my headlamp picked up it's eyes. This fox is getting way too close for comfort, especially how it came around before everyone had roosted for the night. :(
 
Valerie and a Cuckoo Maran (I think it's Macy) is always the last ones in the coop at night. This evening, before the two was in, I spotted that Grey Fox going towards their run! It was a few feet next to the coop, which was in sights of the run, but probably hadn't seen the pullets yet. I chased it off, but a few minutes later my headlamp picked up it's eyes. This fox is getting way too close for comfort, especially how it came around before everyone had roosted for the night. :(
Do you see it every night?
 

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