Lost 17 hens at one swoop

[mudhen]

OMG! Just read this thread, I am so sorry you had to go through that. What a terrible experience for all of you. It is amazing the lengths we have to go to in order to defend our flocks.
I'm glad your injuries were not worse. Wishing you and all your injured birds a speedy recovery.

Out of morbid curiosity, if one is not adverse to eating their own chickens, could one take the dead birds from an attack such as this and process them for the pot?

 

[WindyOaksYokes]

Lisa, I am so sorry for what happened and thankful you were not hurt in the process!
We had to put down a chicken this past week... and the bon fire does work... although a little smelly.
As for the dog... throw him in the bon fire as well!!!!! I would have done the same thing... and have. We had a dog that would come and attack our dogs... we finally ended that!!!!!! No more stray dogs since.
Tes

 

[Dipsy Doodle Doo]

Well, I lost 2 more hens today. They had small flesh wounds that were treated, but like the others, must have had internal injuries.
There is one girl that is still in shock, she has no wounds and no missing feathers, but just sits on a roost in the corner of the coop looking dazed. She will eat and drink if I put it right in front of her --- otherwise she just sits.
I bring her off the roost and she sits where I put her, comes out of the daze long enough to walk right back to the coop and goes back to the roost.
The 2 girls w/ broken legs are hobbling just fine with their casts.

The 17 girls that were killed outright, just had broken necks. No reason they couldn't have been dressed out and eaten. These particular girls were special to me --- they got buried (the dog corpse is down on the powerline for the buzzards and crows to eat).
Honestly, if it had been the same situation in the Rock yard or Ameraucana yard, I might have considered dressing them out.
But these were the Naked Neck girls, my most special 'odd birds', and all bred and hatched here, And this pen was my mostmost special girls, and of all the pens, that's the one the dogs dug into.
There is a pen of half-grown cockerels that shares a fence with that yard, just blind bad luck, if the dogs had dug a few feet over...
To console myself, I set 30 NN eggs from that pen today (they are set in the turner, but I haven't plugged the bator in).
I won't get those girls back, but I'll have their children

That's a bit of comfort to me iin an unhappy situation

Thanks for a shoulder to cry on,
Lisa

 

[SpottedCrow]

You're welcome Lisa...
I'd be worried about the dog biting you...If it had no collar or tags, the idiots may not have had him vaccinated for rabies...jes sayin'
On the other hand, I'm sorry about the other birds. I'd write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper about what happened and how you had to bravely defend yourself against the attack...play it up really big...add the pics of the bodies...maybe someone will have a heart and step up...
Many hugs.

 

[BIG-BIRD]

sorry to hear about the loss, when I lost 15 hens last year I went to the field behind the house and burried them there.

 

[nccatnip]

I am so sorry for your loss. In the heat of the moment, you acted in the best manner to protect your flock. I suspect most of us would do the same. I just returned from the coop where I killed a 5 1/2ft black snake. All my methods to deter him did not work and so I kindly relocated him to the big snake heaven in the sky. Did not help his case any that he had a big fat belly from eating one of my precious eggs. I had long suspected this was the reason I have had so few eggs.

 

[Agilityscots]

Dipsy, I am so sorry to hear of your loss. I can't imagine how terrifying it must have been for you, and for your chickens. I'm certain I would have done the same thing you did; you can't second-guess yourself afterwards. I am glad to hear that you were able to put some eggs in the incubator and that your chickens will have many babies running around in just a few short weeks.

After reading your post, I went straight out to the garage and told DH it's time for me to learn how to use the shotgun. He's been after me to learn since I bought it for his birthday a year and a half ago, and the thought of having a dog or coyote or raccoon or God knows what else in my pen is scary enough to motivate me.

Amy

 

[BarbK]

I am so sorry about your chickens. I am glad to hear that you got the dogs though. However if you were bitten you need to have the dogs checked for rabies. Most of the idiots that don't take proper care of their pets also don't get them vaccinated.