So one of your ladies did not come back to the coop before nightfall....did they ever return?

[Wink]

I let my girls out of the coop to do what chickens do....hang out in our garden and scratch around in the woods.

I get a knock in the door about an hour later....one of my neighbors ask if I had lost a chicken.....apparently, one of my bantam girls hopped the 5 ft fence, crossed the road, and was hunkered in my neighbors garden.

After retrieving her, my immediate fear was, where was everyone else? Come to find out my neighbor's dog got out, and you know the rest. One of my girls was injured; punctures on one wing, but not on the body. My neighbor girl found her on the other side of the creek, wet and injured.

One by one, the rest of my girls came home (to the shake of the treat jar), except one. Greta has always been the most skittish, not even attracted to the lure of a treat, always on guard. She hasn't made it back by nightfall. I'm not sure if she was taken out (but the solo dog was already chewing on my poor Rosie), sitting under someone's deck, or has traveled so far that she can't find her way back.

My girls only free range for a few hours of the day and they don't go far. If Greta wanted to find her way home, would she call to her flock if she was lost?

 

[Chirpy]

I'm sorry about the dog attack... that is always a fear with anyone who free ranges their chickens.

Whether Greta comes back is anybody's guess... if she's close enough to home and safe - she will probably show back up tomorrow. But, if she was chased farther away or is hurt she may not be able to get back home.

I do hope she shows up for you.

 

[bobbi-j]

She could show up. When I locked my chickens up Thurs. night, I noticed 5 out of 14 were missing. The next morning, my husband noticed one wandering around the driveway, I found another one in a nest box in our old, unused barn. So, two of the 5 showed up.

 

[mlm Mike]

She could come back. Chickens can hide really well when they want too.

 

[bobbi-j]

Update: My husband found another one out wandering about this evening, so now I'm up to 3 of the missing 5 that have returned. So there is hope for your chicken. Let us know if she shows up.

 

[Buck Creek Chickens]

I had a lost rooster return after 8 days, still don't know what happened to him. none the worse for ware luckly

 

[dainerra]

agreed. Chickens are good hiders and since she is so skittish, looking for her only made her more determined to hide.
don't be surprised to see her turn up. Letting the other birds out to free-range as usual will help attract her back door.

ETA: I've had them show up 2 or 3 days later even.

 

[Wink]

Thanks everyone....no, it's been 4 days....I'm not sure Greta is coming back. I hope one of my neighbors has found her and is smitten with a new pet.....well, I can hope,

 

[LovinChicknFarmn]

I can relate. I had one bantam rooster left (5 others we'd given away) and he was my favorite. He flew into my neighbor's yard and wouldn't come back after flying up into a tree. My husband tried getting him down, but spooked him and the title guy took off down the road to a small creek. He sadly never came back. I like to think he's living it up somewhere.

 

[Yashar]

I had a neighbor call me up once to let me know one of my hens was sleeping the back of her chair on her back porch. It seemed rather random. She never had done that before and never has since..