Attack!
Monday was a very bad day at the Chickendads. The neighbors pointer dog broke loose and got into the two big coops. By the time the Chickendads heard her barking, the dog had killed Roastann the Black Sex Link, the two Sussex sisters, Gimpy the Wheaten cockerel and little Swiffer the white cochin. Two other little boys were injured, and the rest of the Big Chickie Girls had run away.
After scouring the property, the Chickendads found Barbara and Monica hiding under the juniper bushes in the front of the house. Monica had escaped untouched, but Barbara had sacrificed her tailfeathers to the dog. Mrs. Chickendad comforted Barbara and Monica and put them back in the coop with the door shut. Buffy was still in the coop plastered against the pop door where the dog hadnt seen her. Eventually the remaining two hens and two roosters were located and coaxed back into the coop. Leroy showed up about dinnertime from his hidey hole. Everyone was very quiet and subdued. Mrs. Chickendad locked them in so they would feel safe.
In the breeding coop it was pandemonium. Most of those birds were in pens where they couldnt be harmed, but the little boys who were loose had been attacked. All the honeymooning couples were upset and sounding the alarm. The dog was locked in the pole barn until the owner returned from work. Chickendad took her back home and it remains to be determined what the neighbor will do for restitution for the five dead and two injured birds. The situation will not be allowed to slide.
On a brighter note, there is new life in the incubator. A bantam lavender Ameraucana hatched overnight, a day early, and is the prettiest chick ever! There are more like him, but they are still sleeping and due to wake up Wednesday. So in spite of tragedy, there is something new to look forward to.