With the weather so mild, I decided it was time to move the 6 1/2 week olds to the outside coop. DH and I took an old 3x2x8 foot wooden box to the big girl coop, set up the lights, bedding, The set up was great.
I moved the girls out, and I got to see where the term "Mad as an old wet hen" came from!!! I have 3 RIR pullets, about 5 months old, a banty roo 5-6 months old, and the 26 little ones. The 3 big girls were ticked! Luckily we had put up a divider fence! Several chicks got pecked throught the fence, so after a few pecks they kept their distance.
I found I had 3 little roos in with the little girls, and I figure the tragic part went something like this...
The red roo saw a dog nose poking under the fence and went to peck at it. (He has been pretty aggressive for the past week or so.)
DH and I had gone inside to cook dinner while the kids settled in and scratched around in the dirt, then came out as the sun was setting so we could put them into the box for the night... I heard a funny clucking noise from a section of the yard where no chickens should have been, and then I saw the dog with a chick. It was the little red roo.
He was in bad shape, so DH finished the deed quickly. I couldn't look. I feel terrible. I thought I had introduced the dogs and chicks, but I guess any dog will grab at a chance when it presents itself. She had not ravaged the chick, but a German Shepher playing is way too rough for such a little creature.
I hate this part of having animals.
I moved the girls out, and I got to see where the term "Mad as an old wet hen" came from!!! I have 3 RIR pullets, about 5 months old, a banty roo 5-6 months old, and the 26 little ones. The 3 big girls were ticked! Luckily we had put up a divider fence! Several chicks got pecked throught the fence, so after a few pecks they kept their distance.
I found I had 3 little roos in with the little girls, and I figure the tragic part went something like this...
The red roo saw a dog nose poking under the fence and went to peck at it. (He has been pretty aggressive for the past week or so.)
DH and I had gone inside to cook dinner while the kids settled in and scratched around in the dirt, then came out as the sun was setting so we could put them into the box for the night... I heard a funny clucking noise from a section of the yard where no chickens should have been, and then I saw the dog with a chick. It was the little red roo.
He was in bad shape, so DH finished the deed quickly. I couldn't look. I feel terrible. I thought I had introduced the dogs and chicks, but I guess any dog will grab at a chance when it presents itself. She had not ravaged the chick, but a German Shepher playing is way too rough for such a little creature.
I hate this part of having animals.
