What's the dumbest thing you've done to protect your chickens?

[MsBentleyboy]

Well, here's my dumb chicken moment. I wasn't trying to protect my chickens but feed them in their chicken house and accidentally locked myself in. It was only about 90 degrees outside and my husband wasn't due home for... 5 more hours.

Can someone say PANIC!!

Luckily for me I had recently purchased one of those long chicken hooks so you can catch a loose chicken. I took it down the top of the screen door and pulled up on the latch to let myself out. Now I worry every time I go in there but keep that hook right there by the door. I may never need that hook for anything else but it was a sure life saver.

 

[cajunlizz]

Quote:

thank God All of mine go into the chicken coop ONEBY ONE on their own . Its to funny to watch them when its starts to get dusk/ dark , they ALL start looking up at the sky as if they know about what time it is . ONEBY ONE , they follow the leader from the run into the Chicken Coop .

they repeat this in the mornings . 1st. sign of day break , here they come out of the coop into the run . TO FUNNY .

I told DH that BIG RED ( rooster ) is like the God Father , he leads the flock and has total control over them .

Usually mine go in on their own as well. I had let EVERYONE out, which means my valuable birds were running loose too, so I was "escorting" them through the yard. It came time for us to eat, so Adam and I rounded them up early. I guess we missed this one chick and the poor little guy was wandering around trying to figure out where he was suppose to be. He had only been out of the grow-out pen a couple of days. LOL

-Kim

Well , we live in the city limits and we can have as many chickens as we want , except they either have to be in cages , or in a totally closed in RUN and coop . NO free forming . BUT the run is 12 x32 so they " FREE ROAM " all they want within this area . LOL

 

[cajunlizz]

Quote:
I never put feed inside the chicken coop . We have very large ceramic feeders that I slide under the front of the coop ( which they can go completely under during the HOT times and during the rain , So they eat all day from that area . I also slide large waterers under the coop as well , and mid afternoon , I replenish all and feed snacks , and once they all enter the coop , its only water inside .

Guess once the winter sets in , IF we have cold days , I will have to come up with a different plan . BUT , it never gets real cold or snow or ice here THANK GOD .

 

[Wolf-Kim]

Quote:
That is hilarious! You aren't claustrophobic are you?

-Kim

 

[MsBentleyboy]

Actually, I am slightly claustrophobic. I kept telling myself that there WAS a way outta there. I told my hubby when he got home and he said I should have crawed through the chicken doors into the yard area. I could have slid the lock open from there. I didn't think of that but it's nice to know that I could do that if the doors are open at the time.

 

[Wolf-Kim]

That actually happens to me quite a bit. I will go into the chicken run to play or tend to the chickens, but I have to make sure the door is shut behind me. If Adam has to come to me for anything, he will come into the run. Although, when he leaves he always locks the door on his way out, from habit. Because he does it without thinking he usually walks away.

I have to yell at him to come out and undo my cage's chain. Because the door of the run is setup so I cannot reach out through the fence and undo the chain.

Adam thinks it's hilarious and promises he doesn't do it on purpose. He usually makes a funny face and then in a baby-talk manner asks "Aww.. Did my wolfie want to come out too?" or I'll get the "And what are you going to do for me?", but he always undoes the chain.

I think if he ever threatened NOT to undo the chain I would have to throw chicken cr@p or eggs at him through the fence. We have a healthy relationship.. honest!

-Kim

 

[JennsPeeps]

My next door neighbor has a wolf hybrid that is very interested in our chickens. The other day I was on the computer that's in the room overlooking the coop. I had recently been pooped on so was wearing just undies and a t-shirt.

Well, I heard the dog lunge, woof, and a chicken flutter. I freaked out, started yelling at DBF to go check the chicks. I'm frantically trying to run and put on sweats at the same time (NOT a pretty picture).

When we got outside, the chickens were on the opposite side of the yard from the dog, scratching at grass like nothing had happened.

 

[OHMYCHICKIES]

these were great, so now I don't feel alone now

 

[SpottedCrow]

I ran outside in my chicken jammies and big pink fish slippers and treed the huge boar raccoon that killed Tom...it took him HOURS before he felt safe enough to come down.

 

[icthus]

My Grandmother, God rest her soul, once took on a skunk inside her henhouse armed with nothing but a hoe handle. She killed the skunk and didn't even get sprayed.