Will our hens return?

[gmachicken]

Hi there.
We had a dog attack our hens this evening. 10 died, 3 are back in the coop and 5 are missing. It happened just as it was getting dark. I was going out to close the coop door when I saw the meham (sp). My question is: Will the 5 that are missing come back in the morning ? We are worried about them but in the dark we could not see any of them. I don't think the dog ate any just mauled them. We live out in the country a bit away from town so there are a lot of trees and bushes that they could have hidden in.

We are all shook up. The good thing is the dog is going to jail in the morning!!

 

[snowflake]

If they are able they will be back this AM , most likely in the bushes or trees. My light ones go for the trees. sorry for your loss, it is sad

 

[theFox]

I hope that dog stays in jail.

Make certain to have whoever owns it pay to replace the birds and repair any damage.

 

[Egghead_Jr]

I had a neighborhood dog go after my girls. The good news was we were right on the deck when it happend. The chickens scattered fast as I chased the dog off and down the street saw one booking it in the opposite direction. Took 20 minutes to find her nestled down in a window sill flower box three houses down. I had to carry her back. The others stayed in the bushes for about an hour then they got over they're fright.

Yours should be back this AM for food and shelter like nothing happened.

 

[gmachicken]

Hi there, thank you for your encouragement.
Of the five one is almost home. She is at least in the neighbors yard and will probably be in ours in a while. One we found feathers on the other side of the house. Still missing three. Thank you for your concern.

 

[LittleHouseOnThePrairie]

Sorry that you had to go through that! Our neighbor's dogs came and chased my girls and thank goodness I was in the garden and heard the squawking. My buff orpington, Omelet, needed to be saved as she is such a heavy bird that she can't move quickly. My hubby actually beat me to the hubub and tackled the dog! (And he says he doesn't like my ladies!) Jenny-hen is much lighter but we thought that she was goners because we couldn't find her anywhere. Then my nine-year-old kept insisting that he was hearing her "talk." We finally found her tucked into an overgrown lilac bush afraid to come out. And she is my super friendly hen. We got her put back into the coop and calmed down, but an hour later she laid a soft shelled egg. So she was really stressed! Hopefully your missing ladies will return soon. And I would definitely have a conversation with the dog owner. We did and haven't had a problem since.