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Flock of eight…

Dammit. Chel wasn’t there at chicken bedtime last night. I’m out in the garden most of the day and I count them multiple times. She was there not long before, for sure. I looked high and low (literally, that’s how you have to look for missing chickens) but no luck.

Whatever happened didn’t stir up the other chickens, who alarm call (read: scream) all day long for the slightest reason. If I had to guess, I’d say she went through the hedge into the sheep field next door and something nabbed her.

There’s a very, very tiny chance she’s gone broody and is sitting on a clutch of eggs in the hedge someplace. I doubt it. Polands aren’t known for their mothering instincts (unlike Pekins, who are a real nuisance about it all Summer). Even if she did, I reckon a fox has got her by now – something knocked my cages around last night. Looking for seconds probably, bastard.

Ah, well. As a chicken keeper, you learn to harden your heart if you can. Chickens are fragile things. But that’s just it: they’re little and harmless and pretty, which makes it awful when something bad happens to them.

I love this picture of Chel, out of focus though it is. I almost went with a picture of her as a four day old chick, but that would have been plain mean, like those late-night rescue charity commercials showing film of abused animals. Hate those.

Comments


Comment from Uncle Al
Time: May 18, 2020, 11:34 pm

I’m very sorry to hear about the missing Chel. I do hope she turns up but I guess the odds of that happening now are mighty long.

New topic. As for the producers of those animal rescue emo-mercials, I’d like to see THEM deliberately made cold and shivering for a photo op…needing 37 takes. Those …people… are the quintessence of despicable.


Comment from Teej
Time: May 19, 2020, 12:57 am

Oh no…


Comment from dissent
Time: May 19, 2020, 3:23 am

Dang varmints. They get in everywhere.


Comment from Deborah HH
Time: May 19, 2020, 5:18 am

Poor Chel. I am so sorry, Stoaty.


Comment from DurnedYankee
Time: May 19, 2020, 4:24 pm

That’s sad news.
Very sorry Stoaty, I don’t know how you do that.

We probably should avoid raising chickens.
Neither one of us is great at the hard heart thing.

And cute foxes probably aren’t all that cute are they.


Comment from MrsMGunz
Time: May 19, 2020, 4:25 pm

Poor Chel… I’m so sorry!

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