The Tall, Dark Stranger paid the price last night for not sleeping in the coop. I don't think he escaped this encounter.
Last week one of the eagle looking chicks came up missing, looks like they were eaten by a fox or a lynx. We have seen both lingering about, not good. I wonder if the lynx is big enough to try and grab one of the goat kids?
The Commander and I finished putting together the new brooder/rehab coop.
Its two current occupants are Americauna chicks that the Commander picked up a few weeks ago. In another week or so they will get moved in with the rest of the chickens.
They need to move because two of the hens have been broody for several weeks. If they hatch out any chicks I will move them to the new mini coop to give them some time to grow. The egg production around here has dropped off dramatically with two hens sitting and some of the others laying their eggs on top of them!
The second hen is currently sitting on five eggs, but she has not been sitting them consistently. I don't think she will hatch any. That is OK because I have seven guinea eggs in the incubator due to hatch in less than two weeks. Things will be easier around here if I can get her to raise them.
I'm not sure what to do about the fox or the lynx, I'm going to have to keep the gun ready.
What IS it with these non-committal hens??? I've got THREE sitting on NOTHING, but they still insist on setting!!
ReplyDeleteOh, so sorry to hear about the slaughter. That just makes me sick when that happens. We totally had to move our chickens and rebuild their pen. Electric wire all the way around. Right now the only thing that can attack would be hawks. But the chickens are right in the back yard. If we end up with another drought, we'll end up putting up netting above it.
ReplyDeleteCarolyn - The eggs that I'm not getting are really bothering me, especially during prime egg laying season.
ReplyDeleteRBF - The sad thing is there is nothing we can do as I don't have electricity out in the coop area. I let the dogs out but a lynx will tear them up so I hope they have the sense to avoid it. Anything that can sneak up on a guinea in the morning light is dangerous.
I'm sorry you are losing birds. I certainly know what that's like. Who was the tall dark stranger? I clicked on the link in the post, but it said i didn't have permission to view it. Was that the mixed guinea boy who showed up? I hope the dogs are safe if it is a lynx. We are still dealing with our fox issues, I don't know that we'll ever totally be safe from fox, but things are looking up. We even have a woodchuck again in the backyard. When the fox run heavy they kill all the woodchucks, too, in addition to our guineas.
ReplyDeleteI'm only getting 4 eggs/day now. With 15 hens! My problem is that my hens are getting old and laying less, some not laying at all anymore. I need some babies. But all my old hens are too old to be broody, I guess. No one was broody this year!
Lynn - I don't know why my links are not working, it's frustrating! You are correct, he was the Pied guinea boy who came from nowhere to join the flock.
ReplyDeleteThe broody girls here are getting ready to give up, nothing has hatched as of yet. If they can hang on they will get the guinea keets to raise!
A lynx would tear up our dogs, none of them are the viscous type.