We have been hit hard with predators this summer. Since we started raising chickens 6 years ago, we’ve not seen anything quite like this.
In the early spring we were hit by hawks and falcons. We lost a few birds.
You know about the recent fisher cats attacking at night, (they are the ones who pull the heads off of chickens in the coop.) Fishers are what killed Zelda and the three babies.
Yesterday we heard a chicken being carried off from our property and when Addy and I investigated we saw a young coyote in our neighbor’s yard. The chicken he had taken (and bit into the back of) ended up dying in my arms. There was nothing anyone could have done for her (except stroke her and tell her she was a good girl.)
Then, this morning another neighbor came over to tell me that he had seen a large fox in his yard (2 houses up the street.) Along with that information came another viewing of the coyote who came into our backyard, very close to our house.
It’s been a bad summer for many people. I can’t tell you how many “Missing Cat” posters I’ve seen around our area this year.
It feels like we are all under attack.
Don’t know the reason for this sudden increase in predators. It could be that we are starting to overdevelop (which includes overcutting) our town and therefore forcing the wildlife into areas where they normally don’t go.
Of it could simply be that the local predators have discovered the “all you can eat buffet” that is our back yard. Although why they have “discovered” it after 6 years is beyond me.
Regardless of what it is, it’s devastating. We started this spring off with 31 birds and we are currently down to 15 (with one who is still in critical condition.) In a flock where until now we have averaged 2 -3 deaths per year (and most of those were the deaths of our oldest chickens during the winter months.) this is a hard hit.
And in a flock where we name our chickens and have stories and adventures to tell about each one. It’s nothing short of breathtakingly brutal.
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Wendy Thomas writes about the lessons learned while raising children and chickens in New Hampshire. Contact her at Wendy@SimpleThrift.com
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