About Me

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I am a 42 year old woman that is about as happy and content as one person can be. My husband of 21 years and our 15 year old daughter live on five and a half acres out in the country. We moved from the city four years ago and never looked back. I homeschool our daughter. We also love our animals. Our daughter has a miniature horse and two rabbits. We also have a border collie, two cats (again), two pot belly pigs, four peafowl, three emus, 2 llamas and an undetermined number of chickens, lets just say ohhh about 200. I have many breeds, from layers to fancy chickens. I love poultry shows, I love fowl in general as I have come to find out through having more than just chickens. Chickens will always be my first love though. I do show some of my birds occasionally.

Tuesday, June 3, 2008

UNBELIEVABLE

Well there is ONE feeling they forgot to put on the emotions!

PISSED OFF!!!!!!

Yesterday evening I was mowing the back and I saw a bunch of feathers in the back. OH NO IT DIDNT. It TOOK one of my first chickens. It took a Speckled Sussex! Five and a half years old and this is what has happened to her. The body was gone.

I continued to mow, I mean what was I going to do? As I rounded the corner out back I saw the fox scurry into the wheat next door. That was enough to get me off the mower and get my shotgun.

I sat, on the front rocker, facing the wheat field, with my gun ready. I sat there til dark. NOTHING.

Ian comes home and says well it just got a meal so it probably wont be back for a couple of days.

WRONG, dead wrong.

I stayed out all morning, mowing. No fox. But I just knew it was going to come back. I forgot to take my allergy medication so I began to sneeze and itch and feel terrible about noon. So I came in. By the time I got in it was full blown sneezing, runny nose, sore throat, whole deal. So I lay down. Just for a little while. To try and recover. (I did take my meds THEN)

I ended up dozing off til about 2. I get up and immediately I hear the guineas going off like alarms. I run to the back with the gun. No clear shot. The damn emus and guineas are both in the way. The fox is on the other side of the fence facing the wheat field, tugging and pulling trying to get one of my girls, now dead, through the fence wire. My older girls, they weigh at least ten pounds. That fox can't weigh but about double that, maybe a few more pounds. So it is too heavy for it to lift over the fence.

I run around front, barefoot through the yard. The ground is hard and the stickers and grass and rocks are hurting my feet so badly but I tromp to the edge of the fenceline anyway.

No fox.

Much cussing, much much cussing. BAD this time. Oh yes, so bad. Ranting, raving mad.

First, I decide to move the poor headless dead buff orpington, ANOTHER one of my original girls, five and a half years old, to the front yard, at the edge of the wheat field. That way I can sit on the front porch and wait for the SOB to come and get its meal and then I can shoot it.

Hey you know what? ITS DAMN HOT outside. I am sitting there, sniffling and sneezing, drooling and dripping snot and sweat. Pissed off. After about five minutes I said screw this and went tromping back out in the hot sun and the stickers and the rocks and hard prickly grass and I got the dead body.

SOB wants some fresh chicken. OH I WILL GIVE IT SOME THEN.

I did something I thought I could never do. Out of sheer rage and pissed offness. She would NOT die in vane. Oh no she wouldnt.

I carried the dead body in by the feet. Through the front door, through the living room, into the kitchen. I threw the dirty dishes out of the sink onto the counter away from my work area.

I took a BIG carving knife. Oh yes I did. I CUT into the breast by the bone and sliced down the side. Then I stuffed it with my secret stuff. Then I cut down the other side, the same way, and did the same thing. Then I took twine and I bound it up real good so it wouldnt spill any goods when it took the body.

I had Shelby watch out back. I knew the fox was not far and would be back for its meal. I was right. I didnt even get my poor dead chicken ready before the fox poked its head through the wire in the fence, right where it was trying to pull the body through. Shelby says to hurry, that its back. Still no clear shot. Animals are in the way. Thats okay. I am going to fix them ALL.

I get a plastic bag and stick the body into it, carry it out to the fence just like a bag of groceries for the fiend. Here, take your groceries and take it back for everyone to share...you....expletive. That would be the F word I said.

Sweating and hot and pissed off I came back in. Now I wait. I heard the guineas earlier. I peeked out to make sure nobody else was getting killed and then closed the door back.

If it doesnt take todays bait, everyone will have to stay locked up. EVERYONE. I hate to do it. I will have to though. Until I can catch this fox, or foxes. I think there are two. I think they are feeding a litter. No fox comes back the next day if they drag home a ten pound chicken the day before.

So thats my day so far, how is yours going?

 

 

 

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

Like you, I believe there is a pair and that they are raising a litter. They would not be coming back so soon and out in the open. I hope you get them soon so your chicks won't have to be shut up in a hot pen all the time. I would be afraid to let them out if I got only one. Guess that would be hard to tell for a few days. Good luck to you. Helen

Anonymous said...

I am shocked at myself hoping that you get that fox!  It's NOT like me BUT now that I have my babies downstairs I would do the SAME THING!  Your poor old babies!  Good luck getting him.  Seems like you guys got a lot of fox over there!  I know we have silver fox here and we were ohh awwing over them last year watching them with their babies but I sure hope they stay that mile away!  

Anonymous said...

Wow! You tell an amazing story.  I am such an animal lover, but not for the ones who attack and destroy the innocent.  I feel your frustration.  Maybe you will discover what happened to the fox and tell us?  -Karen

Anonymous said...

That little bastard, I would of been ripping too!  Linda

Anonymous said...

Well my day was rather calm compared to yours. I can feel your poor feet. I think you will get 'em, both of 'em. Then maybe you can go look for the babies. That would be interesting but probably hard to do away with them. Paula

Anonymous said...

I agree that they have a litter. I would be buying chickens from the store and serving them 2 a day where you saw them by the field. Might call your county about how to catch them. They might try to set the traps for you. Wow! Storming like crazy here. Have a good day. Janie

Anonymous said...

It's a shame I don't live near you, 'cause I'd track it down and kill it ! I don't kill animals normally, but don't mess with my stuff or my animals.

Jimmy

p.s. not too bad, compared to yours.

Anonymous said...

It's a fox's nature to get its food wherever it can.  They aren't doing anything to spite YOU, they're only trying to survive.  That said, I'd be killing them too; there's a surplus population of them.  But a fox can't help being a fox.

Anonymous said...

Kelly I can understand how you are feeling ~ just wish you good Luck with getting rid of those Fox's ~ so the chicks can run free ~ and you can relax ~ Ally x

Anonymous said...

Oh man I'm so sorry. You're right though there is more than one. I sure hope they took the bait and enjoy every last piece of it as their last meal. Good luck.
Take care and Hugs, Chrissie

Anonymous said...

Some days you love animals the next you want to kill one!  

Your poor chickens, is this the first attack from foxes?  We have coyotes here, they come in for our small animals.  I worried about my missing little dog until someone show her.  Last week I took my canary outside with me in his cage and the cat next door stuck up before I could stop him and had a very expensive bird for lunch.  I was so pissed and sad at the same time.

Anonymous said...

Oh my gosh this is just so stressful!  My heart was racing while I read this entry.  I just hate those foxes!   I think you need a fox eating dog.

Anonymous said...

You are one pissed off mama ~ I feel so bad for you & your chickens.  I don't blame you for being so angry and ready to get that sucker.  Good luck, sorry to hear you have to go through this.
xx
Lisa

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