And Another One Down...

This has not been a happy summer for my chickens.  Last night I lost another hen, this time my largest and in charge Chicky-Licky.  Everything was fine with her and the other chickens when I let them out into their enclosed area this morning.  They were all fine when I herded them back into their coop after having the local fox run in front of my car and head in the direction of my backyard.  There the chickens stayed all afternoon in the heat.  I turned on the mister for them and when I left for the evening and gave them their last bit of scratch, everyone, including Chicky-Licky was present and accounted for.

Chicky-Licky running free.

I was awakened abruptly at 1:30am to a terrible growling and squealing noise in the backyard grass area and looked out to see the shadowy figure of a raccoon. Raccoon!  Ack!  I quickly ran out and checked on the chickens and counted everyone -  checked the perimeter of the coop and all was well.  But Chicky Licky wasn't on her perch.   I could see her in one of the laying boxes which wasn't where she'd normally sleep.  I went in to check on her and she was gone.

I'm relieved that she wasn't a raccoon victim but what had happened?  She hadn't shown any signs of illness and she'd just layed a perfect egg the day prior. Whatever had happened, she'd gone into the laying box and had died there.  So, there I was digging another hole in my yard at 2am.

I sat outside on the patio thinking after she was buried.  Would the raccoons come back tonight?  What had happened to her?  I'll need to notify her next of kin, Libby, my nephew's girl.  Libby had given her to me about a year ago and she had fit right in as one of the hens at the top of the pecking order.  She even stepped into Mr. Peeper's role when he was killed, in alerting the other hens as to food sources with a distinctive sharp clucking noise.  Yes, she was a little aggressive to the new young hens but she was excused due to her being raised with dogs as her fellow chicken companions and, she was beginning to ease up.

I brought out the trap and set it with cat food for bait and then sat listening for about an hour to the night sounds,  hearing leaves rustle and twigs break hoping that I might catch another raccoon.  Finally, a dark shape appeared by one of the raised beds but it was only Kitty Black, the outdoor cat.   There is a lot of activity in my yard at night and I'm thinking about setting up a wildlife camera.

Well... it's 3:30am and I can't go back to sleep.  I'll miss you Chicky-Licky, like I miss all my sweet hens.