Denim Deb Hay, hay, hay. Thank the Lord!

[Denim Deb]

Maybe if I rode Stormy instead of Misty, that would fit!

 

[Denim Deb]

Early this morning, I heard Roxi start to make a lot of noise. But, it was still a bit dark out, and I couldn't really see anything. Actually, I wondered if she had just laid an egg real early, and was telling me about it. But, she quieted down, and I didn't think any thing else of it.

This evening, when I got home, I went out to feed all the animals. That's when I found out why she was so upset. Something got in w/her and Henrietta. There wasn't much left of her. I buried what was left in the garden. I have no idea what it was. All I know for sure is that it wasn't a bird. Whatever it was tried to drag her thru the fence, but it didn't work.

I'm getting ready to go outside and catch Roxi. I'll put her in a cat carrier and leave it in my truck overnight. In the morning, she's going out to the farm. I figure whatever got Henrietta will probably be back, and there's no way I can shut the house-it's just an old dog house. She has a better chance of staying safe out at the farm-especially if the other birds teach her to roost in the tree.

If it had to be one of them, it's better that it was Henrietta than Roxi. She was crippled, and laid small eggs. Plus, she was older. But, it's going to seem funny not to have a chicken walking around the yard for awhile.

This has motivated my husband, though. I've been wanting to move them for some time now, and have better fencing, and a better coop. So, he's planning to work on that. If I get some pullets from the batch I have in my incubator, I'm going to keep at least 2 at home, but they're NOT going outside until I have a good place for them.

 

[savingdogs]

oh, I'm sorry you lost your hen! That is sad. I wonder what it was.

 

[BarredBuff]

Im sorry Deb

 

[Denim Deb]

Don't have a clue. But, Roxi is now in a metal dog crate in the back of my truck. There's a cat carrier in there for her for shelter. And, I had a heck of a time finding her. I get it all set up and go to get her. She wasn't in the house! I guess I shouldn't be surprised, after all, she probably didn't feel safe in there. But, do you know how hard it is to find a black chicken in the dark? I looked all over for her! I even went in w/the goats, and checked in their house. Of course Gidget thought she had to eat my hair. :/ I finally found her purely by the grace of God. I have one of those umbrella clothes line. She was perched on the middle of the top.

 

[valmom]

Sorry to hear about Henrietta. Good luck getting a good coop in place for the new pullets coming up. Outwitting predators is a full time job!

 

[Dace]

Poor Hennrietta. I am sorry for your loss, that is a tough thing to find

 

[Denim Deb]

Right now, I'm feeling extremely guilty. Roxi is housed at the farm. She's in the chicken pen-in her metal crate. She's asked me a few times what she's done wrong to be locked up. I tried explaining to her that it's just for a few days, then she'll be able to join Ralph and the girls, but she wouldn't listen. She turned her butt to me and walked off. But at least she did lay an egg.

Last week, I got basically nothing done at the farm. It rained all week. So, I couldn't work on my fence. Today, I finally got back to it. The "new" fence posts had some old nails, screws and some hardware of some type on them. So, I spent some time today getting all of that junk off. I also put 2 of them in the ground. I'm hoping to get at least 2 more in tomorrow, if not the remaining 4 I need. Then on Friday, I'll be getting up the next big section of fence!

I also have a whole pile of old boards that I need to cut up. They'll be used for firewood when I have an outside fire. If I have the time tomorrow, that will happen then. I'll be weeding around the area the wood goes, then putting up the log carrier, and working on the wood.

I had hoped to do some work on the garden today, but it didn't happen. I'll probably wait until tomorrow evening, then get started. If I really work hard, I should be able to have the fence all up, the garden weeded and then planted by the time I go to bed on Monday. Then, it will just be a matter of mulching and weeding until everything gets mulched enough. I hope I get a good harvest this year!

As far as housework goes, I cleaned my bathroom today, and I've been staying pretty much caught up on the dishes. I'm also getting caught up on the laundry. Haven't had a chance to really get much of the rest of the house cleaned, but hope to work on it some more.

Tomorrow, my eggs go into lockdown! I'm hoping I get at least a few chicks. I've had trouble keeping the incubator at a consistent temp, so I'm hoping I'll get at least a few. I'm almost set up for them. I can hardly wait!

 

[savingdogs]

good luck on the chicks!

 

[Denim Deb]

I'm going to have trouble not just standing over the incubator, waiting for them to hatch!

Got a bit of a break for the rest of the week. My boss called this evening. She wants to sleep in in the morning, so she doesn't want me to come and feed until a bit later. And, basically, at least until Tuesday, I'll only be feeding, cleaning waterers, and stalls. That means I'll be able to get the rest of the fence posts in while it's still cool! And on Friday, since she also wants me to come in later, I'll be able to start pulling some of the staples out of the posts early. So, I just might get done the next big section of fence this week! Monday is Memorial Day, so I'm going to be nice to my hubby and ask him if he wants to do anything special that day, or stay home and work around the house, or whatever. As long as he doesn't just want to sit around and drink, I'm not going to do a ton of stuff at the farm. I am thinking of going out in my canoe on either Saturday or Monday, maybe even go fishing!