It's been a week, and we haven't caught that little bugger. We mowed the grass, and that helped, but not for very long. Then, about 7 little chickens somehow found themselves caught in the fence and either died from the shock of the electric fence, or before they could struggle free had their heads popped off and their blood sucked. So, to sum it up, 7 more dead baby chickens and ONE serial killer weasel at large. Then, today as I was chisel plowing on a field a good 300 feet from the chicken house, I came across a pile of austerlorp feathers lying on the bare ground, which means there's an accomplice! Enter Mr. (or Mrs.) Hawk.
This is at least the third bird that the hawk has swiped and feasted upon. It's a little harder to tell when a hawk nabs a bird, as there is no decapitated body lying around after the deed is done. If you're lucky you'll find a pile of feathers or a half gutted corpse. It really sounds like a horror movie when I describe to people what's happening to our flock. We set some weasel traps today with some bloody meat as the bait, and I began a search for a guard dog, so we can at least feel like we have some power over this situation. Maybe Underdog will show up to save the day or my ol' pal Foghorn Leghorn. I heard that donkeys make excellent livestock guards.
Adam
It's been a week, and we haven't caught that little bugger. We mowed the grass, and that helped, but not for very long. Then, about 7 little chickens somehow found themselves caught in the fence and either died from the shock of the electric fence, or before they could struggle free had their heads popped off and their blood sucked. So, to sum it up, 7 more dead baby chickens and ONE serial killer weasel at large. Then, today as I was chisel plowing on a field a good 300 feet from the chicken house, I came across a pile of austerlorp feathers lying on the bare ground, which means there's an accomplice! Enter Mr. (or Mrs.) Hawk.
This is at least the third bird that the hawk has swiped and feasted upon. It's a little harder to tell when a hawk nabs a bird, as there is no decapitated body lying around after the deed is done. If you're lucky you'll find a pile of feathers or a half gutted corpse. It really sounds like a horror movie when I describe to people what's happening to our flock. We set some weasel traps today with some bloody meat as the bait, and I began a search for a guard dog, so we can at least feel like we have some power over this situation. Maybe Underdog will show up to save the day or my ol' pal Foghorn Leghorn. I heard that donkeys make excellent livestock guards.
Adam
Adam- you can borrow Simba if you want! We had a groundhog problem and within in a week of living on the farm she killed one and has been digging up the holes all over the place.... Have not seen a groundhog in weeks :)
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