Coyotes are jerks

It’s a dangerous world out there on the open range for biddies.

It's all relaxing and dust bathing now...

We recently lost another chicken to a coyote.

It really shouldn’t be a big surprise. We live on a large piece of property, surrounded by woods and a good distance from anything busy. And, well, coyotes are out there. My first in-person experience with a coyote was seeing one dead on the side of the road. No big deal, I know, but growing up, coyotes were animals I only heard about and were someone else’s problem. So, seeing one (even dead) was interesting...

My next encounter was a little more lively. We just happened to pull up on one trying to sneak into our yard. There it was in all its stealthyness just creeping up out of the woods. It looked just as surprised at seeing us as we were of seeing him. And pissed. It looked pissed at being thwarted from catching a chicken dinner.

You can imagine my surprise seeing a coyote come out of the woods like that (especially given my reaction to a dead one). My initial response upon seeing it was actually, “oh look a sweet dog. I wonder if it will come over and let me pet it” and had to be told that it was in fact a coyote.

I’m not a big nature girl.

But it is kill or be killed out there. And the coyote (or a dog, I know!) would definitely mess up some chickens. It was only luck that saved our girls from a mass killing, I’m sure. They were out, we were gone, the dog was inside, easy pickings.

And it’s one thing for a dog or cat to get to the chickens. We’d be mad, sure, but there is no way we would harm either.

Even a fox I could deal with.

 

Hawks, I just have to deal with.

But a coyote???

Coyotes are jerks.

And it is alarming to see one just saunter into your yard. Not that he was very menacing to us. He was surprised and then immediately got out of there.

And that was that. Coyote gone. Chickens safe.

Until one day, you’re in the house watching a Real Housewives repeat with the dog snuggled in your lap and you hear a chicken commotion outside and then see all your chickens running across the yard.

You then find two chickens missing and you see two spots of feathers…

Well, that sucks.

If only I went outside to check the mail…

If only I let the dog out…

Anything would have surely scared the coyote away. 

(Damn you real housewives!)

But another lesson was learned.

We want to free range our chickens and there are plenty of hiding places for them around the yard but that doesn’t keep some from still wandering a bit too far off, especially if they are left to wander for hours at a time.

I would love to be able to just open the coop up first thing in the morning and then close it up at night. Let them have free roam all day long. But that is just not feasible if I want to keep them safe. We did learn plenty of lessons over the winter and we just learned another important one.

The chickens cannot be left alone outside at all. Whether it’s winter or spring, they stay inside the coop until we can be there to keep an eye on them.

Althea watches over her biddies.

Not that this is so bad. They still have plenty of time outside. Plus, their coop is pretty awesome. It’s big and I have come up with several chicken thingamajigs to keep them entertained. I mean do you have a swing in your house?

And maybe the biggest lesson I’ve learned is that coyotes are jerks. Real jerks.

Sure, you may already know this but now I have come to realize that they may actually be the biggest threat to our chickens. Coyotes are no longer just a thought in the back of my brain but at the forefront every time I open that coop door. And if I see one again, I will not attempt to call it to me.

But wait!

There is a happy ending to this story.

I was heartbroken when I thought we lost two of our barred rocks to the coyote. However, the next morning we saw one of the girls sitting outside the coop wanting desperately, I’m sure, to get in.

She is a little worse for wear – she is missing some back feathers – and shaken up but she is ALIVE and well.

We have named her Beyonce because she is a SURVIVOR!

Beyonce prefers hanging in the coop right now.

Hard to see but there is a bald spot back there.

I'm a survivor (what?)

I'm not gon' give up (what?)

I'm not gon' stop (what?)

I'm gon' work harder (what?)

I'm a survivor (what?)

I'm gonna make it (what?)

I will survive (what?)

Keep on survivin' (what?)