Country Life

[j44ke]

Heard the neighbor’s chickens raising a fuss last night. Got a flashlight and went over to check. 2 or 3 hens were out of the coop staggering around looking dazed and moaning. So I hopped the fence and poked the flashlight into the coop through the flip door and was greeted by a big fat possum hissing at me. Gdmnt. Fortunately the coop has two big doors. Unfortunately the big door was stuck where the possum was. Found a shovel - there always seems to be a shovel nearby in the country. Reached in through the open big door and banged the backside of the other big door until it opened. Meanwhile one of the hens had gotten in between my feet and was sitting on my boots. And the possum had wedged itself in the far corner, so I jammed the shovel between him and the coop wall and did kind of a left handed hockey chip shot and sent the possum out through the now open door. He got himself together and ran for the gate, squeezed underneath and was gone. I collected the hens and checked each for blood. Looked like the possum was just there for eggs which were smashed everywhere and all over the hens. Put everyone back in the coop and shut the doors. The gdmn rooster slept through the whole thing.

[nahbspect]

“Rooster slept through the whole thing”- what about the neighbor who owns the chickens??

[j44ke]

“Rooster slept through the whole thing”- what about the neighbor who owns the chickens??

They work twelve different jobs each. I am exaggerating, but the husband is a night stocker at the Loews. His wife works at the IGA. Both are part time accountants. The husband is also the tax collector for the town. The wife is also the accountant for the fire department. The husband helps run a flower catering business for weddings that is shut down but still needs work on the flower farm. And we just found out the wife was one of the early recorded cases for Covid19, and she is finally cleared to start back to work Monday. So I am guessing they were either working or asleep.

I don't mind helping out. Just seems like if you don't help when you see it is needed, then everything just gets worse.

The rooster is actually pretty good in the daylight. He's fought off a couple hawks that I know of. But chickens in the dark are really hopeless. No idea what's happening. Just that someone or something knocked them off their perch and is now chewing on their leg.

[Peter Polack]

Arm the chickens!

[j44ke]

My wife asked if I was sure it was a possum and not the easter bunny collecting eggs for easter.

[Saab2000]

Arm the chickens!

The damn liberal chickens took away their guns.

[ides1056]

Lucky it wasn't a raccoon. They make a hash of chickens.

One thing I have learned about country living: if you find a wire down, do not touch it. If a tree has fallen on it don't cut the tree off. Call 911.

[guido]

My wife asked if I was sure it was a possum and not the easter bunny collecting eggs for easter.

She might have a point here...

[Clyde]

We are lookin for some dirt. I miss it. All of it.

[j44ke]

Lucky it wasn't a raccoon. They make a hash of chickens.

One thing I have learned about country living: if you find a wire down, do not touch it. If a tree has fallen on it don't cut the tree off. Call 911.

If I had opened the coop and there was a raccoon, I wouldn’t have had time to check the chickens. Raccoons are not amenable to being cornered, especially with a mouthful of chicken guts. Scary animals.

Growing up in Norfolk VA downed wire safety was something that got driven into me by school assembly after school assembly what with hurricanes, tropical storms and coastal thunderstorms. Also why we ran all power from the road underground to the house.

[rwsaunders]

Jorn...I see a varmint rifle in your future.

[ides1056]

I sprung for a pellet gun.

[rydesteel]

Single shot 22 with CB caps or subsonics, less noise than clapping your hands together. Much more effective though.

[Tamu8104]

Raccoons and coyotes are the ones you don’t want to corner. Less worried about a fox or possum. A nice air soft gun works well for critter deterrent, I’m not one for actually killing them.

[j44ke]

Jorn...I see a varmint rifle in your future.

I sprung for a pellet gun.

Maybe a slingshot.

[Mabouya]

If a possum can get in, then any number of other more dangerous critters also can, after which it won't be just eggs that are gone.

Sounds to me like they need a more secure coop.

[rec head]

Who cares what it was or how to get rid of it. This is the moral of the story:

I don't mind helping out. Just seems like if you don't help when you see it is needed, then everything just gets worse.

[Mabouya]

Who cares what it was or how to get rid of it. This is the moral of the story:

I'm pretty sure the chickens care, and are more concerned about a long-term solution than they are about the philosophical implications of the story.

[sk_tle]

I would want Jorn as my neighbor.

The coop definitely need to be more secured.

[ides1056]

Who cares what it was or how to get rid of it. This is the moral of the story:

Quote Originally Posted by j44ke View Post

I don't mind helping out. Just seems like if you don't help when you see it is needed, then everything just gets worse.


Absolutely the moral of the story.