Yesterday when I got home instead of 3 chickens running to greet me as usual, I found one rooster in the henhouse and apparantly fine and a pile of black feathers by the front of our house. No sign of the two hens. We eventually found the black hen who came out of the bushes, she'd lost a lot of feathers and was jumpy but otherwise ok. I haven't wanted to chase her to pick her up and check and she was wary of coming to me, but she's moving eating etc as normal. We searched for ages for the little grey hen, Squeak,but found no sign at all.
I hoped she was hiding somewhere scared and would come home, but a neighbour found her body this morning on a drive way, just a few feathers missing on her back but otherwise unharmed. We think she died of shock.
The question is what took her and attacked the other. I suspect a dog, there's never been a sign of a fox around here, it was in broad daylight and her body is intact. There is a spaniel type dog (I think) in the house next to the driveway, it is always getting out and causing havoc on the main road. The dog warden has been called before now. It's quite a way from our house so I haven't been too worried before. Poor little Squeak was attacked by another neighbour's dog last year, but just lost her cushion of tail feathers and they were so apologetic and keep that dog under really good control now.
I'm going to speak to the spaniel owners, but they are really chaotic people. Does anyone know the law on what we can do if we find it in our garden ? My partner says he'll happily shoot it if he sees it worrying our chickens but I'm sure that's not on and I wouldn't want that anyway. I'd just like to tell them what we could do though to try and make them take it seriously. I will however point out to them that from our garden the dog could easily go straight onto the field next to us where the local farmer keeps his sheep and lambs and if his gamekeeper finds the dog worrying sheep I'm sure he's allowed to shoot it.
I've also got to decide what to do in future. It is just impracticable to dog proof our garden it's so big and the dogs get in through massive yew hedges. I've kept the two remaining chickens in their pen today, but they're desparate to get out and free range as usual and that's what I've always preferred for them.
I hoped she was hiding somewhere scared and would come home, but a neighbour found her body this morning on a drive way, just a few feathers missing on her back but otherwise unharmed. We think she died of shock.
The question is what took her and attacked the other. I suspect a dog, there's never been a sign of a fox around here, it was in broad daylight and her body is intact. There is a spaniel type dog (I think) in the house next to the driveway, it is always getting out and causing havoc on the main road. The dog warden has been called before now. It's quite a way from our house so I haven't been too worried before. Poor little Squeak was attacked by another neighbour's dog last year, but just lost her cushion of tail feathers and they were so apologetic and keep that dog under really good control now.
I'm going to speak to the spaniel owners, but they are really chaotic people. Does anyone know the law on what we can do if we find it in our garden ? My partner says he'll happily shoot it if he sees it worrying our chickens but I'm sure that's not on and I wouldn't want that anyway. I'd just like to tell them what we could do though to try and make them take it seriously. I will however point out to them that from our garden the dog could easily go straight onto the field next to us where the local farmer keeps his sheep and lambs and if his gamekeeper finds the dog worrying sheep I'm sure he's allowed to shoot it.
I've also got to decide what to do in future. It is just impracticable to dog proof our garden it's so big and the dogs get in through massive yew hedges. I've kept the two remaining chickens in their pen today, but they're desparate to get out and free range as usual and that's what I've always preferred for them.
99 