The Poultry Keeper

jannette · Joined: 11 Feb 2008 Posts: 31 Location: SW France

I am new to chicken keeping, but have had my birds for a couple of weeks now, and am really enjoying them....no eggs yet, but I am sure they will start paying for their keep soon.
But today, sadly I lost our littlest chicken. She was very small, pigeon sized, white with black ends on her feathers. Very pretty. My son chose her at the local market, and called her snowflake.
But today, my neighbours dog got in and killed her. He is a naughty husky. He was a rescue dog, and they have had lots of problems with him stealing food. so today is a very sad day, for us and them.
I guess, as he has had one chicken, he could very easily come back and do it again? I am not sure where to go from here, but it is a sad day Sad

sorry about that, I just wanted to get it off my chest.

NannyP · Posted: Wed Feb 27, 2008 6:33 pm Post subject:

So sorry Janette, and as you;re in France, I also know that this will be a difficult thing to sort out. The same happened to me last summer, and my neighbour (being French) did not quite understand my feelings about this...offering to pluck and prepare the bird to eat!!

What does you neighbour say? Do they understand what it means, to lose a pet chicken? Is the husky chained up most of the time?

If, like us, you want to free range your chickens, there will always be a risk of 4 legged predators...somehow, I didn;t think it would be dogs that caused the problem.

Hope your neighbour is willing to keep his dog undr control, if not you'll have to pen your chickens to keep them safe.

Welsh Duck · Posted: Wed Feb 27, 2008 8:00 pm Post subject:

So sorry about your news.... As NannyP says I hope your neighbour will control the dog. You may well need a pen to keep your birds safe.

If I remember rightly you posted a pic of your birds. The little one looked like a silver sebright if I remember.

Our dog killed one of my dutch a while ago, it is very upsetting. Its strange..... he's OK with ducks and wanders about them, but chickens are a different matter entirely Evil or Very Mad

Dusty · Joined: 07 Jan 2008 Posts: 405 Location: St. Asaph

So sorry to hear you've lost one of your girls.

Thinking of you. Crying or Very sad

CP · Posted: Mon Mar 03, 2008 3:09 am Post subject:

So sorry jannette. Crying or Very sad

Hillbilly Girl · Joined: 09 Apr 2008 Posts: 2

I live next door to a lovely lady who has keept chickens for a year now and has been helping and advising me as I too would like to keep a few chickens. We are the only two cottages deep in the woods and have had a very good relationship, helping each other when necessary. I also have two dogs who, as I walk them in the woods, have become very effective hunters, catching mainly squirrels and the occasional wood pidgeon. Last night however, my neighbour found her rooster dead, and we both suspect it was the dogs as they can jump over our boundry fences. I am mortified as she is understandably very upset, he was her first bird, she found him in the woods and he started her off with the whole chicken keeping thing so felt very attatched to him. How can I make it up to her? Can anyone give me some advice? I am obviously keeping the dogs in until I can secure the boundry fences but I am very worried that they will return for the rest. The culprit I suspect was my Giant Scnauzer who has the memory of an elephant and although very well behaved has now got a taste for chicken. Crying or Very sad

jannette · Joined: 11 Feb 2008 Posts: 31 Location: SW France

oh dear, sorry to hear your news Crying or Very sad

.
My neighbours gave us some money to cover cost of replacing her (and some things that got knocked over and broken in the house by one of the escaped chickens Rolling Eyes

), they also had their dog neutered as a step towards trying to control his hormones, along with building a very high wall to keep him within their boundary.
It is a very sad situation, I feel very sorry for you, as I do for my neighbours who own the dog who killed my little hen.
Very tricky. Just let her know you will do all you can to keep your dogs away, and maybe offer to go with her to get her a new cockerel?